On Sunday, I felt I'd been spending too much time looking at passerines,
and that I'd like to get out of Miami, so I headed down to the hawkwatch
at Curry Hammocks SP in the Keys (milemarker 56.1).

It was my first trip to this hawkwatch, and I picked an excellent
day!  Conditions were partly to mostly cloudy much of the day, and some
light rain in the afternoon brought some of the hawks lower.

I didn't get there early enough for the Swallow-tailed Kite, or the first
3 (of 5) Mississippi Kites, but I did see kettles of Broad-wings and
Peregrines moving through.

Almost 1000 hawks came through on Sunday, with best-of-season totals of
341 Broad-wings, 169 Peregrines, and 72 Kestrels.  The 184 Sharp-shins may
also have been a seasonal high.  Other birds included Coopers (sometimes
in the same binocular field with a Sharpie), Merlins, Harriers, Ospreys,
and a local Bald Eagle.

Glossy Ibis and Roseate Spoonbill also flew by the hawkwatch.

Derek Lovitch, who's one of the hawk counters, saw a Ruby-crowned Kinglet
early in the morning at Curry Hammock.

Weather permitting, I expect I'll be back there next Sunday for the
Tropical Audubon field trip to the hawkwatch.

I stopped at Long Key on the way down, finding several
Chuck-will's-widows, Whip-poor-will, Sora, and 8 warbler species,
including 2 Magnolias.  I also tried some shorebird spots, finding few
birds.  I didn't proceed down to Ohio Key, which would be the best bet for
shorebirds.

Palm Warblers were everywhere.

--
John H. Boyd III, Dept. of Economics,                       [log in to unmask]
Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199            305-348-3287