Hello from The Hill! It's Saturday, Sept. 30, 2000.

turkey vulture 5
osprey 3
cooper's hawk 8
sharp-shinned hawk 10
redtailed hawk 1
broadwinged hawk 35208
swainson's hawk 7
redshouldered hawk 1
american kestrel 6
peregrine falcon 1
prairie falcon 1
unid accip 11
unid buteo 2
unid raptor 21
TOTAL: 35,285

broadies by hours:
10-11am std: 2761
11-12am std: 3220
12-01pm std: 2658
01-02pm std: 9056
02-03pm std: 8307
03-04pm std: 7053

Experimental mobile radar on site; kettles sighted by radar not included in report, but listed for anecdotal information:
10-11am std: 3550, 5550

Other birds: wood stork (6), anhinga (75), white pelican (64).
Butterflies: monarch, pipevine swallowtail

Wonderful turnout for the Celebration of Flight. A mega-kettle of thanks to Michelle Setter, Curator, Animal Health & Rehabilitation, and raptor rehabilitator for the Texas State Aquarium. Michelle brought Cleo (Swainson's hawk) and Scooter (barn owl) on site from the Aquarium's rehabilitation program to the great delight of attendees. These birds of prey were injured in the wild and unable to be released. They're now used for educational programs by the Aquarium. It's worth noting that right in the middle of meeting Cleo ... the first low kettle of broadwings lifting off came right over the area of the talk. Everyone rushed to the edge of the pavilion to view the passing hawks. Everyone but Cleo kept their eyes glued to the passage. Michelle noted Cleo probably wasn't impressed, as they were "only broadwings" ... if they'd been Swainson's, she might have been more attentive! Great job, Michelle, as always!

The Celebration continues on Sunday, opening with a ceremonial blessing by the Corpus Christi Native American Association at 8:00am. Talks on migration, satellite telemetry and raptor identification will be held throughout the day. It's late, my eyes are fried, I'm down to six brain cells ... good night!

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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/