Grimsby, ON - Beamer Conservation Area Grimsby, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 17, 2019 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 75 172 172 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 2 7 7 Northern Harrier 1 2 2 Sharp-shinned Hawk 2 3 3 Cooper's Hawk 4 8 8 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 28 31 31 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 49 90 90 Rough-legged Hawk 1 5 5 Golden Eagle 3 3 3 American Kestrel 0 2 2 Merlin 0 2 2 Peregrine Falcon 2 4 4 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 1 1 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 168 330 330 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 16:15:00 Total observation time: 8.25 hours Official Counter: Rob Spaul Observers: Visitors: Lots of great visitors today! Special thanks to Katherine Stoltz for all her help and great first weekend of training! Great help spotting from Jerry Wright, John Hogeveen, Liam Thorne, Joshua Thorne, Dennis Lewington, Dave Michielsen and Jenny Brooks. Bob Stamp and friend made a brief visit and got to see one of the 3 GOEAs of the day. Weather: Beautiful sunny morning, with variable breezes, from E, then SW, then N, before settling into W/SW winds around noon (EST). Partly cloudy then becoming mostly cloudy, but never overcast (as forecast). Raptor Observations: Fantastic spring migration day. First of year GOEAs (2 adult, 1 sub-adult), and first big push of RSHAs (mostly adults). One Black Vulture arrived at 14:35 (13:35 EST), and basically did a large arcing u-turn in front of the observation site, before heading S/SW, so it is not currently included in the official count (as it was not heading at least "northish"). 1 adult, 1 juvenile (SY) PEFA migrants, no AMKEs or MERLs though. Non-raptor Observations: A pair of Sandhill Cranes, lots of Common Grackles arriving. Horned Lark flyovers. Local COHA and RTHAs active, both seen displaying. Typical residents and early spring arrivals. Predictions: Tomorrow looks to be pretty similar for weather, though a bit cooler. Hopefully migration continues in this upward trajectory! ======================================================================== Report submitted by Rob Spaul () Grimsby, ON - Beamer Conservation Area information may be found at: http://www.niagarapeninsulahawkwatch.org/ More site information at hawkcount.org: http://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=389 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: 1) Data in this report is not official until reviewed and finalized after the end of the season. ©2019 Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch. 2) Vehicular traffic into the park is allowed, but visitors are asked to have their cars outside the gate by 3PM. If parking at the gate DO NOT LEAVE VALUABLES IN YOUR VEHICLE!!! _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. 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