[Birdtalk] More signs of spring

[Gerber, Mark]

Sorry for the intrusion, I don't normally post but I am an avid lurker.
Last week, along SR 36 between Erda and Tooele there was a Swainson's
Hawk.  I had no doubts.  I am relatively new to Utah and it didn't seem
out of place, as we occasionally begin to see them showing up this early
in Boise, ID where I am a transplant from.

 

mark f. gerber | hatch mott macdonald | sr. environmental
scientist/project manager | 801.803.9577 mobile | 801.571.6522 x5609
office | 801.571.6710 fax | mark.gerber at hatchmott.com |
www.hatchmott.com 

________________________________

From: birdtalk-bounces at utahbirds.org
[mailto:birdtalk-bounces at utahbirds.org] On Behalf Of Steve Coleman
Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2009 8:11 AM
To: birdtalk at utahbirds.org; Craig Fosdick
Subject: Re: [Birdtalk] More signs of spring 

 

Since I have had several responses to my possible sighting of a
Swainson's Hawk this week I will send this to everyone.

 

I live in Woods Cross in Davis County in the vicinity of between 800 and
925 West and between 1900 and 1800 South there is an old house that is
being restored and it has large Chinese Elm Trees in the yard that
attract a lot of different birds, this is where I saw it.

 

I will try to get some pictures this weekend. I have only seen it once
this week but they have nested in the neighborhood in the same tree for
the last two years. Last year they raised two babies and often flew over
my yard because I had two Parrots in an outside cage that they would
have loved to have had for lunch. I have some pictures on my web albums
of the two fledglings that I took last fall sharing a rat on my
neighbor's roof before they headed south. 

 

Here is the address http://picasaweb.google.com/stevecoleman1155. I hope
my ID is correct and that I didn't just get too excited. If I find that
it was a Rough-legged or Red-tail I will send an e-mail correcting
myself, it wouldn't be the first time I have had egg on my face for
getting excited and turning one species of bird into another. I haven't
seen Red-tails in these trees before however up until 2 years ago there
were Rough-legs that spent most of the winter there, though I haven't
seen them recently. I will keep a lookout this weekend and update you
all.

 

Regards

Steve

>>> Craig Fosdick <craig.fosdick at gmail.com> 2/25/2009 10:00 PM >>>

Hi Steve-

 

Regarding your Swainson's Hawk sighting; if it is indeed a Swainson's
Hawk, I urge you to get some photos; I am sure the Utah Records
Committee would appreciate photographic documentation of an
out-of-season Swainson's Hawk.  Swainson's Hawks, as you probably know,
winter in southern South America (primarily Argentina), and do not start
migrating north until, well, right about now, mid-to-late February, and
in general don't reach northern Utah and southern Idaho until early
April; the floodgates open by mid- to late April when most have
returned. Last year, when I was birding almost daily while pursuing a
Cache Co. Big Year, I saw my first on April 5.

 

Although there are a few winter records for the US, most are from
southern Florida or the Central Valley of California.  As an aside, I
think Washington has just gotten its first overwintering record for
Swainson's Hawk, and I believe Idaho has a record under review with
convincing photographic evidence to corroborate the sighting.

 

Thanks for sharing and good birding, Craig.

 

Craig Fosdick

Logan, Utah.

On Wed, Feb 25, 2009 at 3:36 PM, Steve Coleman <scoleman at utah.gov>
wrote:

The Swainson's Hawks that have nested in our neighborhood the last two
years are back. I saw one of them yesterday evening fly into the tree
where they nested last year.

 

Steve


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