HawkWatch International Educator Visits MOE
by Loni Rahm
HawkWatch International will be holding their 9th annual Chelan Ridge Hawk Fest on Saturday, September 15th. The festival combines field trips to Chelan Ridge with activities held in Pateros.
In advance of the festival, HawkWatch educator, Annette Hansen visited with elementary students at MOE. Her presentation fascinated the normally fidgeting 3rd through 5th graders as she explained the three “sharp” distinguishing characteristics of raptors – sharp talons, sharp curved beak, and large eyes for sharp eyesight.
Hansen is adept at weaving scientific facts and figures into her presentation, using student volunteers to represent the ecosystem and its impacts on raptors, who face either death or disbursement (relocation) if the food source is not present. She demonstrated the difference between the proportion of human “wingspan” to height (generally height and arm length is identical so the proportion is 1 to 1) to that of a raptor (each wing is generally the same as the bird’s height so their proportion is 2 to 1). And she even through in a bit of Latin by explaining that the word Raptor is latin for “to seize or grab” which refers to the sharp talons raptors use to kill and shred their food.
The stars of the show were the Hawk and Owl she brought out to meet the students. Both birds had been injured – the hawk by flying into a tree branch and the owl flew into barbed wire – and were unable to be rehabilitated enough to be returned to the wild.
Hansen extended an invitation to learn more about raptors and migration data during the Chelan Ridge Hawk Fest in Pateros tomorrow. She encouraged those interested in taking the tour to Chelan Ridge to please register in advance, indicating it’s strictly for organizational purposes and not because of limited space.
About the Chelan Ridge Hawk Migration Festival
Join HawkWatch International, the US Forest Service Chelan Ranger District, and North Central Washington Audubon Society to celebrate International Hawk Migration Week during the 9th annual Chelan Ridge Hawk Migration Festival. This free, family event combines activities in Pateros, WA, and field trips to the Chelan Ridge HawkWatch to learn about raptors as they journey to winter territories.
You will get to see raptor demonstrations, visit with local vendors, and take a trip to the spectacular Chelan Ridge HawkWatch where visitors can see raptors such as Cooper’s Hawks up close when they are banded and released. Chelan Ridge sits 5,675 feet above sea level along the flyway of migrating raptors. HawkWatch International field crew who live at the Ridge during the migration season will offer insight into what it is like to live and breathe raptors and show how the birds are banded and tracked. This is an amazing experience with environmental education and interpretation conducted by on-site educators, Forest Service personnel, and volunteers.
HWI invites the public to visit staff and volunteers at the Chelan Ridge HawkWatch anytime throughout the fall season to hawk watch with the pros, learn some ID tips, and take in the views from the observation site.
For additional information and to register for Saturday’s field trip, visit the Event Website.
About the Organization: HawkWatch International is a non profit organization, who has spent over 30 years systematically collecting migration counts and data on diurnal raptors. The organization has counted, banded, gauged and gathered data on millions of birds heading south for the winter. For 20 years, HWI has included annual migration counts and surveys from Chelan Ridge. More information is available on the HWI website.
What is a hawkwatch? HawkWatch International records species identities of sex, age and color morph, numbers quantities, and behaviors of seasonal migrant raptors. They also collect data on weather and observation conditions. Several of the hawkwatch sites also conduct trapping and banding operations, giving visitors the opportunity to see a live raptor up-close before it is released back on its migration journey south.
