Hawk Mania Returns to Key West

Every fall tens of thousands of hawks, eagles and falcons migrate through the Florida Keys, a phenomenon that is surprisingly easy to miss.

“In September and October I see birds migrating almost every day. It makes me want to grab the people around me by their shirt collars and point it out to them,” said Florida Keys Audubon Society executive director Mark Hedden.

To raise awareness of this phenomenon, and to avoid grabbing people by their shirt collars, the Florida Keys Audubon Society started Hawk Mania last year. The event was so successful that they are expanding their offerings this year.

Hawk Mania will take place on Friday and Saturday, October 14 and 15. The two main events will be a keynote talk by internationally renowned hawk expert Rafael Galvez on Friday, and all day Hawk Watch at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park on Saturday.

“During the fall we are positioned in a unique place along the Atlantic migratory flyway to see all these birds before they leave the continent. They head towards the Caribbean and South America, and it’s just beautiful. Sometimes you see thousands of birds in a day,” said Rafael Galvez, director of the Florida Keys Hawkwatch.

More Peregrine Falcons pass through the Keys than anywhere else on the planet.

Galvez will give a talk called “Southbound and Down: Bird Migration in the Florida Keys” at 6:30 p.m. Friday, October 14 at the Key West Garden Club.

Saturday Galvez will help the Florida Keys Audubon Society with their all day Hawk Watch from 9:00 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, October 15. The hawk watch will take place in the field at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park. Look for the white tent.

“This is a chance to have really good looks at migrating raptors. I can almost guarantee you will see a Peregrine Falcon if you stick around for 20 minutes,” said Hedden.

Assisting in the count will be expert hawk watchers Jeff Bouton of Leica Sport Optics, and Cameron Cox, lead counter at the Florida Keys Hawkwatch. Both Bouton and Cox have worked as lead counters for the Cape May Bird Observatory.

There will also be several satellite events both days. On Saturday 9:30 a.m. Dr. Mark Whiteside will lead a songbird walk at Fort Zach. At 11:00 Amy Grimm and Leigh Williams will lead a Keys butterflies walk within the park. At 1:00 p.m. Cameron Cox will lead up a seawatch from the edge of the park, looking for pelagic birds.

Also, on Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. Cameron Cox, author of “Peterson Reference Guide to Seawatching,” will kick it all off with a short walk and talk and a chance to learn about the habits of shore birds, wading birds, and the birds of the open ocean (also known as pelagic birds). The walk will begin at the foot of White Street Pier.

All events are free and open to anyone interested. There is a fee to enter Fort Zachary Taylor State Park.

For more information please visit www.keysaudubon.org, email [email protected], or call 305-771-5807.

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