Contests & Special Counts
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Summitville Fire Tower Hawkwatch
Seasonal Totals by Year
Counters: Sullivan County Audubon Society  

TV=Turkey Vulture, BE=Bald Eagle, OS=Osprey, NH=N Harrier, SS=Sharp-shin, CH=Cooper's Hawk,
NG=N Goshawk, RS=Red-shouldered, BW=Broadwing, RT=RedTail, RL=Rough-legged, GE=Golden Eagle,
AK=Amer Kestrel, ML=Merlin, PG=Peregrine, UR=Unidentified Raptor, BV=Black Vulture
HPH=Hawks per hour.

Above is a summary of 12 years of activity at the Summitville Hawkwatch performed by members of Sullivan County Audubon Society.  Over the last two years lower numbers of migrating raptors, except for Kestrels, have been seen and recorded  at this site.  Weather conditions may be one factor affecting these decreases in numbers.        — John Haas

John Haas, Coordinator and Principal Observer
Matt Zeitler, Bill Fiero, Wilma Amthor

I don't believe there is any decline in hawk populations, at least not that can be indicated by our site. The lack of coverage during Broad-winged season accounts for over half of the decreased count from last year. Further, the very unusual fall easily accounts for the remaining decrease (winds were primarily from the south and east for most days from October 1st on; this resulted in hawks taking alternate routes overall). Following extensive periods of poor conditions, we did have a few excellent days when favorable winds occurred.              — John Haas

John Haas, Coordinator and Principal Observer
Renee Davis, Arlene Borko, Lance Verderame, Matt Zeitler, Ralph Tabor, Scott & Paula Baldinger

NOTE the spectacular results of the fall 2012 Summitville hawkwatch:
The season total was over 6,500 raptors counted, the most in the 10 years at this location by far (topping that of Franklin Mt). 4,385 Broadwing Hawks made up the largest part of our total numbers, and most of those were seen on 9/15 (1177 by JH & LV) and 9/23 (854 by JH & RD). Redtails also had their peak year with 877 counted. Bald Eagle numbers were also higher than other years at 82, and 17 Golden Eagles were twice as many as ever seen before. Thanks to John Haas for his dedication to this important project.        — Valerie Freer

John Haas, Coordinator and Principal Observer
Renee Davis, Arlene Borko, Marge Gorton, Anthony Mistratta, Matt Zeitler, Lance Verderame, George Vengrun, John Mueger

John Haas, Coordinator and Principal Observer
Arlene Borko, Renee Davis, Curt McDermott, Ruth Shursky

John Haas, Coordinator and Principal Observer
Scott Baldinger, Renee Davis, Valerie Freer, John Mueger, Jeff Petit, Jim Carney, Mark Diedrich, Elizabeth Knowlton, Curt McDermott, Ruth Shursky

As you can see from the summary table, our fall hawkwatch from the old fire tower above Summitville had the best season yet. More than twice as many Broadwings as ever seen before (over 3,400!) dominated the season totals. More details about each species can be found in this issue’s Bird Notes.

Many thanks to John Haas for leading this project and for spending many hours at the tower. Other SCAS members who observed at the tower this year were: Scott and Paula Baldinger, Renee Davis, Ed Frampton, Valerie Freer, Edward Nelson, Barbara, Ken, Aaron, and  Rachel Schmitt, Ruth Shursky, and Lance Verderame.

John Haas
Warblings, December 2009 - February 2010

Summitville Hawk Watch 2008 Posted 3/6/09    

Sullivan County Audubon conducted its 6th annual hawk watch at the Summitville fire tower from 9/4/08 through 11/12/08. Four counters and 3 assistants covered the watch for a total of 188.5 hours during that period. We observed a total of 16 species of raptors.

The tower is located on the Shawangunk ridge between Summitville and Burlingham. It is visible from the bridge on Haven Road. Many of the raptors seen on the watch pass over the ridges on both sides of the Basha Kill. This was our 2d best year to date, and hopefully we will be able to provide greater coverage in the future to fully realize the potential of this great migration site. The chart shows a breakdown of the birds seen, with the 3 month totals. 
              (See chart showing yearly totals).

John Haas
Warblings, Spring 2009

Summitville Hawk Watch 2007 Posted 11/7/07      

Bald Eagle,  photo by Stephen Davis
Click photo to enlarge

This year we will have completed our fifth season of watching hawks at the Summitville fire tower, and what a banner year it has been.  We started the season on September 6th, and since that time we have logged nearly 150 hours at the tower and seen a spectacular number  of birds.  For the first time we have tallied over 3000 hawks, osprey, eagles, vultures and falcons!

