Wednesday, November 1 NO OBSERVATION (weather). (Joel Duncan, assisted by Patrick Farley). Snow all day and the mountains were obscured apart from a brief appearance of the summit of Mount Lorette. Joel and Pat left the site at 1400 when it became apparent that no improvement could be expected.

Vicki Ridge NO OBSERVATION (weather). Snow all day that obscured all ridges.

Steeples NO OBSERVATION

Thursday, November 2 NO OBSERVATION (weather). Heavy snow all day, mountains obscured.

Vicki Ridge NO OBSERVATION (weather). Heavy snow all day that obscured the ridge.

Steeples NO OBSERVATION (weather). Snow all day that obscured all ridges.

Friday, November 3 NO OBSERVATION (weather). Snow stopped in the afternoon but ridges remained partly obscured and driving to the site was not advisable. The count will probably resume tomorrow.

Vicki Ridge NO OBSERVATION (weather). Snow persisted to early afternoon when the ridges cleared but heavy snow prevented access to the site. I hope to resume the count tomorrow.

Steeples [Day 33] (Vance Mattson) 1130-1800. The site was covered in 30cm of snow and the ridges were entirely obscured when Vance arrived at the site at 1130. It was -6C and calm, and by 1330 it was apparent that the cloud was not going to lift so he moved away from the mountain ridges to see if migration was occurring over the valley which was probable as the last two days had been almost a steady barrage of snow accompanied by poor visibility.           It was not until he arrived at Wasa, however, at 1400, that the first migrants were seen with 4 Bald Eagles and 2 Golden Eagles soaring over the Kootenay River, followed by an Osprey and 6 more eagles before 1500. The next hour saw 10 migrants, and the hour between 1600 and 1700 saw 27 migrants. The last migrants, 4 adult Bald Eagles, all moved between 1700 and 1706.           The final total of 54, which is the second-highest of the season, was 1 Osprey, a season high count of 38 Bald Eagles (20a, 1sa, 17j), 3 Northern Harriers (2 adult females, 1j), 2 light morph Rough-legged Hawks and 10 Golden Eagles (5a, 2sa, 3j. The migrants initially soared at length either over the low ridges just west of the Kootenay River or directly above it; however, from 1630 onward the migrants consistently flapped their way south either over the river or just east of it.           All migration, however, was concentrated over the river area, with no migrants passing over Wasa Lake, which is situated just east of the river. The ridges of the Rockies were heavily obscured during the entire observation period.           The temperature rose to a high of -2C, calm conditions prevailed all day and the skies were 60% altostratus, altocumulus, and lenticular that gave providing partially sunny conditions. A single adult Bald Eagle constituted the only non-migrant seen.

6.5 hours (154.5) OSPR 1 (7), BAEA 38 (247), RLHA 2 (12), GOEA 10 (120) TOTAL 54 (563)

MOUNT LORETTE SUMMARY COUNT (September 20 to November 15)

