Sunny Skies for Spring Hawkwatch

"Soddy Mountain, TN hawk report

Saturday, March 28, 2020

gotta love some clouds

Times of observation: 1030-1330 = 3 hr 

Counter: Bill Haley 

Weather: 1030 wind SW 10-15 mph, clouds 80%, temp. 68F, visib. 25K. 1100 wind SW 10;15, with some gusts 20-25, clouds 75%, temp. 72F. 1200 clouds 85%, temp. 76F. 1300 clouds 70%, wind WSW 5-10, temp. 79F.

Hawks by hour:

1030-1100: AK 1

1100-1200: 0

1200-1300: OS 3

1300-1330: 0

AK  1
OS  3
_______
4 Tot Raptors

ALL 3 Osprey came through in a span of 15 minutes! 1243, 1250 and 1258. All were very high.

Still no Broad-winged Hawks, but they are on the way, and should get here any day now. I included 3 photos, one looking east, to show I am on the North end of the lookout with the wires overhead, one looking SW - the direction BW's will come over the horizon, and one showing my chair after it was blown over by a strong wind gust.

Reporting: William G. Haley, Jr"

The hazards of being on the hawkwatch and you have to
KEEP LOOKING UP!!!

LOL
C

Broad-wings Are Still On The Way

The rain subsided to allow for enough sun to let the hawks fly.  So Bill Haley slipped back up to the mountain to do a little social distancing, I mean hawk watching. LOL I am guessing some winds out of the south at 5 to 15 didn't hurt. Here's the report;

"Soddy Mountain, TN hawk totals, 3-26-20

Time on lookout: 2:15-5:00 DST (2.75 hr.)

Counter: Bill Haley

Weather: 2:15 wind S 5-12, clouds 20%, temgp as we iZ1p. 72F, visib. 45K. 3:00 temp. 74F, clouds 35%, wind S 10-15. 4:00 temp 77F, wind S 5-10.

Hawks by hour:

2:15-3:00 - 0

3:00-4:00 - NH 1, SS 1, RT 2

4:00-5:00 - OS 1,NH 1 (adult male "gray ghost")

Total: OS 1, NH 2, SS 1, RT 2. = 6 raptors.

A beautiful day! The two Northern Harriers was a nice surprise. I was hoping to see the Broad-wings return, but it is still a bit early. They'll be here within the next few days. They typically show up the first week of April. I moved to the other end of the lookout, under the wires, which gave me a better view of the horizon and took the large cedar on the south end mostly out of the equation.

Reporting: William G. Haley, Jr."

Remember to look to the south these days if you FIND SOME TIME TO -

KEEP LOOKING UP!!!

Jimmy and Cynthia Wilkerson

A Spring hawk Count for 2020!

Jimmy and Cynthia;

I hope you are both doing well. With temperatures in the upper 70's and a brisk SSW wind, I decided to practice "social distancing", which we are all being encouraged to do because of COVID -19. I've learned the hawk lookout is a great way to stay away from crowds! I headed up there to see if any migrants would show up. 

Yesterday,  I was working in the yard, and I swear I heard a Broad-winged Hawk call...3 times. Despite this being earlier than I've ever known a BW to show up, I'll admit it gave this old hawk-watcher a touch of "Broad-wing fever"! Migrant BW's usually make their first appearance the last week in March or first week of April. Maybe the early warmer weather has speeded them up?

I'd decided I wouldn't bother making a report if I didn't see anything. Guess what? I saw something! So here is the first spring hawk report from Soddy Mountain in many years.

Arrived 3:15 daylight savings time. Clouds 85%, temperature 77 F, visib. 40 K, wind SSW 10-15 MPH. 4:00 clouds 45%, temp. 78F. 5:00 clouds 90%, temp. 75F. Left at 5:15, so I had 2 hours of observation.

At 4:10 I spotted an Osprey. It was already north of Soddy Lake, but since I've seen several in the past week, I thought it might be a local bird. However it continued circling and moving northward, eventually gaining significant altitude and sailing on to the north.  My first countable migrant hawk of 2020!

At 4:43 I spotted a hawk shooting across the sky from a southwesterly direction on the same track springtime BW's use. At first I thought I had my first Broad-wing. However it appeared smaller and the tail looked longish. It turned out to be a Sharp-shinned Hawk. I watched it till it disappeared to the northeast.

Total: 1 OS, 1SS = 2 migrants.

Broad-winged Hawks will be coming through soon, and maybe since I'm getting an unexpected vacation, due to an Aquarium shut-down, I can be there to witness the return. 

Notice the chair turned in the opposite direction.  Picture by William G. Haley

 

Attached is a photo looking southward. The cedar has gotten larger over the years, but still isn't too much of a hindrance.

Reporting: William G. (Bill) Haley

 

What better to do than find a spot to

Keep looking UP!!!