Lehigh Valley bird sightings for September 19

Broad-winged Hawk

This week's bird sightings for the Lehigh Valley again focuses on the hawk migration at Bake Oven Knob in Lehigh County.

The migration of Broad-winged Hawks is at its peak, with 1,742 sightings reported in the week between September 13 and September 19. The previous week's count was 815.

Friday's count was the largest, with 612 Broad-wings counted during the course of that one day. A team of experienced birders is stationed at Bake Oven Knob for eight to 10 hours per day to monitor the progression of the hawks southward.

One new development is the increase in migrating Sharp-shinned Hawks. This week brought the sighting of 158 Sharp-shinned Hawks, compared to 76 in the previous week.

The pace of Osprey migration also is increasing.

Here are the totals for the week, based on daily counts reported on the online American Birding News.

Sharp-shined Hawk

Broad-winged Hawk, 1,742.
Sharp-shinned Hawk, 158.
Osprey, 82.
Turkey Vulture, 43.
Bald Eagle, 32.
Red-tailed Hawk, 24.
Black Vulture, 16.
American Kestrel, 10.
Merlin, 8.
Cooper’s Hawk, 7.
Northern Harrier, 6.
Peregrine Falcon, 5.
Red-shouldered Hawk, 1.

Other bird species seen include:
Raven, 42.
Canada Goose, 16.
Sandhill Crane, 11.
Hummingbird, 10
Pileated Woodpecker, 5.
Northern Flicker, 5.
Blue Jay, 4.
Philadelphia Vireo, 3.
Hairy Woodpecker, 2.
Red-headed Woodpecker, 2.
Black-throated Green Warbler, 2.


Also seen: Red-bellied Woodpecker, American Robin, American Goldfinch, Chimney Swift, Ovenbird, Scarlet Tanager, American Crow, Rock Pigeon, Cedar Waxwing, Black-capped Chickadee, Red-eyed Vireo, Carolina Wren, White-breasted Nuthatch, Common Nighthawk, Cormorant and Tree Swallow. Also, Magnolia, Chestnut-sided and Black-throated Blue warblers.