Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch
Port Stanley, Ontario, Canada
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 12, 2024
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 0 0 1
Turkey Vulture 35 1040 25557
Osprey 0 0 62
Bald Eagle 21 117 391
Northern Harrier 14 97 687
Sharp-shinned Hawk 16 76 3983
Cooper's Hawk 9 75 258
American Goshawk 0 0 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 6 106 242
Broad-winged Hawk 1 1 1303
Red-tailed Hawk 240 1003 1840
Rough-legged Hawk 0 11 21
Golden Eagle 5 79 157
American Kestrel 0 0 1394
Merlin 1 12 93
Peregrine Falcon 0 0 61
Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0
Unknown Buteo 0 0 0
Unknown Falcon 0 0 0
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 0 0 0
Swainson's Hawk 0 0 1
Total: 348 2617 36053
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Observation start time: 08:30:00
Observation end time: 16:00:00
Total observation time: 7.5 hours
Official Counter: Dave Brown
Observers: Clive Hodder, Mac McAlpine, Michele Carnerie,
Ronnie Goodhand
Visitors:
A few visitors today including Maria C, Trish S and Terry H... and thanks
to them and the counters Michele C, Mac M and Ronnie G for helping spot and
tally the birds in such a tough sky!
Weather:
It was a COLD day of counting today with temps starting at 1C and getting
to a high of just 8C... but with the NNE to NE winds blowing on us all day
it felt a lot colder. There was virtually no clouds in the sky other than
a few contrails which made picking out the birds extremely tough and as a
result we likely missed a few that snuck over high up. Pressure was up as a
large high system settled in over the region.
Raptor Observations:
A pretty good day today with a total of 348 raptors. The majority of
today's flight were Redtails (240) with an excellent count of Bald Eagles
(21). Interestingly, there were several times we noted what was likely the
local adults engaging with the other Bald Eagles that appeared to be
migrants, before turning back and heading off together back east or out
over the lake. There were also several more Golden Eagles (5) which was
great for a couple of the visitors today who had never seen one... and the
first one of the day flew right over the viewing platform about 3 times
tree top height providing awesome views! Again today the only falcon was a
lone Merlin along with a smattering of other species. The most interesting
raptor today was a bird that we identified as a very late Browadwing... it
appeared smaller than nearby Redtails, was not a Redtail (no patagial
marks) and not a Red-shouldered (lacked any sign of crescents across the
primaries).
Non-raptor Observations:
Best non-raptor today was a fantastic looking White-eyed Vireo that was
found by Michele Carnerie (she heard it first before spotting it) and then
photographed by her and Maria C. It was just N of the viewing platform
right beside the road. Several of us also got the bird and in fact while I
was photographing it suddenly a 2ND WEVI popped up and sat in the same tree
though just a bit too far apart for me to get them both in one shot. We had
thought we were hearing a 2nd WEVI when we were initially watching the 1st
one so it was nice to confirm there were indeed 2 of them.
Predictions:
Wed and Thu are not looking great with less than ideal winds and rain on
Thu. For those looking to try the hawk watch keep an eye on FRIDAY and
SATURDAY as winds are forecast to be NE to N to NW and with a good mix of
sun and cloud which should be better for the next push of migrant raptors.
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Report submitted by Dave Brown (ez.raptor1...@gmail.com)
Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch information may be found at:
http://www.ezlink.ca/~thebrowns/HawkCliff/index.htm
More site information at hawkcount.org:
https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=392
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