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Small numbers of Swainson's Hawks are seen in eastern North
America each year during fall migration. To learn where they are
coming from, a small number
have been banded, primarily at Cape May Point, New Jersey. However,
there have been very few recoveries from which to
learn about the further movements of these individuals. To
investigate such travels more thoroughly, the next Swainson's Hawk banded
by the Cape May Raptor Banding Project personnel will be equipped with a backpack satellite
transmitter. Funding for the transmitter was provided by Swarovski
Optik North America. The transmitter is powered by a rechargeable battery
and solar panel, and has the potential to provide data of a period of at
least two to three years. With luck, we hope to place the
transmitter on an individual that survives at least that long, which would
allow us to document full southbound and northbound migrations, wintering
and summering territories, and determine whether these differ from year to
year.
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