Beaver Mines and Steeples, April 18

Saturday, April 18 Beaver Mines [Day 54] 0630-2045 (Peter Sherrington and Hilary Atkinson). The temperature at 0630 was 1C, dropped to the day’s low of 0.5C at 1000, reached a high of 4C at 1600 and was again 1C at 2045. Winds were variable and very light to 0900 after which they ranged from ESE to ENE 10-20 km/h that gusted to 30-40 km/h at 1100 and 1200. Cloud cover was 100% stratus to 1600 that produced 5 cm of snow and obscured the ridge to 1520. At 1700 the cloud cover began to break and at 1800 it was 50% altocumulus and cumulus that gave welcome sunshine, after which it was 80-60% altocumulus and cumulus for the rest of the day. Precipitation fell as rain overnight and by the end of observation most of the snow that fell today had melted. A total of 7 migrants of 4 species were seen between 1721 and 1824 that comprised 1 adult Cooper’s Hawk, 3 adult calurus Red-tailed Hawks (1 light and 2 dark), 2 Golden Eagles (1sa, 1j) and 1 adult male Peregrine Falcon. Non-migrants were a pair of resident Northern Harriers that hunted together at 1828, 4 Sharp-shinned Hawks that visited the site between 1135 and 1859, and 4 adult resident Red-tailed Hawks that were seen between 1426 and 1936. At Mount Lorette Blake Weis reported 8 migrants of 3 species that comprised 2 Bald Eagles (1a, 1j), 3 Rough legged Hawks (2 light. 1u) and 3 Golden Eagles (1a, 1sa, 1j). Snow fell on-and- off all day and 7 of the birds occurred between 1400 and 1600 with the last Golden Eagle seen at 1730. Other birds seen at Beaver Mines were 21 Canada Geese, 34 Mallards, 8 Green-winged Teal,  a lek of 15 Wild Turkeys, 10 Rock Pigeons, 1 American Coot, 3 Wilson’s Snipe, 2 Great Blue Herons, 1 Downy Woodpecker, 3 Red-shafted Flickers, 1 Steller’s Jay, 2 Blue Jays, 22 American Crows, 10 Common Ravens, 2 Black-capped Chickadees, 4 Mountain Chickadees, 90 American Robins, 37 European Starlings, 40 Dark-eyed Juncos (2 hyemalis, 8 cismontanus and 30 montanus) and 1 male Red-winged Blackbird.

14.25 hours (672.7) COHA 1 (10) RTHA 3 (220), GOEA 2 (1073), PEFA 1 (6) TOTAL 7 (1871)

Saturday, April 18 Steeples (Vance Mattson). No observation possible. The ridges were obscured all day.