Rise and Fall of American Goshawks in the Central Appalachians by David Brinker
Description: Admired by people for its aggressiveness, courage, flight prowess and hunting ability from before the dark ages; in northern hemisphere forests the goshawk is an apex avian predator. Since 1994, the Central Appalachian Goshawk Project has monitored goshawk nesting attempts in the high country of West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. A positive population trend and range expansion during the late 20th Century abruptly reversed in the early 21st Century. Eastern hawk watch data documents the cessation of irruptive movements from the western Great Lakes eastward and shows significant declines at most major hawk watches, including the two lowest counts of goshawks at Hawk Mountain since establishment of routine counts in 1970. Dave Brinker, Regional Ecologist with the Natural Heritage Program at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, will share insights from over thirty years working with the gray ghost and discuss its future in the Eastern United States.