As of this writing we have doubled our highest previous count in a season.  Ideal conditions, wind and weather, have produced an  abundance of hawks passing by our area.  Highlights of the season thus far include one GOLDEN EAGLE, by far our highest count of BALD EAGLES,  and a total of over 1700 Broad-winged Hawks.  Black Vultures have  again been seen daily, most just hanging out, and a few migrating.

We don’t just get to see hawks on the watch either.  We have seen  many other species migrating.  American Robins, Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers, Red-breasted and White-breasted Nuthatches, Yellow-bellied  Sapsuckers, Canada Geese, Common Loons, Blue Jays and Common Ravens abound.  The ravens are not truly migrating, but large numbers do pass by.  On the 16th, over thirty ravens passed in one group.

We also added a new county bird this year.  On 9/29/07, I spotted  sixteen AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS passing over the ridge and directly over the tower.  This is not just new to Sullivan County, it is a  record number of White Pelicans for New York State.

I would like to thank Renee Davis, Kelly Sheridan, Valerie Freer, Mary Collier, Ruth Shursky and Lance Verderame for the time they have spent at the watch.  With the mild weather, this was not just a productive season,  it was truly an enjoyable time.  With spectacular views, warm winds and great birds, it is hard to imagine a better birding experience.

John Haas
Warblings, November-December 2007

Hawk Count 2005               Posted 12/22/05      

October 31st brought the end to our third year of hawkcounting at the fire tower in Summitville. The weather was much milder this year than in past years, so just being outside five stories up made many of the days very enjoyable. Don't get me wrong, there were days when it was downright dangerous being at the top of the tower in winds that were maxing out our wind gauge. We had not had an incident at the tower until the end of this year, when vandals broke one of the panes of plexiglass that we use to block the wind on bad days. We were fortunate that they didn't break all four; the one pane can be replaced.

We ended the year with 1547 birds, up from 1225 in 2004. On the list were 140 Turkey Vultures, 16 Bald Eagles, 54 Ospreys, 11 Northern Harriers, 211 Sharp-shinneds, 58 Coopers, 8 Northern Goshawks, 13 Red-shouldereds, 660 Broadwings, 307 Red-tails, 1 Rough-legged, 6 Golden Eagles, 24 American Kestrals, 4 Merlins, 8 Peregrines, 5 Black vultures (new for our site this year) and 21 unidentified raptors. John Haas had a high count of 254 Broadwings on Sept 23rd.

Speaking of John, he did a terrific job again this year coordinating counters and observers. All data was given to him, which he then reported to HMANA (Hawk Migration Association of North America). The data can be viewed at their website. It is a big undertaking; we appreciate his hard work and endless enthusiasm in this project.

Thank you, John. Special thanks also go to Kelly Sheridan, Ruth Shursky, Arlene Borko, Patrick Dechon, Fred Fries, and Valerie Freer for their part in making this a successful and fun project. Thank you all and here's to looking up!

Renee Davis
Warblings, December 2005 - February 2006

Hawkwatch Continues (2005) Posted 10/21/05      

Fall is the time for hawkwatching, so we are again observing them from the Summitville fire tower. Late last fall the tower was turned over to the NYS DEC by the NY-NJ Trail Conference. Fortunately, the DEC felt that we were doing a good job and wanted us to continue with our efforts. After the paperwork was completed and our permit was granted, off we went a-counting. Although we had fewer counters this year, this year’s totals are close to last year’s.

Kelly Sheridan and John Haas had high counts of Broadwing Hawks of 250 on Sept. 18th, and 254 on Sept. 23rd. In September, 656 Broadwings migrated past the tower on their way to Mexico and South America. Add to that list another 100 hawks, consisting of Bald Eagles, Ospreys, Northern Harriers, Sharp-shinneds, Coopers, American Kestrals, Merlins, Peregrine Falcons, and 9 unidentified raptors, which brings our total up to 756 birds.

Results are posted on the website of the Hawk Migration Association of North America. Scroll to the bottom and click on Hawkcount; from there you can access our reports in the day or monthly summaries. Our count site is Summitville, NY. Not only can you see our results, but you can also access counts from around the country and North America and Mexico. It's truly amazing to see just how many hawks fly by some of the major flyways, some counts reaching thousands every day. Don't believe me? Check out Veracruz River of Raptors in Mexico. I think you'll be amazed.

Renee Davis
Warblings, October-December 2005

Sullivan County Hawkwatch 2003Posted 1/26/04