Grimsby, ON - Beamer Conservation Area Grimsby, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 08, 2016 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 52 86 93 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 2 3 4 Northern Harrier 4 5 5 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 0 0 Cooper's Hawk 6 9 10 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 2 2 2 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 34 49 50 Rough-legged Hawk 8 8 10 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 1 3 3 Merlin 0 1 1 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 1 1 1 Total: 110 167 179 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:15:00 Observation end time: 16:30:00 Total observation time: 7.25 hours Official Counter: Bruce Mackenzie Observers: Barry Cherriere, Bob Stamp, Eric Holden, John Hogeveen Visitors: Eric Holden - 3 Gold Stars for first RS of year, finding the first dark morph RL and first BE. Keith Park, Bob Stamp, Brian Hawthorn, Barry Cherriere, John Hogeveen, Claude King Weather: Warm day, 12 C. Day started with no winds to light winds from north switching mid day to south west to north east to south west at end of day. High overcast for most of day. Down to 20% cloud in midafternoon to clouding over again. Raptor Observations: An excellent day. 9 Rough legged Hawks, 5 dark morph, one intermediate, 3 light morph. At 1:35 pm an adult Bald Eagle with a possible darker tail passed overhead in difficult lighting. At 1:11 pm a third year Bald Eagle passed over the 10th line which is west of Beamer. Likely different birds. Non-raptor Observations: High level of crow activity all day. Most vulture activity in morning were local birds. migrating vultures picked up in afternoon best between 3 and 4. Swans and robins overhead with some blackbirds. RAVEN migrating between 2 and 3 pm. harassed by local crows but migrating Red tail with Raven not bothered by crows. Flicker. Predictions: If wind and rain predictions come true conditions might be rough day but warm weather has the promise of making the birds want to move. Look for the dryer periods. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Bruce Mackenzie () Grimsby, ON - Beamer Conservation Area information may be found at: http://www.niagarapeninsulahawkwatch.org/ Site Description: Hawk migration monitoring at the Beamer Memorial Conservation Area in Grimsby, Ontario is conducted by the Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch (NPH). All counting is 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 cold days, particularly in March, a black plastic wind guard is installed around the tower's 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 publicly 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 seven day's worth of observation data 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 71/72, 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. © 2016 Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide
