Birders all,

As you may be aware, a Florida based company is proposing to build a 400+
windmill (200 ft tall towers) power farm on the Rattlesnake Hills on the
Benton-Yakima county line just northwest of the Arid Lands Ecology Reserve
in the Hanford Reach National Monument. Some have suggested that raptors,
as well as other birds, use the thermals along this ridge in migration. The
board of the Lower Columbia Basin Audubon Society is concerned that the
siting of this project not be a major determent to wildlife (birds in
particular). We've proposed and been granted permission to stage a "Hawk
Watch" on the ridge (similar to the one that's operated on Chelan Ridge near
Cooper Mt. in the Cascades recently). We're calling it a hawk watch, but in
reality we'll be trying to document the passage all birds and we'll keep a
detailed data sheet each day which we'll share with USFW.

The dates we are permitted for are: Sept. 15-16, 22-23, 29-30, Oct. 6-7,
13-14.

We will be limited to 12 persons per day & a total of 3 vehicles. No
off-road driving. No use of taped calls or capture of birds.
Everyone responsible for their own food & water.

We will meet at 8 am at the kiosk in Horn Rapids County Park, fill out the
USFW volunteer forms and then proceed to the summit.
We'll plan on returning to Horn Rapids around 5 pm. most days. The last day
(Oct. 14) we'll make a BIG SIT ! in combination with this effort and so we
plan on being on the summit before dawn that day.

Naturally we want to avoid double counting etc., so we will not be spreading
the group out much - probably just a short line (depending on the number of
participants) right on top of the ridge just north of the radio tower about
where the road goes down to the pumphouse. I can see us making good use of
some of those FRS radios that have become so popular with birders - I'll be
bringing mine, I know. If we get enough people turning out I figure we can
work the Hawk Watch in shifts and thus give people a chance to go down and
do a little birding at the pumphouse (one of eastern Washington's most
facinating migrant traps) during their breaks.

I am going to need to know in advance how many folks want to participate on
any particular day so as to avoid the risk (however unlikely) of having more
than 12 people show up.

That's all I can think of right now - e-mail me if you have questions. I
hope some of you'll be able to work this into your schedule, even if only
once. We could really use the help.

Sincerely,

Dennis Rockwell
local field trip chair
LCBAS
Kennewick, WA dennis.rockwell at gte.net