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Subject:

Fort Smallwood Park (Thursday, 23 Apr 2009) 1533 Raptors

From:

Sue Ricciardi

Reply-To:

Date:

Fri, 24 Apr 2009 02:50:21 +0000

Fort Smallwood Park
Pasadena, Maryland, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 23, 2009
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Species            Day's Count    Month Total   Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture               16             80            230
Turkey Vulture             158           1306           5439
Osprey                      15            235            410
Bald Eagle                   0             14             62
Northern Harrier             6             38             75
Sharp-shinned Hawk         151            505            606
Cooper's Hawk               27            130            329
Northern Goshawk             0              0              0
Red-shouldered Hawk          0             24            242
Broad-winged Hawk         1137           1230           1230
Red-tailed Hawk             16             81            249
Rough-legged Hawk            0              0              0
Golden Eagle                 0              1              1
American Kestrel             2            153            289
Merlin                       1             40             42
Peregrine Falcon             1              1              3
Unknown Accipiter            1              6             15
Unknown Buteo                0              9             19
Unknown Falcon               0              6              7
Unknown Eagle                0              0              0
Unknown Raptor               2             10             16

Total:                    1533           3869           9264
----------------------------------------------------------------------

Observation start time: 06:30:00 
Observation end   time: 16:00:00 (EST)
Total observation time: 9.5 hours

Official Counter:        Hal Wierenga, Sue Ricciardi

Observers:        Bill Hubick, Cal Orvis, Dan Haas, Dave Mozurkewich,
                  Dave Powell, Ed Carlson, Hal Wierenga, Larry Zoller,
                  Marty Miller, Matt Hafner, Ralph Geuder

Visitors: Joe Jehl


Weather:
Mostly sunny becoming mostly cloudy and ending sunny in the last hour;
45-61 degrees; good to excellent visibility; winds started out W at 8 mph,
increasing to 15 mph; then turned to the WNW 15-22 mph, gusting to 32 mph;
ended from the NW 12-15 mph, gusting to 29 mph

Raptor Observations:
An incredible flight day.  We were very fortunate to have strong westerly
winds, which pushed a Broadwing flight our way in a big way.  We also had
great clouds for a backdrop. Also our best Sharpshin day thus far.  Kettles
of Broadwings started forming in the 8-9 am hour (EDT) and continued strong
through the 1-2 pm hour, with an hourly high of 410 in the 11-12 noon hour.

Non-raptor Observations:
New Arrivals: Spotted Sandpiper (2), Cliff Swallow (2), Bank Swallow (5),
Least Sandpiper (2), Seaside Sparrow (1), Glossy Ibis (2)
 =======================================================================
Report submitted by Sue Ricciardi ()
Fort Smallwood Park information may be found at:
http://www.mdbirds.org/sites/mdsites/hawks/hawkwatch.html

Site Description:
Fort Smallwood Park is located on the western shore of Chesapeake Bay at
the mouth of the Patapsco River, 11 miles south of Baltimore, MD. Best
winds are from the southwest. The Park is closed to visitors on Wednesdays.