You Gotta Eat Right to See Hawks. LOL

Florence isn't pushing back the hawks now!!!

Bill and Jim opened the day with hawks from the start.  It's prime time, as most of you know, and masses of hawks have been passing west of us, and are reaching the Texas border.  But now it's our time.  Hopes are high the next few days for a great number of hawks to pass the watch.  Join Bill and Jim if you are able. They could use the eyes.  Jimmy plans to try it for a day on Saturday, and depending on how it goes, on Sunday. We'll see after that.

Now here's the real story~

"Soddy Mountain, TN hawk totals

Thurs., Sept. 20, 2018.

Hours of coverage: 0800-1630.

Counters: Bill Haley, Jim Rowell

We started the day with a number of nice kettles of Broad-wings between the 1000-1100 hour. We didn't have many clouds for most of the day, as we did the past couple of days. The mostly clear blue sky offered a big challenge to find hawks that got continually higher during the day. Some of the kettles were truly tiny grains of pepper that were tough, even when viewed with our 10x binoculars.

Weather:

1000: Clouds 0, wind NE 1-3, temp. 75 F, visib.  15K, (Very hazy over valley. Worst visibility of the fall).

1100: Clouds 0, wind E SE 1-3, temp.  80 F, visib.  20K.

1200: Clouds 1%, wind SE 2-5,  temp.  83 F.

1300: Clouds 5%, wind S SE 2-5, temp.  85F.

1400: Clouds 15%, wind ESE 1-4, temp. 88 F, visib.  35 K.

1500: Clouds 35%, wind SSE 2-5, temp. 90 F.

1600: Clouds 5%, temp. 92 F.

Hawks:

Osprey (1) 11:08

Bald Eagle: (1) 12:42, (1) 2:40 (both adults)

Broad-winged Hawk:  440 total

(Total BW by the hour)

1000-1100: 239 (kettles of 14, 21, 12, 50, 30, 40, 17, 39)

1100-1200: 10

1200-1300: 2

1300-1400: 3

1400-1500: 130 (kettles of 40, 43, 37)

1500-1600: 54 (kettle of 45)

1600-1700: 2

Totals: 9/20/18

OS 1

BE 2

BW 440

______________ 

[Raptor Total - 443] 

Notable sightings: American White Pelicans (17) 12:08, flying along north ridge, east to west. Incredible that we've seen this species 3 times this week!

Red-headed Woodpecker - 9

Migrant butterflies:

Cloudless Sulphur 43, Monarch 3

Eagle "bait" ( tongue firmly in cheek). Yesterday while I ate a peanut butter and banana sandwich, we got our first countable Bald Eagle of the fall. Today I told Jim I was going to draw in another Bald Eagle with another peanut butter and banana sandwich. Guess what? Using the "Harold technique" while eating my sandwich, I was looking at a Black Vulture when I spotted a speck behind it in the distance coming our way in a glide. The speck eventually turned into our first BE of the day.

Hawk "bait" (ditto above): While eating my signature peanut butter and dill pickle sandwich (hey, don't knock it till you try it), at 2:30 we had BW kettles of 40, 43 and 37. It took awhile to finish that sandwich. Jim wanted me to eat another one. LOL!

Never let it be said that we don't do cutting edge research as well as have some fun on the lookout!

Stay tuned, Jim and I will be there tomorrow.

Reporting: William G. Haley, Jr"

 

Get on up to the watch these next few days. Take a chance and

 

KEEP LOOKING UP!!!!!

 

 

PS....Bring your hawk bait!