Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area Grimsby, Ontario, Canada
OVER 50 YEARS Of ANNUAL SPRING COUNTS Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 20, 2025 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 142 1562 1562 Osprey 0 1 1 Bald Eagle 0 31 31 Northern Harrier 0 9 9 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 97 97 Cooper's Hawk 1 36 37 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 12 189 189 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 4 317 317 Rough-legged Hawk 2 6 6 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 0 2 2 Merlin 0 2 2 Peregrine Falcon 0 2 2 Unknown Accipitrine 0 2 2 Unknown Buteo 0 8 8 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 1 1 Total: 161 2265 2266 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 07:00:00 Observation end time: 16:15:00 Total observation time: 9.25 hours Official Counter: Chris Escott Observers: Carol Teed, David Thomas Visitors: Robert Parker stopped by late morning, but didn't stay too long due to rain. Later in the day, under brief blue skies, Carol Teed and friend Patty Murphy (now from Nova Scotia) helped out on the tower for a while. Other than that nobody else climbed the tower, and very few hikers and dog walkers visited the area. Weather: A rather miserable day with overcast skies for most of the day, intermittent rain that was light much of the time but at times was more than just a sprinkle, and strong SW winds, gusting at times to 60 kph, that got stronger as the day progressed to a point that they were truly "roaring" winds. Raptor Observations: The urge to migrate was strong enough to push a few hardy Red-shouldered onward, and a steady trickle of determined Turkey Vultures any time the rain held off, with a few late Red-tails and one Cooper's joining the flight. Highlight of the day was two Rough-legs, both light morph, the passed through mid-day about an hour apart. Flight lines varied continually from over the edge of the escarpment to farther inland, and it seemed like there were likely other birds that passed by below the escarpment out of sight of the tower. Non-raptor Observations: A very slow day for sightings of other birds, although a very early skein of Canada Goose flew over including one smaller goose that the Counter ID'd in the poor morning light as a blue morph Snow Goose. Predictions: The trickle of birds at Beamer, and the strong showing of migrant raptors at both Derby Hill and Braddock Bay, indicate that there are plenty of birds in the pipeline wanting to keep heading north. The weather forecast is sunny but rather cool with lighter winds albeit west to SW in direction. Based on all of this, there should be a good flight but perhaps not a breathtaking one. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Chris Escott (ch...@escott.ca) Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area information may be found at: http://www.niagarapeninsulahawkwatch.org/ More site information at hawkcount.org: https://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. Only the counter and designated spotters can drive into and park in the conservation area; there is a parking lot outside for visitors. 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 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. 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. ©2020 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 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: birdnews@ontbirds.ca. 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