A Record Raptor Day: Golden Eagles: By: Seth Cutright Counted By: Dan Berard
Today was a record breaking day…literally. During the Fall of 1996, 8 Golden Eagles were recorded on a single day. Today, that record was broken, as 14 Golden Eagles were recorded from the Cape May Hawk Watch Platform. As anyone who has attempted to count raptors knows, it can be tough trying to figure out which birds are migrating and which birds have been around all day and that goes double for eagles. Thankfully, today was a team effort. There was constant communication between me, in the Far North Raptor Banding Blind, Forrest Rowland, the counter at the Cape Henlopen Hawk Watch, and Dan Berard, counting at the Cape May Hawk Watch Platform. As an eagle was spotted, word was spread and we were able to track their movements and even how long it took some individuals to cross the bay.
Other highlights at the platform today were Clay-colored and Fox Sparrows feeding among Song and House Sparrows. Many ducks were still on the pond by the count site, along with Cave Swallows flying over it. Then to cap off a really fun and interesting day, the last highlight was a flock of five Tundra Swans.
Notes: This bird was seen both days. Some stand out field marks were noted to tell that it was the same bird both days. Such marks are, the very large amount and bright white wing patches, and thicker bright white band on tail. Also noted was the thin brown tail band on tail tip. These marks were seen on this bird both days in person and from banding photos. This photo is from 11-10-2008
Photos done by Dan Berard
