A paper was presented at the 2014 Hawk Migration Assoc. of North America conference back in April at Braddock Bay that postulated Red-tailed Hawks are indeed changing their migratory patterns—remaining north more regularly.
Here’s the brief description from the conference: Distribution Changes for Red-tailed Hawks, Rough-legged Hawks and American Kestrels in Eastern North America – Nick Bolgiano Banding, Breeding Bird Survey and Christmas Bird Count (CBC) data are presented for Red-tailed Hawks and American Kestrels to help interpret trends at eastern North American hawk watches. CBC data are also presented for Rough-legged Hawks. For Red-tailed Hawks, there is some evidence that migration may be changing. Nick Bolgiano is a hawk watcher, data analyst, and co-author of Birds of Central Pennsylvania. He has written a number of articles on bird population dynamics, including the possible link of Sharp-shinned Hawks to spruce budworms. I don’t have contact info or a copy of the paper itself, unfortunately. Regarding the Franklin Mt. red-tail counts, it does look as if we will surpass last year’s total. However, the 12 year average since full-time counting began at the site is 1990. Possibly that will be reached this year. During that 12 year period we had counts over 2000 for six consecutive years, but none since 2007. So there does seem to be a declining trend in recent years. Andy Mason Andrew Mason 1039 Peck St. Jefferson, NY 12093 (607) 652-2162 [email protected] From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Larry Federman Sent: Friday, November 7, 2014 10:39 PM To: nysbirds-l Subject: Re: [nysbirds-l] Eagles and Ravens Steve, not sure if one could say that the northeastern Red-tails are becoming more sedentary with 1,363 having passed the Franklin Mtn hawk watch so far this season. That # is only a little shy of the total # of 1527 for last year. Just my thought..... Larry Federman Education Coordinator Audubon New York Rheinstrom Hill, Buttercup Farm, and RamsHorn-Livingston Sanctuaries and Centers From: Steve Walter <mailto:[email protected]> Sent: Friday, November 07, 2014 9:19 PM To: nysbirds-l <mailto:[email protected]> Subject: [nysbirds-l] Eagles and Ravens Not an upcoming football matchup, but birds I saw a bunch of today. Hawk watching with Gerhard Patsch and Bob Senerchia at the I-84 Overlook between Port Jervis and Greenville, NY produced 7 migrating Golden Eagles (plus one wrong way bird). That was just in a two hour span. It felt like we were on the way to a real bang up day, but that was done in by deteriorating conditions for the afternoon. So too was the Red-tailed Hawk count held in check at 66, although it seems that under the best of conditions that Red-tail numbers are far below what they were in years gone by (my first foray into big ridge hawk watching was a 900 Red-tail day at Raccoon Ridge about 25 years ago). Just my feeling, but it seems that northeastern Red-tails are becoming more sedentary (rather than declining). We counted 2 Bald Eagles as migrants, a task being made difficult by residents in the area. One potential migrant was scratched, in an entertaining way, when we watched it dive from above the ridge line to a tree in the valley below. On the way back, I stumbled into what appeared to be Common Ravens gathering into a communal roost. While driving a little ways beyond the Bear Mountain Bridge, I noticed a half dozen or so. Conveniently, there’s an overlook / pull off just beyond. I took advantage of that, then watched one small group after another come off the mountain above and fly past the overlook. Altogether, I estimated 40-50 birds (and I don’t think any were doubling back below the bluffs, though not ruling that out). I was not aware of this being done by Common Ravens, but I can see it considering their lineage. The real surprise to me is that there could be that many around in that general area. Steve Walter Bayside, NY -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
