Observation start time: 07:00:00
Observation end time: 16:45:00
Total observation time: 9.75 hours
Official Counter: Kiah Jasper
Observers: Alessandra Kite, Hugh Kent, Jeremy Bensette, Jeremy Hatt,
John Winebrenner, Lisa Silvey, Liz Kent, Mike Jaber,
Noel Herdman, Paul Gosselin
Visitors:
Luckily we had a lot of observers to help out with the count today. Thanks
to Mike, Paul, Alessandra, Hugh, Liz, Noel, Jeremy H, John, Lisa and Jeremy
B for helping spot and count today. We were visited by Chad and Chris from
Ohio, Mary Anne, Dave and Peter from Windsor, Annanita and Fred from
London and Nicola and Keith from Lasalle.
Weather:
7 Degrees C to start off, rising to 16 in the afternoon and dropping to 13
in the later afternoon. Spitting rain briefly between 08:00 and 09:00, but
no precipitation after that. Northwest winds for most of the morning,
switching to more northerly for the afternoon. Gorgeous mix of sun and
cloud today, perfect for spotting raptors against with a nice gradient of
grey and white. The barometer rose from 29.73 to 29.84.
Raptor Observations:
Today was a fantastic for raptors on the tower! We observed 9,787 birds, by
far our highest total of the season. Turkey Vultures stole the show with
8,998 recorded during the day( our 10th highest total all time). In the
afternoon we had several large streams of over 1000 vultures, all
diligently clicked 1 by 1 by Paul. It was also a great day for Golden
Eagles, with 6 recorded. 4 of those came in the span of 30 minutes, quite
exciting for those gathered on the tower. This is a good count for so early
in the season. Several other species were recorded in the highest numbers
we’ve seen this season, Red-tailed Hawk (253), Red-shouldered Hawk (84)
and Peregrine Falcon (11). There was also a good flight of Sharp-shinned
Hawks (352) and Northern Harriers (25).
Non-raptor Observations:
Waterfowl were present in good numbers today, with 15 species recorded on
the marsh. American White Pelicans continue in strong numbers on the marsh,
with a minimum of 500 seen today. The lake was fairly active in the morning
with Common Terns, Bonaparte’s Gulls and a Common Loon passing by. 1,080
Blue Jays passed the tower today, smaller numbers than we saw last week. 5
warbler species were seen from the tower today. Other highlights included;
Black-bellied Plover, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, 4 Sandhill Cranes and
Eastern Towhee.
78 species were recorded from the tower today, for the full list click this
eBird link (photos will be added tomorrow) -
https://ebird.org/checklist/S198934500
Predictions:
Tomorrow is predicted to be another cool, sunny day with wind from the
North, so we’re hoping for another really good day of counting!
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Report submitted by Kiah Jasper (<kiahbirder...>)
Holiday Beach Hawk Watch information may be found at:
http://hbmo.ca/
