Holiday Beach Conservation Area Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 18, 2010 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Turkey Vulture 2 91 91 Osprey 0 71 71 Bald Eagle 0 48 48 Northern Harrier 7 164 164 Sharp-shinned Hawk 284 3217 3217 Cooper's Hawk 1 37 37 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 1 6253 6253 Red-tailed Hawk 0 93 93 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 11 474 474 Merlin 4 46 46 Peregrine Falcon 0 9 9 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 1 1 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Mississippi Kite 0 1 1 Total: 310 10505 10505 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 06:00:00 Observation end time: 15:30:00 Total observation time: 9.5 hours Official Counter: Jim Pawlicki Observers: Karen Padbury, Rene Kielbasa Visitors: A good crowd of people came out to the tower for the first day of the festival to enjoy the hawks and the view. A thanks to the HBMO volunteers that helped spot and record raptors. Weather: Mostly cloudy with a slight SW breeze that later turned to NW by the end of the count. The rain thankfully held off and only a few drops came down mid-morning. Temps ranged from a comfortable 16 to 25C. Raptor Observations: Slow overall, although a fair number of Sharp-shins came through low for the festival crowds. Very few Kestrels with a only a few Harriers. The local juv. Bald Eagles put on a good acrobatics show in the morning chasing each other and rolling around in the wind. Non-raptor Observations: Notable were the first small migrant flocks of Blue Jays totaling 14 and fair number of Warblers including Cape May and N. Parula. Also Black-crowned Night-Heron, 7 fly-by Lesser Yellowlegs, and 3 C. Nighthawks. Predictions: Starting off cloudy to a mix of sun and clouds late in the morning. Winds N to NW 10 km/hr. Cooler with a high of 19C. Hopefully Broad-wings will be flying and the winds strong enough to keep them on the shore. Otherwise conditions look good for a decent Sharp-shin, Kestrel, and Harrier flight. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Jim Pawlicki ([email protected]) Holiday Beach Migration Observatory information may be found at: http://hbmo.org/ Directions to site: Entering Canada from Detroit at the Ambassador Bridge: After Canadian Customs, stay left 50 yards, passing over the railroad tracks. You are now on Huron Church Road leading to Highway 401 and Highway 3. Continue east 3.8 miles to the intersection with Todd and Cabana roads. Go through the intersection, staying to the right. In less than 100 yards the main road splits; 401 and 3 continue to the left as the main road and Huron Church narrows and angles to the right. Follow Huron Church right for 0.5 miles to Disputed Road. After angling a right turn onto Disputed Road, travel south. PLEASE OBEY SPEED LIMITS, they aer usually monitored. At 4 miles Disputed Road intersects with Townline Road, and the name changes to Concession 5. Continue south 5 miles and Concession 5 "T"'s with South Townline Road. Turn left and travel east 0.2 miles, turning right (south) onto Concession 6. Continue south for 3.4 miles to the intersection with Highway 20 at Malden Centre in the town of Amherstburg. There is a restaurant/convenience/gas store on the southeast corner of the intersection. Go through the intersection south onto Route 50 for 1.3 miles. The entrance to the Holiday Beach Conservation Area is on the right. Pay entry fee and continue to the Hawk Tower at the south end of the park. Park vehicle and walk to the tower. West bound on Routes 401 and 3 Howard Avenue, Route 9, intersects Routes 401 and 3 east of Windsor. Take Howard Avenue south to Highway 20 ("T"'s) and turn right (west) traveling (about 2 miles) to Malden Centre in the town of Amherstburg. A restaurant/convenience/gas store is on the left. Turn left (south) on to Route 50 for 1.3 miles; the entrance to HBCA is on the right. _______________________________________________ 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/
