HawkWatch International Partners with the University of Utah to Study Raptors in Africa
HawkWatch International and the University of Utah are partnering on two studies in the Horn of Africa: a new effort studying raptor migration over the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait in Djibouti, and a continuation of vulture extinction studies based in Ethiopia. Evan Buechley, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Utah, will…
Raptor Fun Facts: Ultraviolet Sensors
Sponsored by Did you know that some species of raptor can see ultraviolet light? This is helpful because small mammals such as voles and mice mark their tracks with urine, and urine is a substance that reflects ultraviolet light. Because of this, some raptors are able to see the…
Mountain Outlaw Magazine story
Max Lowe, Forest Woodard, and Charles Post took a road trip last fall (2016) to follow the raptor migration and document HawkWatch International's migration research. Here's a great photographic story by the group features in Mountain Outlaw magazine's Summer 2017 edition. (Click the image below to view the PDF.)
Raptor Fun Facts: Osprey
Sponsored by Did you know that Ospreys have specialized feet for grasping fish? Osprey have acutely curved talons, and the bottom of their feet have tiny spines called "spicules" that help them maintain a firm grip on slippery fish, their main prey. While most raptors have three toes in…
Grant received for HawkWatch and partners to research effects of climate change on American Kestrels
The Department of Defense (DoD) has awarded a team of researchers, led by Boise State University biological sciences professor Julie Heath, a four-year, $1.7 million grant to monitor the effects of climate change on American kestrels and develop a modeling system that can be used broadly to predict how other…
Letter to Utah Congressional Delegation in support of maintaining and strengthening the Endangered Species Act
April 2017 My name is Paul Parker and I am the Executive Director of HawkWatch International. I am writing to you today to share my thoughts about the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and to urge you to ensure its continued viability and utilization as one of our country’s most important…
Raptor Fun Facts: Built-in Gyroscopes
Sponsored by Have you ever watched a raptor perched on a windy day, hover in the air or perch on an object that is unstable or wobbly? Next time you see one in this type of scenario, check out how their body moves back and forth while their head…
Injured Raptors: What to Do
Just as we were closing the office yesterday, we received a call from an individual who had watched a raptor collide with his office window. The bird was moving but seemed to have trouble with its wing, leaving the concerned citizen afraid that the hawk was seriously injured. Unfortunately it…
Gunsight Mountain, Alaska: 2017
March 7th marked the start of HawkWatch International’s second annual spring migration count at North America’s northernmost migration site: Gunsight Mountain, Alaska! Cold but clear weather highlighted the first few days of counting with temperatures reaching -4 degrees Fahrenheit (-20 Celsius), not an uncommon occurrence in interior Alaska this time…
Swainson's Hawk-like Rough-legged Hawks
We are approaching the time of year in western North America when late wintering Rough-legged Hawks and early arriving Swainson's Hawks can be present at the same time. Particular Rough-legged Hawk morphs can have heavy bibs with lightly marked bellies and appear very Swainson's Hawk-like. This fact reminded us of…