DAYS 38

HOURS 416.6

TURKEY VULTURE (TUVU) 0

OSPREY (OSPR) 2

BALD EAGLE (BAEA) 150

NORTHERN HARRIER (NOHA) 6

SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (SSHA) 81

COOPER’S HAWK (COHA) 18

NORTHERN GOSHAWK (NOGO) 27

Accipiter sp. (UA) 3

BROAD-WINGED HAWK (BWHA) 1

SWAINSON’S HAWK (SWHA) 0

RED-TAILED HAWK (RTHA) 29

FERRUGINOUS HAWK (FEHA) 1

ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK (RLHA) 26

Buteo sp. (UB) 10

GOLDEN EAGLE (GOEA) 3172

Eagle sp. (UE) 6

AMERICAN KESTREL (AMKE) 3

MERLIN (MERL) 5

GYRFALCON (GYRF) 4

PEREGRINE FALCON (PEFA) 7

PRAIRIE FALCON (PRFA) 6

Falco sp. (UF) 3

Unidentified Raptor (UU) 2

TOTAL 3542

Tuesday, October 31 [Day 39] (Blake Weis, assisted by Lori Anderson) 0830-1710. The temperature reached a high of 7C between 1300 and 1600 from a morning low of 2C, and it was 4C at the end of observation. Ground winds were mainly SW 0-5 gusting 15 km/h to 1300 after which they were SE-SW 5-15 gusting 25 km/h, while ridge winds were NW all day, light to 1300 then moderate. Cloud cover was 90-100% altostratus and cumulus with minor cirrus and altocumulus to 1200, then 100% altostratus and cumulus for the rest of the day that brought light rain after 1300 and moderate rain and snow as the observers were leaving. All ridges were clear to 1400 when the west rapidly disappeared in cloud but the east was 10% obscured that only gradually increased to 90% at the end of observation. There was a moderate raptor movement of 25 birds involving 3 species that migrated between 1042 and 1356 comprising 4 Bald Eagles (3a, 1j), 1 light morph Rough-legged Hawk and 20 adult Golden Eagles. Fifteen of the birds were seen between 1100 and 1500. Only 3 birds, 2 Bald and 1 Golden Eagle, moved on the western route, all between 1000 and 1100, and the rest moved from Mount Lorette to the Fisher Range with about half the birds arriving at the northern end of the range about one binocular width above the ridge. A northward-bound adult Bald Eagle was regarded as a non-migrant, and 2 adult Northern Goshawks soaring near the site at 1330 were probably the resident pair. There was a good variety of other bird species that included 1 male Belted Kingfisher, 2 Northern Shrikes (1j 1u), 1 male Mountain Bluebird, 4 Bohemian Waxwings, 5 Pine Grosbeaks, 4 Red Crossbills, 3 White-winged Crossbills, 73 Common Redpolls and 4 Pine Siskins. A female Moose with a calf crossed the river to the east bank and 32 Elk browsed on the bare slopes of the ski hill. The 17 visitors today included 14 from Robert Thirsk High School in Calgary.

9.67 hours (426.3) BAEA 4 (154), RLHA 1 (27), GOEA 20 (3172) TOTAL 25 (3567)

Lorette October Summary (October 01-31), with variances to 1993-2016 averages (excluding 1997, 2002, 2006, 2007 and 2008) Days 29 (-3.3%), Hours 305.7 (-3.7%) Turkey Vulture 0, Osprey 1 (+81.8%), Bald Eagle 126 (-12.01%), Northern Harrier 4 (-24.5%), Sharp-shinned Hawk 37 (-51.1%), Cooper’s Hawk 9 (-13.9%), Northern Goshawk 17 (-42.3%), Broad-winged Hawk 0 (-100%), Swainson’s Hawk 0 (-100%), Red-tailed Hawk 14 (-0.4%), Ferruginous Hawk 1 (+566.7%), Rough-legged Hawk 24 (-43%), Golden Eagle 2896 (+3.6%), American Kestrel 3 (+252.9%), Merlin 3 (-34.1%), Gyrfalcon 4 (+166.7%), Peregrine Falcon 4 (+17.6%), Prairie Falcon 6 (+400%), UA 2 (-36.5%), UB 8 (+240.3%), UE 4 (+40.4%), UF 3 (+140%), UU 1 (-56.5%), TOTAL 3167 (+0.69%)

