Jan 31 2012 January 20 – February 11 is the time for
Pennsylvania’s Winter Raptor Survey (WRS) when volunteers drive
prescribed routes and tally the number of raptors they see. Many
volunteers post their counts on PABIRDS where we learn that our
most numerous winter raptors are red-tailed hawks. (No surprise
there!) The reports include weather and snow cover conditions
because this affects the number of raptors seen. This year few
routes have snow. In a snowy year rough-legged hawks move south
in Pennsylvania. They breed in Alaska and Canada and winter in
the Lower 48. They’re found hunting in open meadows and brushy
areas for mice, voles and rabbits. But only where there’s snow
cover. If there’s snow, the rough-legs are here. If not, they
stay up north. Two years ago we had a lot of snow — so much that
it was hard to drive the routes. (Remember the two feet of snow
February 5-9, 2010?) This year it’s easy to drive but the
birding isn’t as good. I’m not asking for a return to the snow
of 2010 but snow in mode