Carter Hill Raptor Observatory - New Hampshire Audubon

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History & Mission The Carter Hill Raptor Observatory was founded by New Hampshire Audubon (NHA) in 2008 after being discovered as a good place to watch migrating hawks by local birders, Bob Quinn, Joe Quinn, and Rob Woodward the previous fall. A follow-up visit by NHA staff sparked interest in establishing a hawk watch at this location because of its impressive views from an observation platform, combined with its proximity to NHA‟s Concord headquarters and the high potential for outreach to the public. Carter Hill Orchard owner, Rob Larocque, willingly agreed with the request, and the partnership between NHA and the Orchard, a pick-your-own location in Concord, NH was founded. Since the fall of 2008, tens of thousands of visitors have spent time at the raptor observation platform and have had the chance to interact with NHA staff and volunteers and learn about raptor migration. NHA‟s stated mission is to protect New Hampshire‟s natural environment for wildlife and people, and it fulfills this role at the Observatory through both raptor migration research and educational outreach. Raptor and weather data that are taken by volunteers and staff are entered on HawkCount.org, an international hawk migration database run by the Hawk Migration Association of North America (HMANA), where it contributes to a larger understanding of raptor migration. Education is presented informally each day, with volunteers doing the bulk of the outreach. Staff programs and periodic special events are another component of the educational project. The autumn view to the north from the Carter Hill Raptor Observatory platform. Photo by Tom Brewton
The 2012 Season This fall migration season at Carter Hill Observatory was unique in many ways, from the lack of one “official counter”, to a record amount of hours logged, to the diversity of birds observed. Record numbers were posted for fourteen of the sixteen species counted this season, including a site-first Black Vulture. The raptors weren't alone in the skies – thousands of other migrants crossed over the orchard, including individuals from the avian, insect, and mammalian worlds. The drama of life was played out as dragonfly fed songbird and songbird fed Accipiter. All while the site‟s growing cadre of human visitors enjoyed, experienced, and awed at the seasonal spectacles unfolding before their eyes, day after day. Visitation to the hawk watch platform itself totaled well over 3,000 for the season, with far greater numbers aware of the education and research efforts through visiting the host location, Carter Hill Orchard. This was the Observatory‟s fifth consecutive season functioning as a hawkwatch of New Hampshire Audubon (NHA). Through each of its first five seasons, the site has grown and evolved. This season, in particular, saw a dramatic rise in the number of hours invested at the site, as a core group of Carter Hill faithful has flourished. But the season was not without its challenges. Past official counter since the project‟s inception, Robert Vallieres, was unexpectedly prevented from leading the count, but he was able to return as a regular observer for much of the season. A host of volunteers rose to the challenge of ensuring the site would receive full coverage, ultimately combining for a total of 417.75 hours from September 1 st until November 20 th . This hourly total is a significant increase from the past season high of 326 observation hours tallied in 2011. A total of 7,142 individuals of 16 species of raptors (including vultures, for our purposes) were tallied during the 2012 season. This is the secondhighest total raptor count in the site‟s five years, and almost all species set single-season records. Raptors included, an impressive total of 101 bird species were observed throughout the course of the season from or below the raptor observation platform. The official count period at Carter Hill runs from September 1 st to October 31 st . The 2012 season was the first to document more than casual observations late into the month of November, a time frame that can contribute important insight into understanding the complete picture of the fall migratory season. Among the notable results was the demonstration for a strong case for continuing this extended coverage – a theme that has been elaborated on further in the 2012 final report for Pack Monadnock Raptor Migration Observatory, which is also operated by NHA. Hourly totals were collected for each species, as well as details on the weather such as wind speed, wind direction, temperature, visibility, precipitation, and cloud cover. This season, a much broader effort was made to record non-raptor migrants and the number of visitors who come to the observatory. As mentioned prior, data are collected following HMANA protocol and are submitted to HawkCount.org, where they contribute to a larger dataset, available for in-depth analysis beyond what is covered in both this report and by NHA in its own analysis of raptor migration trends. Complete hourly results and daily reports are available to readers at this website. Finally, it is our pleasure to provide you with this document for the first time in the site‟s young history. Our first written final report that documents the hawk watching season is now a reality, and we hope to continue this momentum as we move forward and continue to become established as one of the more recognized hawk watches in northern New England.
Page 1: Carter Hill Raptor Observatory Fall
Page 5 and 6: The most popular public event on th
Page 7 and 8: Species Accounts The following spec
Page 9 and 10: Osprey (Pandion haliaeetus) Season
Page 11 and 12: Cooper's Hawk (Accipeter cooperii)
Page 13 and 14: counted. The first bird, spotted by
Page 15 and 16: Table 1: Non-raptor bird species Th
Page 17: A few notes about some of the regul

Carter Hill Raptor Observatory - New Hampshire Audubon

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