Today, March 20, 2009, the first day of spring, the hawkwatch recorded its highest total in its 13 years! Tom Armour, Fred Blystone, Bill Williams and I watched as 190 birds crossed the river, breaking the record of 173 set on March 23, 2003. The days around the equinox have generally been very good each year and today's exciting flight came with strong northeast winds, usually not a good wind for migration at the the site. We also saw our largest flock ever, 50 birds, in a mixed-species group. The birds struggled to make the water crossing into the headwind.
9 species is excellent diversity for the site:
Black Vulture 2
Turkey Vulture 167 breaks the previous record of 125
Osprey 7
Bald Eagle 3
Northern Harrier 2 first ones of the season
Sharp-shinned 1
Red-tailed 4
American Kestrel 3
Merlin 1 first of the season, rare at the site
Yesterday, with very pleasant temperatures and southerly winds, the total was only 6....but the first Rough-winged Swallows and Royal Terns of the season were at the site.
Today there were also 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls sitting onthe sand spit and the American White Pelican was seen again over Hog Island.
Brian Taber
Welcome to the Coastal Virginia Wildlife Observatory blog for postings of programs, activities and photos of unusual birds and butterflies around Virginia. To LEARN more about our nonprofit work, SUBSCRIBE to our monthly newsletter, and SUPPORT us, visit our website at www.vawildliferesearch.org. "Protecting Wildlife through Field Research, Education and Habitat Conservation for Over 25 Years"
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Sharp-shinned Hawk, by Steve Thornhill