Vicki Ridge [Day 40] (Peter Sherrington) 0930-1730 (Observation from the Waterton 61 wellsite on the western flank of the ridge). The temperature at 0930 was 2C, rose to a high of 6C at 1400 and 1500 and was 5C at the end of observation. Winds were W 30-50 gusting 60-70 km/h all day and cloud cover was 70-80% lenticular, altostratus, and cumulus to 1300 after which it was 100% altostratus with minor cumulus and lenticular for the rest of the day. There was a surprisingly strong raptor migration of 67 birds of 5 species between 0946 and 1722 that comprised 7 Bald Eagles (4a, 1sa, 2j), 3 Northern Goshawks (2a, 1u), 1 adult dark morph harlani Red-tailed Hawk, 2 light morph Rough-legged Hawks and 54 Golden Eagles (46a, 4sa, 4j). Movement was steady between 1000 and 1500 but became sporadic after 1500 when only a further 8 birds were counted. Maximum Golden Eagle movement was 13 birds between 1437 and 1505. Forty-six birds moved to the south high over Vicki Ridge and 21 were over the east arm of Kyllo Ridge. Other birds were scarce but included 46 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches, 1 Pine Grosbeak and 3 Common Redpolls.

8 hours (332.8) BAEA 7 (197), NOGO 3 (98), RTHA 1 (234), RLHA 2 (487). GOEA 54 (1806) TOTAL 67 (3841)

Vicki Ridge October Summary (October 01-31), with 2016 totals in parenthesis. 29 days, (21 days), 242 hours (131 hours) Turkey Vulture 0 (0), Osprey 4 (0), Bald Eagle 186 (90), Northern Harrier 10 (7), Sharp-shinned Hawk 382 (229), Cooper’s Hawk 46 (13), Northern Goshawk 65 (45), Broad-winged Hawk 19 (4), Swainson’s Hawk 0 (0), Red-tailed Hawk 164 (64), Ferruginous Hawk 2 (1), Rough-legged Hawk 486 (203), Golden Eagle 1694 (790), American Kestrel 5 (1), Merlin 9 (12), Gyrfalcon 2 (0), Peregrine Falcon 10 (9), Prairie Falcon 4 (3), UA 5 (2), UB 16 (1), UE 14 (11), UF 2 (0), UU 0 (0) TOTAL 3125 (1476)

Steeples [Day 32] (Vance Mattson) 1130-1615. The temperature was -2C at 1130, warmed to 5C, but dropped to 3C by 1600. It was calm and the sky was a 90-100% blanket of altostratus and darker cumulus cloud.           It looks like it will snow for the next few days. The only raptor seen was a light morph Rough-legged Hawk at 1145 and no non-migrants were seen that added to the almost eerie quietness of the day.

4.75 hours (148) RLHA 1 (10) TOTAL 1 (509)

Steeples October Summary (October 01-31) 25 days (115.5 hours), (21 days) Turkey Vulture 0, Osprey 4, Bald Eagle 178, Northern Harrier 7, Sharp-shinned Hawk 17, Cooper’s Hawk 0, Northern Goshawk 7, Broad-winged Hawk 1, Swainson’s Hawk 0, Red-tailed Hawk 11, Ferruginous Hawk 0, Rough-legged Hawk 10, Golden Eagle 94, American Kestrel 2, Merlin 1, Gyrfalcon 0, Peregrine Falcon 1, Prairie Falcon 0, UA 0, UB 1, UE 1, UF 0, UU 0 TOTAL 509

MOUNT LORETTE SUMMARY COUNT (September 20 to November 15)

