Text by Ceeanna Zulla and Scott Shively   Things are gradually starting to pick up here at Bonney Butte HawkWatch. We had our biggest day so far on Tuesday, September 20th with 98 birds. Turkey Vultures galore (49 migrants) followed by 29 Sharp-shinned Hawks and our first sighting of a Broad-winged Hawk…

Since it is mid-season of fall hawk migration, I thought I'd share a thought...I hate spotting scopes for hawk watching (I mean birds in flight on migration, not sitting birds). OK, hate is a strong word, but why do I feel this way? Because I think it hinders the learning…

Text by Benjamin West Peak season has arrived at the Grand Canyon HawkWatch!   We saw our thousandth bird of the season, a Red-tailed Hawk, on Wednesday, September 14th, and our count as of September 18th is 1,971.  We’re only three weeks into the season, but we’ve already surpassed the historical…

Many 1st-year (juvenile) Sharp-shinned Hawks are heavily marked underneath and appear adult-like. I attached a few good examples of this plumage type (note their brown faces, blobby markings on the chest/belly, and yellow eyes that qualify them as 1st-year birds)...it is common on females and less common on males. 1st-year…

Text and photos by Casey Weissburg Greetings from the Grand Canyon HawkWatch crew!  Our second week of migration started out rough last weekend with powerful southerly winds maxing above 30 km/hour.  Unfavorable conditions persisted until Wednesday, when the winds finally shifted and we had our biggest day of the season so…

Text and photos by Phil Kavouriaris and Marie Soderbergh Greetings from the Land of Enchantment!  Here in the Manzanos, we're beginning the 30th consecutive season observing migrating raptors at the Manzano Mountains HawkWatch!  It's been a great start thus far, aside from some wet weather.  Some early season highlights include several immature…

This year’s Goshute Mountains HawkWatch crew contains a wide range of experience and a lot of passion!  Two members, Steve Seibel and István Balázs (Balu), are HWI vets and the other three bring a wide range of raptor and bird experience to the team.  We’re happy to have such a…

Text and photos by Ben Sweet, Sarah Hecocks, Scott Shively, and Kate Owens We have a great crew at the Bonney Butte HawkWatch this year comprised of three hawkwatching veterans and two members who, although new to migration, are coming with valuable bird experience: Ben Sweet, Sarah Hecocks, Scott Shively, Kate Owens, and Ceeanna Zulla. …

Text and photos by Kumara MacLeod and Casey Weissburg We have arrived once again to the glorious south rim of the Grand Canyon for the hawk count!  This year's crew includes a wonderful team of avid birders with sharp eyes and lots of experience. Casey Weissburg, from San Francisco, CA…

It is known that adult and sub-adult Swainson's Hawks show a broad sub-terminal tail band compared to 1st-year birds who show a narrow band at the tip of the tail; this is often a good way to tell 1st-year birds apart in trickier photos or field situations. However, some 1st-year birds…