>
>This is amazing, but I'm only about 98% surprised since the one time I
>went winter birding outside Mazatlan I saw a Swainson's hawk hunting
>the airport. It was in January, so it was obviously not a migrant.
>
>- Don Baccus, Portland OR <dhogaza at pacifier.com>

Probably not a migrant, yes, but I don't think you can say for sure. A few
years ago (forgive the fuzziness, I can't find my notes right now) I found
a dozen Swainson's hawks along I-5, about thirty miles north of
Bakersfield, and about three days after Christmas. I saw three initially,
and drove ten miles down the road trying to make them into immature
redtails, before turning around to go get another look. So what do you make
of a dozen SWHA in CA at Xmas? Late migrants? Non-migrants? I think there
is a lot to be learned about migrating hawks, and fortunately, this
satellite tracking is going to give us the chance to learn some of it.

Happy new year, everyone.

Rob Saecker
Olympia