Holiday Beach Migration Observatory
Ontario, Canada
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 06, 2004
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
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Turkey Vulture 515 1750 2986
Osprey 1 3 72
Bald Eagle 0 1 31
Northern Harrier 2 5 192
Sharp-shinned Hawk 84 327 4047
Cooper's Hawk 1 12 97
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 1 7
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 27842
Red-tailed Hawk 1 18 236
Rough-legged Hawk 0 1 1
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 4 50 1270
Merlin 0 13 46
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 10
Unknown 1 8 46
Total: 609 2189 36883
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Observation start time: 07:30:00
Observation end time: 12:45:00
Total observation time: 5.25 hours
Official Counter: Betty Learmouth
Observers: Barb Christel, Chad Saladin, Chris Saladin, Jim Crozier,
Mark Christel, Mike Champagne
Visitors:
We enjoyed visits from three school groups today, including two groups from
Essex County and fifteen students from Uplands School in Michigan, their
teacher, their parent assistants and naturalist Mike Champagne from Seven
Ponds Nature Centre. Raptor bander Dorothy Balkwill kindly provided
informative hawk talks which were enjoyed by all.
Weather:
Today was sunny with winds from the South Southwest under clear conditions.
Observations:
Our peak migration hours occured between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. EST with
a flight of Sharp-shinned Hawks and Turkey Vultures.
Blue Jays continued to migrate with 15,270 tallied by Jim Crozier
throughout the morning along with flocks of American Goldfinch totalling
94. Several Monarchs were seen about the tower.
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Report submitted by Betty Learmouth ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
Holiday Beach Migration Observatory information may be found at:
http://hbmo.org/
Holiday Beach Migration Observatory
Information on southern Ontario's hawk migration and the Holiday Beach
Conservation Area site
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Southwestern Ontario is largely an area of flat, featureless farmland.
There are only two geographic features of note in the region. One is the
proximity of the Great lakes, which influence bird migration in the area
to a great extent, The second is the shape of the province, roughly
funnel-shaped with the narrow end to the southwest. These features confine
south-bound bird migrants, especially hawks, to specific flight corridors.
Holiday Beach Conservation Area was formerly a Provincial Park, but is now
administered by the Essex Region Conservation Authority (ERCA). It is
strategically located at the extreme southwestern tip of southern Ontario.
The park is on the eastern end of a large freshwater estuary known as Big
Creek. (Specifically the site is 1.1 miles south of the junction Highway
20 (old 18) and Essex Road 50, Town of Amherstburg).
The Holiday Beach Migration Observatory (HBMO) (founded in 1986) is a
non-profit, volunteer organization formed to promote the study and
protection of migrating birds. Activities focus primarily on fall
migration of raptors and other species. This site is in Essex County,
Ontario, on the north shore of Lake Erie near the Detroit River. In 1988,
HBMO persuaded Detroit Edison to donate a 40 foot Hawk Tower which is now
at the site.
Southwestern Ontario has a funneling effect on migrating raptors due to
the geography of the nearby lakes and the reluctance of most raptors to
cross large bodies of water. Birds gain altitude over the flat farmland to
the north and east, rising easily with the thermals that such areas
provide in abundance. As the birds head south they meet Lake Erie and,
reluctant to cross it , turn west. With appropriate wind and weather
conditions, birds pile up along the lake shore and move west until they
reach the narrow crossing at the Detroit River (or island hop within the
river mouth).
