Mount Lorette (05 Oct 2024) 38 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 05, 2024 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 5 | 16 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 5 | 12 | 30 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 5 | 13 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 28 | 217 | 480 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Merlin | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Eagle | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Unknown Raptor | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Total: | 38 | 252 | 575 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 18:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 9.75 hours |
| Official Counter | Blake Weis |
| Observers: | Lynn Macintosh |
Visitors:
63 visitors stopped to talk. Thanks to Tina, Aleksandra, Alan and Lorna for helping to spot eagles!
Weather:
Ground wind was strongest in the first few hours of the day with gusts close to 30 km/h, but the gusts decreased slightly to 20 after. The wind was strong at ridge level all day, with gusts up to 88. Cloud cover was 20-75% cumulus and cirrus. The actual temperature stayed in a narrow range between 7 and 11 C, but the apparent temperature varied greatly depending on whether the sun was out or behind clouds and if wind was gusting or not.
Raptor Observations:
Migrants were using the strong wind to glide high over the Fisher Range and the east side of the valley. Only a few eagles passed below ridge level, though some of the sharpies were closer in over the river. Movement was sporadic throughout the day, with short bursts of activity between slow periods. Most of the migrating eagles resisted ageing by staying tucked in a glide, flying in front of higher clouds where they were backlit, and occasionally disappearing above lower clouds. The count for the day was 28 Golden Eagles (2 adults, 2 juveniles, 4 undifferentiated immature, and 20 unaged), 5 Sharp-shinned Hawks, 1 Red-tailed Hawk, 1 Merlin, 2 unidentified eagles and 1 small unidentified raptor.
Local raptors included an adult American Goshawk hunting over Hummingbird Plume Hill in the morning and an Adult Bald Eagle flying north in the evening.
Non-raptor Observations:
Other birds were: 1 Common Merganser, 1 Ruffed Grouse, 1 Ring-billed Gull, 1 Belted Kingfisher, 1 Northern Flicker, 1 Northern Shrike, 3 Canada Jays, 1 Black-billed Magpie, 17 Common Ravens, 4 Black-capped Chickadees, 3 Mountain Chickadees, 1 Boreal Chickadee, 14 Ruby-crowned Kinglets, 8 Golden-crowned Kinglets, 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch, 1 Pacific Wren, 1 American Dipper, 25 American Robins, 1 American Pipit, 22 Pine Siskins, 2 American Tree Sparrows, 5 Dark-eyed Juncos, 2 White-crowned Sparrows, and 1 Yellow-rumped Warbler. 1 White-tailed deer was also seen.
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Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
