Beaver Mines and Steeples, March 8

NOTE CHANGE TO MOUNTAIN DAYLIGHT TIME

Sunday, March 08 Beaver Mines [Day 15] 0745-2000 (Peter Sherrington and Hilary Atkinson). The temperature at 0745 was -19C, the high at 1800 was -1.5C and it was -3C at 2000. Winds were light (<6 km/h) and very variable to 1000, light (5-10 km/h) NNE-N to 1500 and finally SSW 10-15 km/h for the remainder of the day. The 30-50 km/h SW winds forecast for the afternoon failed to materialize! Cloud cover was mainly 80-100% stratus and cumulus although there were brief periods when it reduced to 40% cumulus. Light to moderate snow showers and periods started at 1040 and persisted for the rest of the day and 6 cm had accumulated by the end of observation: the ridge was regularly obscured by snow. Not surprisingly only 3 migrant raptors were seen: adult Golden Eagles at 1352 and 1746 and a subadult Bald Eagle at 1445. Six non-migrant Bald Eagles (5a, 1j) perched in the area all day, and a juvenile Golden Eagle flew to the SE at 1721. Other birds seen were 7 Canada Geese, 1 Rock Pigeon, 1 Eurasian Collared Dove, 3 Downy Woodpeckers, 3 Hairy Woodpeckers, 1 Northern [Red-shafted] Flicker, 2 Blue Jays, 9 Black-billed Magpies, 15 Common Ravens, 10 Black-capped Chickadees, 12 Mountain Chickadees, 2 Red-breasted Nuthatches, 41 European Starlings, 31 Evening Grosbeaks, 60 Pine Grosbeaks, 1 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finch and 11 Dark-eyed Juncos (1 cismontanus and 10 montanus). Other early arrivals in the area reported by Cornell VanRyk were a Say’s Phoebe (photographed), the earliest ever recorded here and a Spotted Towhee that was first seen yesterday.

12.25 hours (155) BAEA 1 (75) GOEA 2 (90) TOTAL 3 (205)

Sunday, March 08 Steeples (Vance Mattson). No observation possible. It snowed most of the day and the ridges were totally obscured.