Beaver Mines and Steeples, March 17

Tuesday, March 17 Beaver Mines [Day 22] 0730-2000 (Peter Sherrington and Hilary Atkinson). The temperature at 0730 was -1C that dropped to -3C at 0900 before reaching a high of 4C between 1300 and 1500, and it was -4C at 2000. Winds were SW-SSW 20-30 km/h to 0900 but subsequently became light to moderate NE-ENE 8-25 km/h for the rest of the day. Cloud cover was 10% cirrus at 0730 that quickly increased to 60-80% cirrus, cirrostratus and altostratus to 1000 and was then 90-100% altostratus, altocumulus, cumulus and finally stratus for the rest of the day. Light snow began to fall at 1915 which became moderate and obscured the ridge at 2000. There was another weak and very sporadic raptor moment comprising 2 adult Bald Eagles and 6 adult Golden Eagles between 0940 and 1844 with 4 of the birds seen between 1230 and 1246. A non-migrant light morph Rough-legged Hawk was seen at 1025 and resident adult Golden Eagles flew high from the ridge to the east at 0930 and 1205. The Mount Lorette count only recorded 5 Golden Eagles. Other birds seen here were 9 Rock Pigeons, 1 Eurasian Collared Dove, 1 juvenile Glaucous Gull that flew high to the north at 0756 in excellent light (a few minutes before the sun rose above the ridge that would have made the bird a large unidentified gull silhouette), 1 Downy Woodpecker, 2 Hairy Woodpeckers, 1 male Red-shafted Flicker, 4 Black-billed Magpies, 9 Common Ravens, 10 Black-capped Chickadees, 14 Mountain Chickadees, 1 Red-breasted Nuthatch, 2 White-breasted Nuthatches, 6  European Starlings, 4 Evening Grosbeaks, 20 Pine Grosbeaks, 1 American Tree Sparrow and 23 Dark-eyed Juncos (1 hyemalis, 2 cismontanus and 20 montanus).

12.5 hours (241) BAEA 2 (107), GOEA 6 (280) TOTAL 8 (438)

Tuesday, March 17 Steeples [Day 13] 1215-1730 (Vance Mattson). The temperature was initially 1C but warmed to a very pleasant 8C under sunny skies with up to 30% cumulus, altocumulus and thin altostratus, and conditions were calm throughout. A season high total of 48 migrants of 3 species were seen between 1314 and 1917 that comprised 8 Bald Eagles (5a, 2j), a season-high 39 Golden Eagles (31a, 4j, 4u) and the season’s first Gyrfalcon, an adult grey morph bird. The busiest hours were 10 birds between 1700 and 1800, and 12 between 1800 and 1900 that included a kettle of 7 eagles (6 adult Goldens and 1 adult Bald). Five Golden Eagles moved after 1500. It was also a good day for resident activity that was dominated by one juvenile Golden Eagle visible for much of the afternoon and evening, hunting, perching for an hour from 1702 to 1804, after which it resumed hunting, including three passes at a small herd of mule deer grazing high on the rocky cliffs (a couple of the deer met the eagle’s advances with aggressive counter-attacks).  Earlier in the day the eagle soared lengthily with a juvenile Bald Eagle, before dive-bombing it, causing a barrel-roll defense and a hurried retreat from the area. The same eagle also practiced hunting manoeuvers, dodged its way between trees on the ridge, and outstretched it talons to make contact with treetops. Overall, it was an interesting day.

7.25 hours (45.5) BAEA 8 (28), GOEA 39 (114), GYRF 1 (1) TOTAL 48 (145)