Dec. 10 report:
Arrived today at 12:00, left at 4:15. Wind was NE 1-4, clouds were never over 5%, visibility was 55 - 65K, temperature 37-44F. What really surprised me was the barometric pressure, which started at a very high 30.57 and ended at 30.46. The highest pressures I've experienced this fall.
I was guardedly optimistic, even this late in the season, as finally there are large areas of the country north of us getting some snow. Thanks to the recent severe cold front, we've finally had a hard frost with lows in the lower 20's. I suspected there should be some hawks moving south because of it.
First bird was an adult Bald Eagle at 12:03. At 12:21 I was watching 16 Sandhill Cranes when I spotted the familiar crossbow shape of a buteo coming my way, and a nice adult Red-shouldered Hawk sailed overhead. An adult Red-tailed Hawk followed almost the same path 34 minutes later. Yes! The migration isn't completely done!
The action wasn't as quick as I might have liked...but there were countable birds heading south!
I counted three more Red-tails, with the last one at 4:03 amid a kettle of 26 Turkey Vultures streaming down the sky in front of a 3/4 moon. It would have made a memorable photograph but my cell phone couldn't handle it. That's OK. One more image for my mental photo album - a collection years in the making.
It was interesting how much faster the vultures were in a glide. They easily overtook the much smaller hawk, even though it was the first bird to stream out of the kettle. It gamely glided on south at its own pace.
Final totals, Dec. 10, 2016:
Bald Eagle 1 (adult)
Turkey Vulture 38
Red-shouldered 1
Red-tailed 4
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Todays Raptors: 44
Also seen:
Sandhill Cranes 66
I plan to be on the lookout tomorrow after church, for possibly the last time this fall. Truth is that I don't want it to be over. I'm still optimistic at the end of this year's flight - hoping for that elusive Golden Eagle...and a few more hawks too!
Reporting: Bill Haley
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Today, I saw multiple groups of Turkey Vultures in kettles all across the valley everywhere we looked about midday. At one time I saw about 60 in 3 groups and they were all moving S from the Tops of the kettles. I believe them to have been migrants, but alas can't count them. But it just goes to show you that it pays to
KEEP LOOKING UP!
Hope you holidays are proving to be blessed. Check in the morning for Bill's Sunday Report!
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