Observation start time: 07:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 8 hours
Official Counter: Alec Humann
Observers: Joe Sullivan, Kevin Rybczynski, Tom Riley
Visitors:
Tom Riley
Joe Sullivan
Tim Schadel
Kevin Rybczynski
Weather:
The morning started out with mostly cloudy to overcast skies, quickly
changing to overcast with very few breaks of sun through high cirrus
clouds. Winds were out of the S at 15-20 to start, switching to SSW and
dropping to 10-15 for the 12-1 hour. A brief shower arriving just after 1
cut off the flight. Only a few birds came through after that and at 245,
heavy rain moved in ending the count for the day.
Raptor Observations:
A fantastic day as anticipated with the forecast as well as the time of
year! The flight took a bit to warm up, but once it did, the adult
Broad-wings came through in droves. Not many kettles until late in the day
when the winds dropped off. Most of the birds were just riding the strong
southerly tailwinds. The flight line was varied; I started off inside the
main gate, then moved into the cemetery for the second and third hours and
then moved to the Rogers Road entrance as the gate to the ballpark was
closed/locked all day. A nice variety of species, with Sharp-shinned and
Broad-winged making up the bulk of the flight. Two Rough-legs, two immature
Red-shoulders and a great showing of Kestrels kept viewing interesting as
well as a Short-eared Owl just before the first light shower moved in!
Non-raptor Observations:
A nice number of expected species were observed migrating over today
including three Sandhill Cranes (all spotted by Kevin Rybczynski), a
Chimney Swift, a Caspian Tern, and 97 Common Loons along with 44 other
species of birds! Flickers (59) were moving through most of the day before
the rain.
Predictions:
Rain showers and high temps in the low 50’s, winds WSW 15-25. High temps
will be 20 degrees cooler than today. If the rain tapers early enough, a
light flight will likely occur, but it wont be anything like today’s
flight.
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Report submitted by Alec Humann (<alechumann...>)
Site Description:
This spring only "all volunteer" watch is conducted at Lakeside Cemetery in
Hamburg, NY. It is located on flat lake plain located along the shoreline
of the east end of Lake Erie, about 10 miles south of Buffalo, NY.
For additional information contact Jim Landau at <landaujr...>
