Hi tweeters ...

Apologies for a few days' delay ...

We finished up the Cape Flattery 1996 spring migration observations on
5/1/96. Our joking about the spring rainwatch has proved all too true this
year, as nearby Forks topped a 1937 record with 17.6 inches of precip in
April. The persistent stormy conditions on the Peninsula, SW WA, and OR
obviously played havoc with migration passage of soaring raptors and/or our
viewing conditions. The total count of sightings (excluding Bald Eagles) was
3586 in 43 days (226 observation hours) compared with 6700+ last spring and
a 10-yr average of about 5000.

In recent years the study has been a collaboration between the informal Ad
Hawk group of volunteers and HawkWatch Int'l (HWI), with support from
Olympic Peninsula Audubon (OPAS). Major credit is due to Ulf Konig, our
full-time observer for HWI, who provided keen eyesight, super ID skills, and
a waterproof composure, and to over 20 other experienced hawkwatchers, some
who made many trips to the Cape. Thanks also to our British Columbia friends
who made concerted attempts at cross-strait collaborative observations,
mostly thwarted by Mother Nature.

Sightings for the 43-day consecutive period (3/20 thru 5/1/96) included:
RTHA 2406
RLHA 1
FEHA 1
Un-ident buteo 18
SSHA 647
COHA 39
un-ident accip 7
GOEA 15
AMKE 33
Merlin 26
PEFA 18
NOHA 26
Osprey 25
TUVU 306
un-ident raptors 18

The counts probably include some Osprey double-counting from the nesting
pair that arrived mid-period.

As noted before, Bald Eagles are counted (321 sightings logged) with some
attempt to avoid multiple counting of locals during a day's session, but not
reported because of the large resident population.

As usual, substantial flocks of non-raptor migrants were noted, especially
Sandhill Cranes (about 1100 this year) and White-fronted Geese.

An eventual report will provide details, including comparisons across years
and relationships between the temporal distribution of sightings and the
local and regional weather patterns.

Thanks for your interest and inputs.

Virginia and Welden
clark at olympus.net