DAYS 38

HOURS 416.6

TURKEY VULTURE (TUVU) 0

OSPREY (OSPR) 2

BALD EAGLE (BAEA) 150

NORTHERN HARRIER (NOHA) 6

SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (SSHA) 81

COOPER’S HAWK (COHA) 18

NORTHERN GOSHAWK (NOGO) 27

Accipiter sp. (UA) 3

BROAD-WINGED HAWK (BWHA) 1

SWAINSON’S HAWK (SWHA) 0

RED-TAILED HAWK (RTHA) 29

FERRUGINOUS HAWK (FEHA) 1

ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK (RLHA) 26

Buteo sp. (UB) 10

GOLDEN EAGLE (GOEA) 3152

Eagle sp. (UE) 6

AMERICAN KESTREL (AMKE) 3

MERLIN (MERL) 5

GYRFALCON (GYRF) 4

PEREGRINE FALCON (PEFA) 7

PRAIRIE FALCON (PRFA) 6

Falco sp. (UF) 3

Unidentified Raptor (UU) 2

TOTAL 3542

Sunday, October 29 [Day 37] (Bill Wilson, assisted by Lori Anderson) 0755-1850. The starting and finishing temperature was 0C and the high at 1500 was 4C. Ground winds were mainly E-NE 3-10 gusting 15 km/h except around 1700 when they were briefly 5-15 gusting 30 km/h, while ridge winds were NNW all day, moderate to strong to 1200 and moderate throughout the afternoon. Cloud cover was 100% altostratus to 0900 that reduced to 10% cumulus at 1200 while the afternoon saw variable 90-40% cumulus cover that completely disappeared after 1700. The western ridges were 10-20% obscured to 0900 but otherwise the mountains were clear all day. A total of 55 migrant raptors of 4 species were seen between 0940 and 1806 comprising a season-high count of 22 Bald Eagles (13a, 3sa, 3j, 3u), 3 adult Northern Goshawks, 2 dark morph Rough-legged Hawks and 28 Golden Eagles (13a, 2sa, 8j, 5u). Movement was steady throughout the day and peaked at 11 between 1600 and 1700 after which only 3 more migrants were recorded. With the exception of single birds that moved on the western route and over the centre of the valley all the Golden Eagles moved along the Fisher Range at various heights with very little soaring. Many of these birds were initially located above Mount Lorette. The Bald Eagles moved on a broader path between the centre of the valley and the Fisher Range. Other birds included a flock of 13 swans (12 Tundra, 1 Trumpeter) and another of 19 unidentified swans, 130 Canada Geese migrating in several flocks, a flock of 8 migrating Common Loons and 1 high-flying silhouetted gull, while closer to earth songbirds included 1 juvenile Harris’s Sparrow, 3 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches, 5 Pine Grosbeaks and 20 undifferentiated flying redpolls/siskins. There were 9 visitors to the site today. The weather forecast for all three sites show a northern front arriving on the evening of October 31 (Halloween!) that will bring 4 to 5 days of low temperatures and snow. This has already “pushed” high numbers of migrants ahead of it and it will be interesting to see what numbers are seen in the next couple of days.

10.92 hours (404.9) BAEA 22 (142), NOGO 3 (27), RLHA 2 (26), GOEA 28 (3126) TOTAL 55 (3508)

Vicki Ridge [Day 38] (Peter Sherrington) 0930-1800 (Observation from the Waterton 61 wellsite on the western flank of the ridge). It was a cool day with a temperature of 2C to 1300 and again at 1800 with a high of 3C the rest of the time. Winds were mainly light N-NNE all day and cloud cover was 100% stratus to 1500 when it began to break up and reduced to 30% cumulus at 1700 before thickening again to 80% at 1800. Despite the light northerly winds there was a persistent raptor movement between 1006 and 1704 that involved 95 birds of 6 species. The count was 21 Bald Eagles (13a, 1sa, 7j), 1 adult female Northern Harrier, 2 Cooper’s Hawks (1a, 1u), 4 Northern Goshawks (1a, 3u), 26 Rough-legged Hawks (20 light, 3 dark, 3u), 40 Golden Eagles (27a, 3sa, 4j, 6u) and 1u dark morph Gyrfalcon. The highest hourly count was 18 from 1400 to 1500 and all other hours between 1000 and 1600 produced double-digit counts. The migration shut down early, however and only one Rough-legged Hawk was seen after 1650. There was also good movement of non-raptor species including 8 Trumpeter Swans that flew west at 0957, 385 Canada Geese in 13 flocks that mainly flew to the west as did 130 high-flying unidentified ducks; migrant passerines were 90 Bohemian Waxwings, 50 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches, 2 Pine Grosbeaks, 4 Red Crossbills and 23 Common Redpolls.

