Holiday Beach Hawk Watch
Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 01, 2023
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Turkey Vulture 507 507 67695
Osprey 0 0 46
Bald Eagle 11 11 270
Northern Harrier 5 5 752
Sharp-shinned Hawk 68 68 8854
Cooper's Hawk 5 5 315
American Goshawk 1 1 5
Red-shouldered Hawk 35 35 409
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 56725
Red-tailed Hawk 158 158 1737
Rough-legged Hawk 3 3 7
Golden Eagle 1 1 13
American Kestrel 2 2 2610
Merlin 0 0 127
Peregrine Falcon 1 1 89
Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0
Unknown Buteo 0 0 0
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 0 0 0
Total: 797 797 139654
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 7 hours
Official Counter: Hugh Kent, Peter Veighey
Observers: Aldo Bertucci, Chip Ogglesby, Hugh Kent, Ian Woodfield,
Juliette Herdman, Karen Padbury, Liz Kent,
Michelle Mastellotto, Noel Herdman
Visitors:
A big thanks to Peter and Aldo for taking over the count at midday, ably
assisted by Juliette and Noel, Karen, Michelle, Ian and Chip.
It was good to see again Janice from Quadra Island, BC and Eric, who both
took a great interest in the Hawk Watch.
Weather:
The wind was consistently from WNW, varying from moderate to strong. The
day started cold with the temperature at -1 C rising to a high of 8 C by
mid-afternoon. It was clear initially but became partially cloudy by mid
day. Visibility was good.
Raptor Observations:
Turkey Vultures (507) again took the top spot with them mostly travelling
to the north.
Red-tailed Hawks (158) came in at 2nd place, mostly accompanying the TV's
but sometimes on their own.
Sharp-shinned Hawks (68) appeared sporadically during the day.
Red-shouldered Hawks (35) were nice to see with the Red-tails.
A Golden Eagle graced us with its presence at 11:49am, just north of the
tower. It eventually soared out of sight, gliding to the west.
The 'Birds of the Day' were 3 Light Phase Rough-legged Hawks, two of which
came over the tower.
Today was a good day with a total of 12 out 15 possible raptors seen.
Non-raptor Observations:
It was nice to see and hear Tundra Swans (78) flying over the marsh. Ducks
are maintaining their numbers with Ring-necked Ducks (1580) playing hide
and seek amongst the marsh vegetation to keep out of the wind.
Bonaparte's Gulls (26) visited the marsh with graceful floating flight.
American Crows (426) reappeared in moderate numbers but Blue Jays (30) have
almost finished migration.
Eastern Bluebirds (22) were heard passing over, once again.
Winter Finches, Purple Finch (15) and Pine Siskin (12) made an appearance.
It was very quiet around the tower with the exception of the creaking of
the Rusty Blackbirds (215).
The List is at https://ebird.org/canada/checklist/S153547084
Predictions:
Tomorrow's forecast is for moderate wind from the SW. It will be partially
cloudy with the temperature rising throughout the day to 8 C. With the
direction of the wind it is unlikely we will see the numbers we had today.
However the mix could be similar.
========================================================================
Report submitted by Hugh Kent ([email protected])
Holiday Beach Hawk Watch information may be found at:
http://hbmo.ca/
More site information at hawkcount.org:
https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=100
--
Ontbirds and Birdnews are moderated email Listservs provided by the Ontario
Field Ornithologists (OFO) as a service to all birders in Ontario.
Birdnews is reserved for announcements, location summaries, first of year
reports, etc. To post a message on Birdnews, send an email to:
[email protected].
If you have any questions or concerns, contact the Birdnews Moderators by email
at [email protected]. Please review posting rules and guidelines at
http://ofo.ca/site/content/listserv-guidelines
During the COVID-19 pandemic, all Ontario birders should be taking extra
precautions and following local, provincial, and federal regulations regarding
physical distancing and non-essential travel.
To find out more about OFO, please visit our website at ofo.ca or Facebook page
at https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists.
