Hello from The Hill! It's Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2000.

Not a bad day, all things considered. A good warmer upper.

Turkey vulture 1
Osprey 1
Miss kite 13
Northern harrier 4
Sharp-shinned hawk 15
Cooper's hawk 12
Red-shouldered hawk 2
Broadwinged hawk 9273 (including 13 or 14 dark morphs)
Swainson's hawk 2
Red-tailed hawk 2
American kestrel 12
Prairie falcon 1
Unid Accipiter 5
Unid Buteo 3
Unid Raptor 14
TOTAL 9359

(late note: a prairie falcon was accidently left off the original log for this date ... the record is now correct.) After such a nice frontal passage the other day, when the front passed through, so apparently did all the clouds. Blue empty sky today; killer on the eyes. But, a pretty good set down was observed around 6:30pm (Texas local time); the watch lasted to 7:00pm due to flights. Should have a lift off tomorrow of some sort, westerly angled.

Beth reports other migrants included wood storks, anhingas, white pelicans. 3 or 4 lark sparrows near the site gave viewers good looks at those wonderful facial mask patterns. Other day birds: western kingbird and stilt sandpiper at pond.

Butterflies included monarchs, pipevine swallowtail.

The best bird of the day: Beth says that award goes to a local juvenile red tail that apparently couldn't stand it any longer and took a swoop at a fully-feathered owl we've rigged at the main watch site for grins. What a hoot! (okay, okay, I hear ya!)  Beth reports the red-tail hung out on a telephone pole nearby for quite a while, keeping close tabs on that owl.

See ya'll on the hill!
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Fall 2000 hawk watch crew: watch coordinator, Joel Simon (email: jsimon@electrotex.com); counters Jo Creglow, Scott Rush, Beth Hahn; and education director Thom Benedict. Plus a cast of many, many volunteers, whose help over the years is so gratefully appreciated!
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The Hazel Bazemore Hawk Watch appreciates the many volunteers and supporters that have helped bring the watch into the forefront of migration studies. Thanks to Electrotex, Inc. for sponsoring our web site; Hawk Watch International for their on-going support and sponsorship of the watch efforts. Also to the Northwest Business Association; Central and South West Services, Inc./Central Power and Light; Nature's Bird Center; Margaret Cullinan Wray Charitable Trust; the Trull Foundation; and the Audubon Outdoor Club of Corpus Christi.
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Hazel Bazemore County Park is in western Nueces County, Texas, west of the central Gulf Coast city of Corpus Christi. To find it, take FM624 west from SH77 for about 1 mile to the road on the right with a park sign marking it (past a Dollar Store and cancer treatment center, on the right). The park road is just on the west side of the water canal that crosses FM624. Across the street is a car wash. Turn north and take the park road; go one half mile to the park entrance gate. To reach the fall hawk watching spot, take the park entrance, make a left as soon as you get across the speed bump, and follow the winding road to the crest of the hill (past the restrooms, a covered picnic pavilion and around the next bend). Where the road makes a bend to the left, start looking for a place to park. Watch times: 8:30am-5:00pm, Texas time.
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Cheers from your roving hawk watch reporter,
Patty Beasley, Corpus Christi, TX
Email: pbeasley@electrotex.com
Web: http://www.electrotex.com/aoc/