Holiday Beach Conservation Area
Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada
Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 23, 2015
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Turkey Vulture 29 228 228
Osprey 1 60 60
Bald Eagle 2 80 80
Northern Harrier 6 241 241
Sharp-shinned Hawk 327 3569 3569
Cooper's Hawk 2 40 40
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0
Broad-winged Hawk 153 15883 15883
Red-tailed Hawk 4 69 69
Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 13 763 763
Merlin 5 29 29
Peregrine Falcon 0 7 7
Unknown Accipiter 0 4 4
Unknown Buteo 2 7 7
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 1 1
Unknown Raptor 1 7 7
Swainson's Hawk 0 1 1
Total: 545 20989 20989
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Observation start time: 06:15:00
Observation end time: 16:00:00
Total observation time: 9.75 hours
Official Counter: Jenna McDermott
Observers: Bob Hall-Brooks, Michael Williamson, Patrick Tomlinson,
Steve Wagner
Visitors:
A fellow from Leamington, a family with 2 enthusiastic home-schooled kids,
a couple from Kitchener, 2 local ladies, and another local family enjoyed
the weather on the tower.
Weather:
A thick fog rolled in half an hour into the count and lasted for almost two
hours, making the tower seem like it was in a bubble where birds could only
be heard and not seen. The fog burned off and the day warmed up. A moderate
breeze blew from the NE and N in the morning, switching to E and SE in the
afternoon. There were no clouds in the sky.
Raptor Observations:
Few raptors were seen during the foggy times of the morning, but once
things cleared up, Sharp-shinned Hawks started streaming over as they have
the past few mornings. A few small groups of Broad-winged Hawks streamed
overhead, usually following along with a Turkey Vulture or Red-tailed Hawk.
We experienced a mid-day lull and then later in the afternoon we didn't
have huge numbers, but experienced a nice variety of species. Osprey,
Northern Harriers and Merlins appeared, with 5 Merlins putting on a great
show, whizzing by with great determination and sometimes buzzing our
plastic owl a couple of times before moving on. One other Merlin did not
migrate but caught a small snack and perched in a tree nearby to eat it!
Non-raptor Observations:
Blue Jays increased again today, with 10,730 streaming over the tower and
alerting us to the presence of raptors when they screamed and all dove for
cover. Warbler chips were heard above the fog layer in the morning but
couldn't be seen to determine species or exact numbers. Cedar Waxwings and
American Goldfinches continued to move, as well as 3 Ruby-throated
Hummingbirds and 1 Killdeer. Gulls were an almost constant presence over
the marsh. Wood Ducks, Gadwall, Wigeon, Mallards, Blue-winged Teal,
Northern Shovelers, and Ruddy Duck were hanging out in the marsh.
Dragonflies were 1 Black Saddlebags and 1 Common Green Darner, though more
were seen that were feeding, not migrating. 121 Monarchs. See today's eBird
list http://ebird.org/ebird/canada/view/checklist?subID=S25149282
Predictions:
No clouds again tomorrow, with winds a little bit stronger (20kph) from the
NE in the morning and E in the afternoon.
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Report submitted by Jenna McDermott (jmcde...@alumni.uoguelph.ca)
Holiday Beach Conservation Area information may be found at:
http://hbmo.ca/
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