Date: 10/23/25 3:48 pm From: Hawkcount.Org Reports <reports...> Subject: Waggoner's Gap (23 Oct 2025) 79 Raptors
Waggoner's Gap 40 km W of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 23, 2025 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- BV 0 11 11 TV 8 1066 1066 OS 0 19 148 BE 11 172 403 NH 2 33 112 SS 44 1182 2497 CH 1 126 188 AG 0 2 2 RS 1 22 26 BW 0 18 10265 RT 6 196 329 RL 0 0 0 GE 2 27 29 AK 0 46 165 ML 1 29 50 PG 2 32 53 UA 1 25 39 UB 0 7 19 UF 0 4 6 UE 0 0 0 UR 0 25 45 SK 0 0 1
Weather: High 57 F, Overcast for the entire morning with pockets of sunshine breaking through in early afternoon, Variable SW/W wind throughout the morning gradually shifting to W/NW to NW throughout the remainder of the count period
Raptor Observations: The morning hours saw a slower movement of raptors down the ridge as the west/northwest winds had not yet picked up velocity yet. A few Sharp-shinned Hawks and other species were intermittently detected moving south.
After noon, momentum seemed to pick up. The first Northern Harrier and Red-shouldered Hawk were both detected shortly after this. At 1:20 PM DST, a large flock of Turkey Vultures began to disperse off of the south side of the ridge and take to the air. This sudden movement drew attention in search of a potential eagle nearby. A few moments later, a distant dark speck spiraled above the horizon line while being chased by a Common Raven. The raven engaged in pursuit for several minutes as the distant speck gradually revealed distinct white wing patches. For the next five minutes, the raven would continue to chase the subadult Golden Eagle southward along the distant valley south of the ridge - the large raptor pumping deep wing beats to cover ground. The first Golden of the day remained a speck while it passed on a southwest flightline over the valley, never making it to the ridge.
Only ten minutes later, a second large raptor lifted up over the treeline along the north side of the ridge and evoked a collective response from the rocks, "Eagle!". A juvenile Golden Eagle made a moderately distant pass along the north side, pushing steadily into the headwind until it began to make several circles in search of lift. This gradually pushed the bird back to the east as it gained altitude, providing additional time to enjoy the bird from below. Once high enough, the young Golden tucked into a glide and pointed northeast and dropped in altitude towards the town of Alinda, dropping well below the horizon line and cutting low over the town as it continued southwest and out of our view after offering well over ten minutes of viewing opportunity as it migrated south.
The next hour, the first Merlin of the day blasted through directly over the ridge before disappearing into the forest and continuing south. Moments later, a larger falcon appeared up the ridge and began flying at full speed head-on towards the hawkwatchers on the rocks. A young Peregrine Falcon would pass just a few feet overhead, providing one of the best looks of the day, before continuing down the rest of the ridge in powerful flight - the second of the day.
The late afternoon saw a gradually decrease in raptor movement as the day came to an end, with only a few more Sharp-shinned Hawks and Bald Eagles moving down the ridge in the final hours of daylight.
Overall great species diversity on the day with 10 migratory raptor species documented during the count period.
First bird TV 8:12 Last bird BE 15:36
Non-raptor Observations: Common Loon 15, Red-bellied Woodpecker 1, Cedar Waxwing 44, Carolina Chickadee 1, Tree Swallow 40, Eastern Bluebird 5, American Robin 14, PURPLE FINCH 107, American Goldfinch 1, Dark-eyed Junco 1, Yellow-rumped Warbler 4
LFE 4 Monarch 0 Hummingbird 0
Predictions: Friday: Similar temps as today with a sturdy northwest wind (11 mph)
Saturday: Similar temps as Thurs/Fri with slightly weaker northwest winds
Sunday: Similar conditions as Saturday
Down into the high 30s F at night for all days mentioned above ======================================================================== Report submitted by WG Counter ()