8.5 hours (316.1) BAEA 21 (162), NOHA 1 (18), COHA 2 (94), NOGO 4 (91), RLHA 26 (482), GOEA 40 (1721), GYRF 1 (3) TOTAL 95 (3699)

Steeples [Day 30] (Vance Mattson) 1345-1815. The valley was socked-in and light rain fell until 1330 when things began to clear. The heavy overcast conditions dispersed by 1430, leaving sunny conditions for the rest of the day with a 40-50% cumulus cloud cover.           The ridges, however, remained partially obscured until 1700. The temperature was 2C, rising to 10C which, combined with calm conditions, produced another beautiful day marked by slow and low moving birds, many of which soared extensively in front of the ridge and moved in and out of the low cloud. The final tally of 52 migrants of 7 species is the second highest daily count this fall and comprised 1 Osprey, 22 Bald Eagles (12a, 1sa, 9j), 1 juvenile Northern Harrier, 3 Northern Goshawks (2a, 1j), 2 calurus Red-tailed Hawks (1 intermediate juvenile, 1 dark adult), 2 light morph Rough-legged Hawks and a season high total of 21 Golden Eagles (18a, 1sa, 1j, 1u). The first migrant was an adult Bald Eagle that flapped south through the rain at 1355, and 5 birds moved between 1400 and 1500. The next hour saw 13 birds, and the peak was reached between 1600 and 1700 with 21 migrants.           12 migrants were counted after 1700, with the last, a juvenile Bald Eagle, at 1735. The only non-migrants seen were an adult of each eagle species.

4.5 hours (141.3) OSPR 1 (6), BAEA 22 (204), NOHA 1 (13), NOGO 3 (12), RTHA 2 (50), RLHA 2 (9), GOEA 21 (104) TOTAL 52 (497)

MOUNT LORETTE SUMMARY COUNT (September 20 to November 15)

