To underline how impressive and important the Veracruz River of Raptors migration monitoring effort is, more than 375,000 birds of prey were counted there last Thursday (October 8). And now, you can learn all about this renowned hawk counting site, located along the Gulf of Mexico north of the city of Veracruz. Next Wednesday, October 21st at 12 Noon EDT, the Hawk Migration Association is hosting a live online presentation by 3 biologists associated with the world's largest raptor migration count site in Veracruz, Mexico, where an average of 4½ million raptors, hundreds of thousands of waterbirds, and countless other landbirds are counted as they funnel through this geographic region.
Free of charge, you are invited by the Hawk Migration Association to attend a live online presentation by Elisa Peresbarbosa Rojas, Eduardo Martínez, and Ernesto Ruelas Inzunza from the Veracruz River of Raptors. Learn more about how climate is effecting the timing of migration and what it means for the conservation of birds of prey at the world's largest raptor migration checkpoint in Veracruz, Mexico – where all species of birds are counted daily during fall and spring migration periods.
While the hawkwatching community knows very well just how special Veracruz is for raptor migration, everyone should become more familiar with this especially important migration hotspot along the Gulf Coast. Each fall, raptors that nest in Canada and the United States pass through on their way to wintering areas that include the Amazon River Basin and the Pampas Grasslands of Argentina. Plus, many of these bird species funnel through this region each spring as they migrate north to their respective nesting habitats.
The Pronatura Veracruz biologists will briefly describe why, when, and how birds funnel through eastern Mexico, why Veracruz is such a critical place for monitoring raptor migration, and what the long-term observations from their study sites can show the broader hawkwatching community. The speakers will then share some recent findings about how climate change is affecting the timing and duration of migration – and what these changes may mean for how we monitor and create conservation strategies for birds of prey. The speakers will close with a brief look back at 35 years of conservation work by Pronatura Veracruz and a glimpse at what lies ahead for the River of Raptors.
This program is Free, but registration is required in advance to appreciate the live presentation on Zoom, at Meeting Registration - Zoom. For anyone who is unable to join via Zoom, the Hawk Migration Association will live stream the program on their Facebook page, and following the event a recording of this exciting program will be available for you to view anytime at Hawk Migration Association. In the meantime, you can check on daily raptor counts at the 2 River of Raptors count sites at HawkCount; and while you are there, you can review daily raptor species count totals from Canada to Colombia by clicking on any count site's name. (By the way, the Florida Keys Hawkwatch documented their second highest daily count of Peregrine Falcons last Sunday as 651 Peregrines passed south among 874 total raptors! It was the highest tally of Peregrine Falcons there in 11 years.)