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by Mike in O on Tue Jan 17, 2017 11:23 am
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Here is the local report on the raptors of the high desert in Central Oregon
Last Fri., the weather reports and my schedule told me I had to do the Christmas Valley and Ft. Rock ECAS Raptor Surveys on Sun. and Mon.  Sun. morning I headed for the Christmas Valley route and as soon as I got to the basin I saw the feast was on. There were live and dead jack rabbits everywhere. especially when hay sheds were nearby. With the rabbits came the eagles. I logged in 3 eagles while filling out the heading on my form. After 1 1/2 miles I had to wait for over 100 elk to cross the road right in front of me, drove around the next corner and waited for the same herd to cross again.  This morning Clay Crofton joined me for the Ft. Rock route and guess what lots of rabbits and even more eagles.  About 1 miles west of the rock we came over a rise in the dense fog and about 30 + elk were not crossing the road but lying down in it.  They were out there after the hay barns just like the rabbits.  In the two days we counted 107 eagles, 67 Bald and 40 Golden, countless nos.
  of Jack Rabbits, dead and alive, and too many ravens to count.  We encountered lots of sunshine between patches of dense fog with temps between -3 and +17 with 100% snow cover between 6 and 18 inches.  It was 2 great days out on the high desert.
 
Raptors counted:
                            Christmas Valley     Fort Rock
 
Red-tailed Hawk                    58              50
American Kestrel                    2               2
Northern Harrier                    2               1
Adult Bald Eagle                    8              28
Sub adult Bald Eagle                5              26
Golden Eagle                       23              17
Rough-legged Hawk                  40              22
Ferruginous Hawk                    8               1
Prairie Falcon                      2
Cooper's Hawk                       3
Unident. Buteo                      3
 
Total                             154             147
 
 

by SantaFeJoe on Tue Jan 17, 2017 12:20 pm
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Why so many dead jackrabbits? Around here they are mostly killed by coyotes and owls with little left over.

Joe
Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.  -Pablo Picasso
 

by Mike in O on Tue Jan 17, 2017 12:35 pm
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Autos...the snow is deep so they are out on the road.
 

by WDCarrier on Tue Jan 17, 2017 12:39 pm
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I'm envious. It sounds like a great trip.
[font=Helvetica, sans-serif]“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” MLK[/font]
 

by Mike in O on Tue Jan 17, 2017 1:08 pm
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Though It sounds like I was on the trip, this is a posting from the East Cascades Audubon Society. Kind of a unique area for spotting Golden and Bald eagles together, as well as the northern raptors such Ferruginous and Rough leg Hawks. Great photo opportunity if you can brave the weather.
 

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