RMERF counts, November 13

Monday, November 13 [Day 49] (Blake Weis, assisted by Dan Parliament) 0800-1130 at the Hay Meadow site, 1150-1630 at Lusk Creek. At 0800 the temperature was 2C, the high was 4C from 1130-1500 and it was 2C when the count was abandoned for the day at 1630. Ground winds at Hay Meadow were SSW 0-5 gusting 15 km/h to 1000 then 5-10 gusting 20-30 km/h to 1130; at Lusk Creek they were E-SE 5-15 gusting 20 km/h and at both sites ridge winds were SW, moderate to 1000 after which they were moderate to strong. Cloud cover was 20-30% cumulus, altocumulus and cirrus to 1100 when it quickly became 100% stratus which brought rain from the SW that quickly obscured all ridges at which point the observers moved to Lusk Creek, which initially was beyond the down-slope cloud edge. There the cloud cover was 30% altostratus and altocumulus which slowly increased to 100% stratus by 1500 with rain and snow starting at 1300. Mount Old Baldy was completely obscured at 1500 and when the highest foothills ridge disappeared in cloud at 1630 the observers wisely called it a day! Despite good observing conditions at Hay Meadow before 1100 no migrants were seen but a single non-migrant adult Bald Eagle hunted along the river. At Lusk Creek 8 migrant eagles, 7 adult Bald Eagles and 1u Golden Eagle moved along the highest foothills ridge between 1202 and 1352. All the Bald Eagles were seen between 1202 and 1300 and the Golden Eagle disappeared into the gathering gloom at 1352. Notable songbirds seen at Hay Meadow were 1 Brown Creeper, 1 Pine Grosbeak, 7 White-winged Crossbills, and 1 Common Redpoll, and at Lusk Creek 2 Townsend’s Solitaires, 10 Red Crossbills and 5 Common Redpolls.

8.5 hours (515.1) BAEA 7 (189), GOEA 1 (3231) TOTAL 8 (3669)

Vicki Ridge [Day 50] (Peter Sherrington) 0815-1415 (Observation from the Waterton 61 wellsite on the western flank of the ridge). The temperature at 0815 was 1C, reached a high of 5C at 1000 and was 0C when the count was abandoned for the day at 1415. Winds were mainly W 10-20 km/h to 1100 after which they were WSW 30-40 gusting 55 km/h. Cloud cover was 30-40% cumulus and it was sunny to 0930 when stratus moved from the west which became 100% after 1300. Light rain began at 1215 that become steady at 1300 and turned to moderate sleet/wet snow after 1320, and by 1400 the ridges were obscured. Between 0826 and 1257, however, there was a steady eagle migration involving 20 birds that comprised 9 Bald Eagles (4a, 4sa, 1j) and 11 adult Golden Eagles. Both 0900-1000 and 1000-1100 saw the passage of 6 birds and another good day appeared to be in prospect until the rain and snow moved in from the west.

6 hours (400.9) BAEA 9 (306), GOEA 11 (1984) TOTAL 20 (4164)

Steeples [Day 41] (Vance Mattson) 1445-1645. It rained to 1200 and the mountain ridges were obscured to 1430 when they started to clear. The higher ridges remained obscured throughout the observation period although the main migration ridges were partially clear from 1500 onward. The temperature was 5C, the wind was moderate to strong S-SW, and cloud cover was 100 to 70% altostratus, dark cumulus and stratus that produced light rain from 1545 to 1600. The only raptor seen was a non-migrant adult Bald Eagle.

2 hours (179.8) TOTAL 0 (620)

MOUNT LORETTE SUMMARY COUNT (September 20 to November 15)

DAYS 49

HOURS 515.1

TURKEY VULTURE (TUVU) 0

OSPREY (OSPR) 2

BALD EAGLE (BAEA) 189

NORTHERN HARRIER (NOHA) 6

SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (SSHA) 82

COOPER’S HAWK (COHA) 18

NORTHERN GOSHAWK (NOGO) 30

Accipiter sp. (UA) 3

BROAD-WINGED HAWK (BWHA) 1

SWAINSON’S HAWK (SWHA) 0

RED-TAILED HAWK (RTHA) 29

FERRUGINOUS HAWK (FEHA) 1

ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK (RLHA) 29

Buteo sp. (UB) 10

GOLDEN EAGLE (GOEA) 3231

Eagle sp. (UE) 8

AMERICAN KESTREL (AMKE) 3

MERLIN (MERL) 5

GYRFALCON (GYRF) 4

PEREGRINE FALCON (PEFA) 7

PRAIRIE FALCON (PRFA) 6

Falco sp. (UF) 3

Unidentified Raptor (UU) 2

TOTAL 3669