Beamer Conservation Area Grimsby, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 31, 2009 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 260 2319 2319 Osprey 1 2 2 Bald Eagle 0 47 47 Northern Harrier 1 29 29 Sharp-shinned Hawk 32 198 198 Cooper's Hawk 8 83 83 Northern Goshawk 0 2 2 Red-shouldered Hawk 39 697 697 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 112 2018 2018 Rough-legged Hawk 3 51 51 Golden Eagle 0 5 5 American Kestrel 2 16 16 Merlin 0 1 1 Peregrine Falcon 1 5 5 Unknown Accipiter 0 4 4 Unknown Buteo 0 20 20 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 9 43 43 Total: 468 5540 5540 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 07:45:00 Observation end time: 16:00:00 Total observation time: 8.25 hours Official Counter: Barry Cherriere, Janet Snaith Observers: Barry Cherriere, Phil Waggett Visitors: Thanks to the observers and visitors who all helped to spot and identify birds today including George Meyers, David Weare, Tom Thomas, Brandon Holden, Colin Horstead, David Sked, Eric Single, Glenn Barnett, and Sandra Horvath. Weather: Cool and breezy most of the day. Felt colder than the thermometre read, but didn't hold back the birds or observers from coming. Low clouds that the birds were obscured by at times. Raptor Observations: Fairly steady flight, with good variety of species. The Rough-legged hawks were all in the same hour, with 2 being the dark form and 1 light. Peregrine was right over the tower at 2:48 pm. Non-raptor Observations: Heard frogs calling most of the day from the direction of the quarry, especially when the sun was out. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Janet Snaith () Beamer Conservation Area, Grimsby, ON information may be found at: http://www.hwcn.org/link/niaghawk/ Site Description: The hawk migration at the Beamer Memorial Conservation Area is conducted by the Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch (NPH). The counting is all done by volunteers. Not all members are counters nor does a counter have to be a member. Typically one person is the designated counter for each day but other observers present assist with the spotting and identification. Counting is done from a steel observation tower with a wooden floor. For wind protection on the cold days of March, a black plastic wind guard is installed around the towers platform. This platform easily accommodates ten people but on most busy days, no more than five or six observers would be on it. The site lies within a publically accessible property owned by the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority. There is no charge for admittance. The tower stands in the centre of a mowed area with a gravel ring road near the outer edge. This provides lots of room to park vehicles (along the road) and set up lawn chairs, telescopes and cameras. Toilet facilities are present. During the counting season, the NPH erect a counting board to display the days observations for the public. The box enclosing the sign contains brochures and silhouette sheets for the public as well as bulletin boards with news and historical sighting records. Directions to site: To get to Beamer CA, take the QEW to Exit 72, follow Christie St./Mountain St. to the top of the escarpment, turn right on Ridge Road West, and go 1.6km to Quarry Rd. Turn right on Quarry Rd. and drive 100m to the conservation area. Parking is normally available inside the park. If parking at the entrance or on the roads, do NOT leave valuables in your car. Please note: Data in this report is not official until reviewed and finalized after the end of the season. © 2008 Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
