Highlands Plateau Audubon Society
Dedicated to the enjoyment and protection
of birds and their environment
Founded in 1996
Serving Highlands, Cashiers, Franklin
and Scaly Mountain
in Western North Carolina
Flat Mountain Road Field Trip
Bird Banding with Mark Hopey
The Charlie Davis Memorial Blue Ridge Pkwy. Outing drew 27 and a fine time was had by all. Great fellowship and a
beautiful morning on the parkway with a good sampling of Fall migrants made the morning a success. The presence of a group of Pat and Charlie Davis's
friends who came all the way from Valdosta, GA, made the trip all the more special, with lots of laughter as many shared their memories of Charlie and
the early days of Highlands Plateau Audubon. Surely this will continue to be one of the highlights of our annual field trip schedule.
Charlie Davis Memorial Blue Ridge Parkway Outing
Saturday, September 15th
Looking for Peregrin Falcons on Whiteside Mountain.
Highlands Hawk Watch at Whiteside Mountain
There are hundreds of hawk watches around the nation at this time of year. Local birders travel to special locations that seem to attract migrating hawks to count and observe the soaring raptors. In many locations such as Cape May, New Jersey, or Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina, it is a daily ritual to count the hawks and to keep careful records of their observations.
We think we have found one such place here on the Highlands Plateau. It is the top of Whiteside Mountain. In just four days and only nine hours of observation in September we have a total count of 462 raptors passing over Whiteside Mountain. Most of the hawks are Broad-winged Hawks, but several other species have also been sighted including Peregrine Falcon, Bald Eagle, and Osprey.
It seems Whiteside Mountain is a geological feature that attracts migrating hawks because of their passing by on a regular basis and almost always in the same direction. Please contact Brock Hutchins if you would like to help Highlands Audubon learn more about Whiteside Mountain and migrating hawks.
