Observation start time: 08:15:00 Observation end time: 14:00:00 Total observation time: 5.75 hours
Official Counter: Bill Rasku
Observers: Christine Restell, Cindy Rost, Joanne Hart, Paul Vanderhoof
Visitors: We had help today from Hayley Morway and Randy Kelley from Natick, as well as Rick Quimby. We'll be glad to have you all back any time. Our friend Carl stopped by, as did Nicole. There were hundreds of Labor Day sightseers on the summit today, including a number of people who were interested in what we were doing.
Weather: Temps were in the 60's to low 70's, with a high, relatively thin cloud layer all day and cumulus clouds underneath that later in the day. Winds averaged around 7 mph most of the session, but calmed a bit to 3 mph towards the end, starting from the NNE and shifting around to ENE as the day progressed. There was some haze in the air due to higher humidity than the last several days, but Boston and all of the mountains were very visible under filtered sunshine.
Raptor Observations: Thanks to Bill Rasku for leading the watch today, assisted by a very capable crew. The number of migrating raptors increased again today to 22, with 7 different species represented - our best numbers so far this season. The easterly winds brought the highest number of Ospreys that we've seen so far.
Non-migrating raptors: Black Vulture - 3 TV - 7 Bald Eagle - 2 (both sub-adults) Broad-wings - 2 (1 Ad, 1 Juv) Red-tails - 3 (1 Ad, 2 Juv)
Non-raptor Observations: Non-raptors: Canada Goose - 13 MODO - 1 Comm. Nighthawk - 8 (the first ones reported up on the mountain in 5 years) Chimney Swift - 1 RT Hummingbird - 1 DC Cormorant - 1 E Phoebe - 1 RE Vireo - 1 Amer Crow - 9 Comm Raven -3 BC Chickadee - 1 Gr Catbird - 1 E Towhee - 1
Predictions: Tuesday's weather should be generally sunny, with temps in the mid-60's to low-70's, and 4-7 mph winds starting from the NNE and swinging around to the ESE by early afternoon. We're expecting to see a continued movement of Ospreys. ======================================================================== Report submitted by ERIC MUELLER (<ericmueller1912...>) Wachusett Mountain information may be found at: http://www.massbird.org/emhw
