Mount Lorette (03 Apr 2023) 48 Raptors

Visitors:
Fourteen visitors stopped by to talk. A happy hiking group of 7 women stopped to have lunch on our benches while asking many questions to learn about the eagles. They said they hike everywhere together in spite of their age so they can keep on going. They were an inspiration to us, as much as we were to them.

Weather:
The onset of today’s count was delayed due to snowfall warnings and icy road conditions. It did snow quite heavily in the morning so we started a bit later at 11:30. The Temperature was -3.5C at that time reaching a high of 0C at 16:00, and then returning to -3.5 C by the end of the count. The ground wind speed averaged about 8 Km/h generally from the NE. After 19:00 the wind speed dropped substantially. The ridge winds were moderate from the NE. There were a few snow showers throughout the day with cloud coverage of 80 -100% most of the time but after 18:00 clearing a bit. The cloud coverage on the ridges was constantly changing. One moment it would be clear and the next covered on any given mountain.

Raptor Observations:
Surprisingly, in spite of all of the dismal weather forecasts, we had an above-average day according to the statistics. The final count was 48 migrating Raptors: Golden Eagle 41 (27a, 5sa, 3j, 6 u), Bald Eagle 5 adults, Coopers Hawk 1, and Northern Goshawk 1. The first eagles glided and soared from Mt Kydd past Bogart and off behind the Olympic Summit. The most abundant movement occurred between 15:00 and 18:00 when the focus moved to Lorette and the eastern ridges. They seemed to come from everywhere and wherever they could. Gliding and soaring were sufficient to gain height but after 18:00 they had to implement flapping to make any headway. Non-migrating Raptors: A Northern Goshawk was heard calling on the other side of the river, presumably hunting, and at the end of the day, one called out as we left. One Bald Eagle tricked us after it soared high into the clouds above Mt. Lorette then later flew south over the middle of the valley. An apparent resident Golden Eagle(sa.) tranquilly soared and glided over our heads, quite low, from the South Fisher Range to Mt. Lorette, and was seen hunting near Lorette various times.

Non-raptor Observations:
I think most of the small birds stayed in bed today except for one Black-capped Chickadee that sang his heart out. Two dippers sang by the river and, at one point flew off together in a spinning whirlywish while singing and then landing together just in front of us below a snowbank. Ravens were seen flying everywhere today, back and forth and up and down complicating the count. At sunset, two Robins sang a lullaby to all the rest of the birds in bed in the forest promising them that tomorrow will be a better day. Total: Black-capped Chickadee 1, American Raven 10, Northern Dipper 2, American Robin 5.

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Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Count data submitted via Dunkadoo – [Project Details]