Every autumn, the skies above a forested ridge in eastern Pennsylvania fill with movement. Eagles drift on rising air, falcons streak across the horizon and kestrels appear in quick flashes before disappearing south. For generations, Hawk Mountain has been one of North America's best places to witness this seasonal migration because the landscape naturally funnels birds of prey along a narrow route through the Appalachian Mountains. Yet the ridge was not always known for conservation. Long before visitors arrived carrying binoculars and cameras, people climbed the same slopes with rifles.
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