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The Golden Gate Raptor Observatory (GGRO) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to study migrating birds of prey along the Pacific coast and to inspire the preservation of raptor populations in California. Established in 1985, it is a joint program of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and National Park Service, and is located in the Marin Headlands, just north of San Francisco, California. The GGRO programs center around Hawk Hill, one of the highest points (940 feet elev.) immediately above the Golden Gate on the north side, in Marin County. Discovered as the most productive hawk migration site in California by ornithologist Laurence Binford in 1972, Hawk Hill was called Point Diablo early on. This publicly accessible site, a centerpoint of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, offers visitors a spectacular vista of the San Francisco Bay Area, as well as the best view of the autumn hawk migration. At the migration's peak in late September/early October, as many as 800 raptors a day may be counted overhead. The Golden Gate migration is primarily one of diurnal raptors — hawks, kites, falcons, eagles, vultures, osprey, and harriers — with nineteen falconiform species appearing annually. In addition, a small range of non-raptorial migrants appear over the Marin Headlands in the autumn; this includes three species of swift, six species of swallow, and band-tailed pigeons, among dozens of avian species. The GGRO is one of the few bird research stations in the country where a raptor-counting program and a raptor-banding program operate in the same organization. Started by National Park Service biologist Judd A. Howell, and volunteers S. Williston Shor and Carter L. Faust in the early 1980s, the Raptor Observatory today still operates under the philosophy that incorporating citizens into the process of gathering scientific data will deepen long-term conservation results. Consequently, the organization’s small staff is augmented by the work of 280+ highly trained volunteers, coming from all different disciplines. The GGRO publishes an annual report, contributes annual results to national databases, and collaborates on various research projects with local universities. == Programs == The GGRO has three ways of monitoring the fall migration of raptors: hawk counting (Hawkwatch), hawk banding, and radio-tracking (Telemetry). *Hawkwatch involves a hawk count from the top of Hawk Hill. Volunteers identify and count the 19 species of raptors that pass through. *The banding program involves trapping, banding, measuring and then releasing hawks from various blinds located throughout the Marin Headlands. *Telemetrists attach a tiny radio transmitter to a tail feather of a hawk and then follow the hawk on its migration by triangulating signals from the transmitter. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Golden Gate Raptor Observatory」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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