Abstract
During 2010, the Yellowstone Raptor Initiative (YRI) used grant funds from the NPS Research Station-Wyoming to create a program with a raptor-centric focus. This program, in its infancy, concentrated on involving park visitors and staff in obtaining and collating raptor sightings in Yellowstone National Park. The funds also helped locate what may be a significant raptor migration corridor through Hayden Valley, as noted via the documentation of concentrations of Swainsonâs Hawks on their flight through Yellowstone National Park to Argentina. Park staff and visitors attended raptor ecology and identification programs presented during the summer and fall, while a pilot ranger-led hawkwatch in Hayden Valley attracted 160 attendees, including area residents, park staff and park visitors. The Yellowstone Raptor Initiative also conducted additional outreach by presenting technical papers at the Raptor Research Foundation annual meeting regarding the YRI, and scientific work which had been accomplished by the Initiativeâs participating agencies and biologists during the 2010 funding year.