The raptor banding season is officially over but the last 2 weeks kept us busy as raptors continued to move through the straits. Migration typically starts to slow down towards the end of May making it difficult to predict what our captures will yield. This year we were treated to a few surprises and exciting captures.
We caught our 4th Broad-winged Hawk (BWHA) of the season, breaking the previous record of 3 for most BWHAs caught in a season. Then exactly 1 week later, we caught our 5th! These are typically one of the less commonly caught species for this site so it was neat to be able to band this many.
Two days later we were beyond surprised and excited to capture our season’s 2nd Rough-legged Hawk! Another species not commonly caught at this site means it’s always a treat to have these birds in-hand. This particular individual was undergoing an extensive molt. He was a young bird that hatched last and was beginning his adult molt. It was cool to see the contrast between the old, worn feathers and new, fresh feathers.
We continued to see lots of Red-tailed Hawks (RTHA), capturing 19 more since the last update. On our second-to-last day Nick deployed the final transmitter of the season on a juvenile RTHA.
Season Totals:
Red-tailed Hawk – 94
Sharp-shinned Hawk – 46
Northern Harrier – 6
Broad-winged Hawk – 5
Merlin – 4
Coopers Hawk – 2
Rough-legged Hawk – 2
Red-shouldered Hawk – 1
Total: 160