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Gunsight Mountain Spring HawkWatch 2023

Season Summary

Species Count
16
Total Count
4,150

Species Composition

Species composition changes over time depending on weather, seasons, and many other factors. This chart displays the composition over a time period you select.

Click on pie pieces to see more detail. If there are more than seven species, click on "Other" to see a breakdown of the rest.

Display

Many sites have a protocol that is designed to maximize finding particular species. If you select "Focus Species," only these species will be shown.

Date Selector

The control box below the pie chart lets you select a date period for the chart.

You can push the buttons "1d," "1w," or "1m" to zoom the graph to 1 day, 1 week, or 1 month.

The graph shows the overall volume seen on each day. You can drag the sliders on each side of this graph to adjust the start and end dates.

Species Composition
February 15th to December 31st

Drag the Sliders Below to Change the Dates Shown

Daily Counts

These charts show which species are most numerous at different parts of the season. Hover your mouse over a chart to see the number for a given day. The right column shows season totals and the left side shows the maximum for a single day. Each graph is scaled so that the single-day maximum is the highest point on the chart.

Sort By
  • Focus Species: Show the highest priority species at the top of the list.
  • Taxonomic Order: Sort the species by their scientific classification.
  • Alphabetic Order: Sort the species by their common name.
  • Abundance: Sort the species with the largest number counted at the top.

Daily Counts

Osprey
53
Golden Eagle
1702
Northern Harrier
687
Sharp-shinned Hawk
286
Northern Goshawk
32
Bald Eagle
139
Red-tailed Hawk
869
Rough-legged Hawk
286
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Gunsight Mountain Spring HawkWatch 2023

We’re excited to announce that migration is on once again this spring at the Gunsight Mountain HawkWatch in Alaska—North America’s northernmost migration monitoring site! This valley count is known for large Red-tailed Hawk and Golden Eagle counts, but also sees a good flights of Rough-legged Hawk and Northern Harrier; these 4 species comprise nearly 80% of the average yearly flight. Many of the Red-tailed Hawks are of the stunning Harlan’s subspecies, and light reflecting off of snow cover creates amazing looks at raptors flying overhead.

Directions

Drive NE on the Glenn Highway (route 1) from Anchorage. Highway will travel through towns of Palmer and Sutton. At MP 120 there is a vehicle pullout on the right hand side of the road. That is the primary watch site (April 1 - May). Early season counts (March 7 - March 31) are conducted at a trailhead parking area on the left hand side of the road just past MP 121. Anchorage Audubon Society and Mat-Su Birders conduct an annual Hawk Watch Weekend in mid-April at the large MP 118.8 pullout on the right hand side of the road. Just before the 118.8 pullout is a left turn to a larger parking area and outhouse. Drive time from Anchorage is approximately 2.5 hours. Winding road, rock falls, cliffs, gorgeous scenery.

HawkWatch International

The mission of HawkWatch International is to conserve our environment through education, long-term monitoring, and scientific research on raptors as indicators of ecosystem health.

About the Data

All data displayed on this site are preliminary and have not yet undergone quality control. Written permission is required to use the data.