Raptors seemed to be on the move in the mountains this weekend. My wife,
Michelle, and I were on Duncan Hill at just over 7,800 feet between the
North and main forks of the Entiat on Saturday the 29th. In just over an
hour around midday, 12 sharp-shinned hawks and 2 Cooper's hawks passed by
the summit. Duncan Hill certainly doesn't appear to be a particularly
propitious location, so a lot of accipiters must have been on the move in
the mountains that day. Several of the birds rocketed past the summit
within 20 feet of where we sat. It was thrilling to hear the air rushing
past their wings. Some of the sharp-shins flying along lower on the slope
were harassed by the local gang of Clark's Nutcrackers. Toward the end of
our stay, a Lewis's (what's the theory behind the "s's"?) Woodpecker
wandered by, circled around the little radio beacon at the summit, and
continued on. This seems an unusual elevation for this species. The next
day, at Rock Mtn. on Nason Ridge, two northern harriers and a sharp-shinned
hawk passed by just after noon. A flock of pipits and horned larks hopped
around the rocks at the summit. Both Duncan Hill and Rock Mtn. were
infested (an understatement in the case of Duncan Hill) with some kind of
non-biting, winged ant-like critters and various fly types. Not being an
entomologist, they were all insects to me.

Art Campbell
acampbell at herrerainc.com