Thanks to Saundra Byrd's original report on April 30th about the Red-tailed Hawk nest at Elvaton Park in Millersville, one of two baby hawks were banded. Yesterday, Saundra, Winger West, Dave Brenneman, and I were there as Marty and Woody Martin arrived to band. We observed the two young hawks out on the limb just left of the nest. They watched as Woody climbed the 75 foot pine tree. Woody was able to reach one, when suddenly the other flew. The young hawk looked rather startled as he/she flew over those of us standing on the ground. Maybe we were witnessing first flight! Everything went as planned. One, then two adults arrived probably after we had been there for over an hour. We talked to some locals who were walking their dogs. They said the hawks had been nesting there for a few years. Saundra confirmed she saw them last year, too.

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology's "All About Birds" webpage (http://www.allaboutbirds.org) describes nest placement as "Red-tailed Hawks typically put their nests in the crowns of tall trees where they have a commanding view of the landscape." This nest fits that description to a tee - as the hawks have a commanding view of all the activity going on in the park. So if you are looking for a new place to bird in Anne Arundel County, you might try Elvaton Park. Keep your eyes open for this pair of hawks next year!

Location:     Elvaton Park
Observation date:     5/27/11
Number of species:     19

Double-crested Cormorant     3
Turkey Vulture     1
Red-tailed Hawk (Eastern)     4
Chimney Swift     3
Eastern Wood-Pewee     1
Eastern Phoebe     1
White-eyed Vireo     1
Blue Jay     1
American Crow     3
Tufted Titmouse     1
American Robin     8
Gray Catbird     1
Brown Thrasher     1
European Starling     1
Chipping Sparrow     2
Northern Cardinal     2
Red-winged Blackbird     2
Common Grackle     1
Baltimore Oriole     1

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Marcy Stutzman
Russett, MD


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