May 7 [Day 72] After having been soaked the day before and with thunderstorms forecasted today I decide to watch from the Valley View site. In the event I could have been on the ridge as showers were brief and confined to the afternoon and the thunder comprised only a few rumbles. Both the ground and ridge winds were light all day and cloud cover was 100% cumulus/stratus apart from mid afternoon when it cleared to 80-90%. Raptor movement was very sparse and all but one of the 8 birds seen occurred between 1141 and 1212, with an additional Sharp-shinned Hawk flying north at 1509. The unsettled weather is supposed to stay until Friday, but we shall see! 11 hours (827.7) SSHA 3 (150), COHA 3 (29), NOGO 1 (124), GOEA 1 (2929) TOTAL 8 (4038)

May 6 [Day 71] Conditions were calm until noon when NE-NNE winds developed bringing snow pellet, hail and rain showers that became heavy after 1515 necessitating a hasty retreat from the ridge. The morning saw a few sunny breaks in the stratocumulus cloud cover, but after the wind shift the mountains were often shrouded in cloud and after 1515 everything was obscured. The temperature rose to 6C from an initial 3.5C but fell to 2C by 1500. No migrant raptors were seen and there was little other movement with the exception of two medium-sized shorebirds flying high to the north at 0915 tantalizingly just too far to the west to allow specific identification. 9 hours (816.7) No migrant raptors

May 5 [Day 70] Winds were again westerly all day, light in the morning and gradually increasing to 40 km/h in the late afternoon. Cloud cover was 100% altostratus and cumulus all day giving rather gloomy conditions and the temperature started at 5C and rose to 11C. The calm conditions precluded early movement and the first bird, a juvenile Northern Goshawk, wasn’t seen until 1133. After that, however, movement was steady until 1500 when it slowed to a trickle until 1844 when the last 4 Golden Eagles of the day came through in a 12 minute period. The last bird of the day was a juvenile Bald Eagle at 1929. Eleven of the day’s 36 migrants moved between 1200 and 1300 which included the 4,000^th migrant of the season which was a Golden Eagle at 1218, and an11 minute period that saw the passage of 3 Turkey Vultures, an adult dark morph “Harlan’s” Red-tailed Hawk, a juvenile Golden Eagle and an adult Peregrine Falcon. The Golden Eagle count comprised 2 subadults and 11 juveniles, and the resident pair was seen soaring together on occasion, but never near a visible nest site. On a couple of occasions the male vigorously mobbed a resident Red-tailed Hawk only to have the tables quickly reversed with the eagle beating a hasty retreat closely pursued by the hawk! The recent list of bird species apparently out of place on a mountain ridge was augmented at 1334 by our first Great Blue Heron flying high to the north just east of the ridge. The first Yellow-rumped Warbler of the year was singing at 0745, but the most spectacular bird of the day was undoubtedly a male Dusky Grouse in full display strutting with a fully fanned tail and expanded scarlet nuchal sacs set off in their coronas of snow white exposed under-feathers. 12.83 hours (807.7) TUVU 3 (6), OSPR 1 (18), BAEA 3 (442), NOHA 1 (25), SSHA 7 (147), COHA 1 (26), NOGO 3 (123), UA 1 (8), RTHA 2 (213), GOEA 13 (2928), PEFA 1 (5) TOTAL 36 (4030)

May 4 [Day 69] (Bill) Winds were westerly all day gusting to 30 km/h by mid-afternoon, and cloud cover ranged from 2%-100% altostratus and altocumulus cloud cover giving sunny skies, or hazy sunshine after 1300. The temperature rose to a very pleasant 14C from a low of 4C. Raptor migration was slow but steady for much of the day with 9 of the day’s 28 birds occurring between 1600 and1700. The highlight of the day was the 11^th Ferruginous Hawk of the season, a light morph adult. Only 3 Golden Eagles were recorded: 2 subadults and 1 juvenile. The other highlights were both species not expected to be seen on a mountain ridge at 1900 m and both were new species for the site. At 1115 2 American White Pelicans glided high from the south, soared high in front of Turtle Mountain and drifted high over to the site, and at 1632 a male Yellow-headed Blackbird flew high from the ridge towards the SW. Other passerine migrants included 9 Townsend’s Solitaires, 5 American Robins, 2 American Pipits and 21 Bohemian Waxwings. 13.67 hours (794.9) OSPR 1 (17), BAEA 4 (439), SSHA 2 (140), COHA 1 (25), NOGO 2 (120), UA 2 (7), RTHA 8 (211), FEHA 1 (11), GOEA 3 (2915), MERL 1 (18), PRFA 1 (14), UU 2 (5) TOTAL 28 (3994)

