More weather and few raptors.

Hi all,

Well, just when you thought spring was here…not so fast. We’ve had several days of chilly, damp weather that effectively shut down the hawk migration. Yesterday was a marked improvement over recent days even with the fog and north winds. But hopefully now with improving weather this week, there we be a return to some good raptor movement. A note on that last good day before the bad weather; there was a juvy dark-morph Swainson’s Hawk that came by the watch, making it the last of the sixteen regular raptor migrants to be seen this spring.

Other non-raptor migrants continue to come into the area. Many of the sparrow species are around now; some in numbers like Junco, White-throated, Song and Fox but also a few Savannah, Chipping, Swamp and White-crowned as well. With all the little wet areas around now, there have been both yellowlegs seen as well as Solitary Sandpiper and Snipe. Of course the ducks are in those damp areas too, with both teal showing up now along with Wigeon, Shoveler and divers like Ring-necked and Lesser Scaup. There have been a few Horned Grebes in the harbor here in Copper Harbor, wearing their spectacular spring feathers. In the uncommon category, I have heard of at least two Yellow-headed Blackbirds in the area and there was a Townsend’s Solitaire on the mountain for most of the day one of those last nice days last week.

A word on the road up the mountain; there are still some deep areas of snow up there. On the east end, there have been folks attempting to drive the road and with a few more brave soles doing so, this should help speed up the melting process. I haven’t talked to anyone who has attempted the west end so I’m not sure of the coverage on that side. Hopefully, with a few warm days this week, someone will be able to blast a path up there.

Calvin