Search This Blog

Monday, April 18, 2011

Osprey and other raptor mIgration happening here


We are seeing a steady flow of Ospreys over our "pond" (actually a dammed up section of river) as they make their way north on migration. We have also seen other raptors moving through here on the strong winds that have been occurring. It's hard to get any work done! We just want to go out an sit all day watching the sky. Ospreys are just awesome raptors with their bold underwing pattern of black primary coverts and black secondary feathers. Makes them easier to identify.

Over the 2 days of the past weekend, after watching for a few hours each day, we have seen:

37 Broad-winged Hawks
11 Osprey
4 Sharp-shinned Hawks
4 Bald Eagles
1 Cooper's Hawk
1 Red-tailed Hawk
1 Northern Harrier
1 Merlin
9 Turkey Vultures

Not the big raptor numbers we see here in SW NH in fall, but what a great diversity of raptor species!
Look up, spring raptor migration is going on in many parts of the country right now. Let us know if you see any raptors.

1 comment:

Kaitlin said...

Here in southern Manitoba I saw a Merlin in a suburban area a few days in a row. Very distinctive call!