May 3 [Day 68] (Bill) West winds gusting to 20 km/h gave way to variable light winds after 1000, thin altostratus and cirrus cloud yielded to thickening cumulus cloud after 1130 and the temperature ranged from 2C to 10.5C. Probably because of the light winds raptor movement was very sporadic between 1133 and 1827 with only 13 birds counted including 5 Golden Eagles (2 subadults, 1 juvenile and 2 of indeterminate age). A calling Mourning Dove early in the morning just above the parking area was a new species for the study area, and 3 Brewer’s Blackbirds flying above the ridge to the WSW at 0903 were a first for the site. Probable migrants included 21 Townsend’s Solitaires, 18 American Robins, 10 Bohemian Waxwings , 23 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches, and 4 American Pipits which were the first of the season. 14 hours (781.2) BAEA 1 (435), SSHA 3 (138), COHA 1 (24), NOGO 2 (118), RTHA 1 (203), GOEA 5 (2912) TOTAL 13 (3966)

May 2 [Day 67] It was a rare calm day on the ridge with no significant wind until after 1400 when it briefly gusted from various quarters to 15 km/h. The temperature rose to 10.5C from a low of 0C, and 20-60% cumulus cloud cover for most of the day made locating birds relatively easy although unlike yesterday few were close to the ridge. Movement was very sporadic with most birds moving during periods of SW winds, with a period between 1225 and 1510 with no movement at all. Notable were the 4^th Broad-winged Hawk (adult light morph) and 13th “Harlan’s” Red-tailed Hawk (adult dark) of the season and all 11 migratory Golden Eagles were immature, 1 subadult and 10 juveniles, the last of which came through at 1911. When I arrived at the ridge top the site was occupied by 6 Dusky Grouse and males were heard hooting throughout the day. New species for the season were Savannah Sparrow and a singing Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and Tree Swallow and a winnowing Wilson’s Snipe were recorded for the first time from the ridge. At 1008 a Blue Jay and a Steller’s Jay flew together to the west. 13 hours (767.2) NOHA 2 (24), SSHA 5 (135), COHA 1 (23), NOGO 2 (116), BWHA 1 (4), RTHA 1 (202), UB 1 (4), GOEA 11 (2907) TOTAL 24 (3953)

May 1 [Day 66] Again the weather forecast was completely wrong and instead of rain it was a day of sunshine with the temperature rising to 5C from a low of -3C and a mainly WNW wind gusting to 30 km/h to ensure that the day was not too enjoyable. Cloud cover was cumulus, cirrus and cirrostratus gradually increasing from 5% early in the morning to 80% at the end of the day providing an excellent observing backdrop. Again there was no early movement and the first bird, an adult Northern Harrier, didn’t appear until 1056 and steady migration only started after noon after which it was steady until the last 2 Golden Eagles glided north at 1935. Many of the birds moved low overhead giving ample opportunity to study details of plumage. Immature Golden and Bald Eagles have dominated the flight for the last couple of weeks, but now young birds of other species are becoming more common with all 4 Red-tailed Hawks, 4 Northern Goshawks and 4 of the 17 Sharp-shinned Hawks being juveniles. All the 26 migrant Golden Eagles were immature: 6 subadults and 20 juveniles. The 3^rd Broad-winged Hawk of the season, a light morph adult, flew low overhead at 1739. For the first time this season I observed a resident Golden Eagle carrying prey (probably ground squirrels) towards the west on two occasions, probably a male going to present food to the female: maybe breeding is getting closer! On the ridge Townsend’s Solitaires were anything but solitary as I counted 19 there, many of which were singing. For the first time there was a variety of finches moving: 46 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches, 1 Pine Grosbeak, 2 Red Crossbills, 3 White-winged Crossbills and a single Pine Siskin. 13 hours (754.2) OSPR 2 (16), BAEA 2 (434), NOHA 2 (22), SSHA 17 (130), COHA 4 (22), NOGO 4 (114), BWHA 1 (3), RTHA 4 (201), GOEA 26 (2896), MERL 1 (17), PRFA 1 (13) TOTAL 64 (3929)