Holiday Beach Hawk Watch
Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 11, 2023
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
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Turkey Vulture 125 2767 69955
Osprey 0 0 46
Bald Eagle 24 77 336
Northern Harrier 2 66 813
Sharp-shinned Hawk 7 188 8974
Cooper's Hawk 2 39 349
American Goshawk 0 4 8
Red-shouldered Hawk 76 244 618
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 56725
Red-tailed Hawk 251 1050 2629
Rough-legged Hawk 1 13 17
Golden Eagle 29 68 80
American Kestrel 0 4 2612
Merlin 3 8 135
Peregrine Falcon 1 4 92
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: 521 4532 143389
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Observation start time: 09:00:00
Observation end time: 17:00:00
Total observation time: 8 hours
Official Counter: Hugh Kent, Michael Arthurs
Observers: Aldo Bertucci, Chuck Sharbaugh, Liz Kent, Michael Arthurs,
Nicole Shangi, Noel Herdman, Paul Gosselin
Visitors:
Big thanks to Michael for starting the count and staying throughout the
day. Big thanks also to observers Chuck, Noel, Nicole, Neil, Paul and Aldo.
We needed their eyes given the height of flight of all the Eagles and
Buteos passing over. It was good to see Laura, Dennis, Suzanne, Heather and
Roberta again. We were happy to help them identify the passing Raptors.
Weather:
The temperature soon increased from a chilly 2c early morning to around 8c
for the rest of the day. The wind was moderate generally from the north,
then turning north west early afternoon and south west late afternoon. The
skies were clear in the morning, increasingly clouding over during the
afternoon. Visibility was good all day.
Raptor Observations:
An incredible day for Golden Eagles, with the fourth best daily toll of 29.
They appeared from the first hour, with twelve seen in the second hour
alone. Most were immatures which bodes well for the future. Three were seen
in the last hour. Again one was captured, banded and brought to the Tower
for all to see. Thanks to Allen and Chip. Red-tailed Hawks (251) passed by
in good numbers, all really high in the afternoon, with Red-shouldered
Hawks (76) mixed in. Bald Eagles (24) were also passing in respectable
numbers. Sharp-shinned Hawks (7), Northern Harriers (2), Cooper's Hawks
(2), Rough-legged Hawk (1) were all in low numbers. It was good to welcome
falcons back after an absence of a few days with three Merlins and one
Peregrine seen.
Non-raptor Observations:
Lots of Red-breasted Mergansers (240) on the lake and a flyover of Common
Mergansers (13), first of the season. Loads of ducks on the Marsh still
with Bufflehead (7) numbers increasing and a total of thirteen species
seen. Greater Yellowlegs (22) are still flying over the marsh. Big flight
of American Crow (11,360) passing by mostly to the north. Small birds were
around, but in smaller numbers. The list is at
https://ebird.org/checklist/S154254586
Predictions:
Tomorrow's forecast indicates initially a light easterly wind, switching to
the south east mid morning and increasing to moderate. Mostly cloudy
initially, possibly clearing a bit early afternoon. A bit chilly early
morning but the temperature should rise to around 9c by midday. It will be
hard to beat today, but hopefully we will still see more of the same mix,
through possibly not in the numbers of today.
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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
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