Hawkwatch - Monday, October 23, 2017

South winds in late October produce very few raptors (as you can see from the total of only 27 birds), but fortunately for us, we're in Cape May and there's always plenty of things to see! We were treated to loads of Tree Swallows with 1 Cliff and 1 Cave Swallow, an American Pipit flying over, Eastern Meadowlarks fluttering over multiple times, oodles of ducks on the pond, and excellent seabird activity throughout the entire day. Tomorrow looks to be like a wash out for the hawks, but who knows what this crazy weather system will bring in.

Cape May

Cape May Point, New Jersey, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 23, 2017
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Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture                0              4              4
Turkey Vulture               0            169            320
Osprey                       0            546           2621
Bald Eagle                   1            112            284
Northern Harrier             0            180            409
Sharp-shinned Hawk          14           3075           8244
Cooper's Hawk                3            751           1327
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             49             51
Broad-winged Hawk            0            450           1095
Red-tailed Hawk              0            101            158
Rough-legged Hawk            0              3              3
Golden Eagle                 0              0              0
American Kestrel             3           1342           6772
Merlin                       4            804           1849
Peregrine Falcon             2            736           1073
Unknown Accipiter            0              0              1
Unknown Buteo                0              0              0
Unknown Falcon               0              0              4
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               0              0              0
Mississippi Kite             0              0              1

Total:                      27           8322          24216
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Observation start time: 06:00:00 
Observation end   time: 16:00:00 
Total observation time: 9.7 hours

Official Counter:        Melissa Roach

Feeling finchy? Three House Finches check out the pines just beside the platform.

This juvenile Common Loon flew right over Bunker Pond. Check out his big, ol' floppy feet
and thick bill.

We had a very obliging Tree Swallow make use of the platform today.

He seemed to like the upper deck more...or maybe he just liked the company up there ;)

This male Northern Pintail has certainly seen better days! He was clearly the survivor of a predatory attack
(check out the lack of feathers on his neck). Hopefully he can make a quick and speedy recovery.