DAYS 37

HOURS 404.9

TURKEY VULTURE (TUVU) 0

OSPREY (OSPR) 2

BALD EAGLE (BAEA) 142

NORTHERN HARRIER (NOHA) 6

SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (SSHA) 81

COOPER’S HAWK (COHA) 18

NORTHERN GOSHAWK (NOGO) 27

Accipiter sp. (UA) 3

BROAD-WINGED HAWK (BWHA) 1

SWAINSON’S HAWK (SWHA) 0

RED-TAILED HAWK (RTHA) 29

FERRUGINOUS HAWK (FEHA) 1

ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK (RLHA) 26

Buteo sp. (UB) 10

GOLDEN EAGLE (GOEA) 3126

Eagle sp. (UE) 6

AMERICAN KESTREL (AMKE) 3

MERLIN (MERL) 5

GYRFALCON (GYRF) 4

PEREGRINE FALCON (PEFA) 7

PRAIRIE FALCON (PRFA) 6

Falco sp. (UF) 3

Unidentified Raptor (UU) 2

TOTAL 3508

Saturday, October 28 [Day 36] (Jim Davis, assisted by Ruth Morrow) 0815-1830. It was a delightful autumnal day with the temperature reaching 17C at 1500 and 1600 from a starting low of 0C, and it was still 14C when observation ceased. The valley was calm to 1300 and then winds were S-SE 15 gusting to 27 km/h for the rest of the day, while ridge winds were NW, light to 0900 and subsequently moderate. Cloud cover was initially 90% altostratus that reduced to 40% by 1000, it was cloudless at 1100 and 1200 with stratus gradually increasing throughout the afternoon reaching 40-80% with minor cumulus after 1600. Ridges were clear all day and observation conditions were excellent setting the stage for what Jim described as his “best day of the season”. A total of 310 migrant raptors were counted between 0923 and 1806 that comprised a season-high count of 17 Bald Eagles (7a, 4sa, 6j), 1u Sharp-shinned Hawk, 1 adult Northern Goshawk, 1 light morph Rough-legged Hawk, 287 Golden Eagles (85a, 13sa, 32j, 157u) and 2 dark morph Gyrfalcons that flew south together at 1002. The Golden Eagle count is the third highest of the season and is one of the highest ever for late October. The highest hourly counts were 106 (1000-1100) and 74 (1200-1300) after which the flow gradually subsided. All of the raptors, apart from a very late Osprey that flew to the west, moved generally low along the Fisher Range except for the final three hours when the last 33 birds glided high above the ridge. The forecast calls for a general deterioration of weather in the coming week and it is probable that this large late season movement was ahead of an approaching cold front. There was also a good variety of other birds including a Northern Pygmy-Owl perched south of the site, a Boreal Owl that called around 1700, a late migrating flock of 11 American Robins, 47 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches, 1 Pine Grosbeak and 16 Pine Siskins. A Grey Wolf, presumably the one seen by Blake yesterday, howled to the NW around 0900. A total of 58 visitors to the site enjoyed both the weather and the spectacular migration.

10.25 hours (394) OSPR 1 (2), BAEA 17 (120), SSHA 1 (81), NOGO 1 (24), RLHA 1 (24), GOEA 287 (3098), GYRF 2 (4) TOTAL 310 (3453)

Vicki Ridge [Day 37] (Peter Sherrington on the ridge top 0930-1820, and Gord Petersen near the Waterton 68 well site just below the western edge of Kyllo Ridge 1150-1815). It was a warm day with a temperature of 10C at 0930 that reached 14C at 1400 and was still 11C at 1800. The warmth was somewhat tempered, however, by strong W-WSW winds that blew all day 30-50 gusting to 80 km/h that only moderated during the last hour. Cloud cover was initially 80% altostratus and altocumulus that formed a Chinook Arch which slowly moved to the east leaving cloudless skies after 1500. Both sites produced a high count of migrant raptors and we are still trying to work out if the flows are discrete or if there was movement between the ridges. From Vicki Ridge between 0940 and 1757 I counted 170 migrants of 6 species comprising 1 Osprey, 21 Bald Eagles (15a, 1sa, 3j, 2u), 2 adult Sharp-shinned Hawks, 4 Northern Goshawks (3a, 1j), 1 small unidentified Accipiter, 31 Rough-legged Hawks (27 light, 1 dark, 3u) and 110 Golden Eagles (85a, 1sa, 7j, 17u). The birds all appeared to mainly fly high to the south above Vicki Ridge or above the eastern edge of Kyllo Ridge and it was only during the last hour that most birds moved high to the west. From just below the western edge of Kyllo Ridge between 1202 and 1813 Gord counted 161 migrants of 8 species that comprised 13 Bald Eagles (10a, 3j), 4u Sharp-shinned Hawks, 1 adult Cooper’s Hawk, 4 Northern Goshawks (3a, 1j), , 32 Rough-legged Hawks (31 light, 1u), 99 Golden Eagles (61a, 7sa, 10j, 21u), 6 unidentified eagles and 1 unidentified large falcon. Most of these birds were originating from the north and then flew west to the Carbondale Ridge or beyond. Several birds were initially located well to the west including one over Turtle Mountain in the Crowsnest Pass but only a few birds continued to the south along the west edge of Kyllo Ridge. Although the numbers at both sites are similar detailed timings, for example of goshawks and Bald Eagles, do not correlate and it is probable that most of the eagle flows were separate. It is entirely likely, however, that there was some duplication in the numbers of Rough-legged Hawks that often move to the west from Vicki Ridge. All this needs further analysis so in the interim the combined count for the day stands at 331 birds of 9 species: 1 Osprey, 34 Bald Eagles (25a, 1sa, 6j, 2u), 6 Sharp-shinned Hawks (2a, 4u), 1 adult Cooper’s Hawk, 8 Northern Goshawks (6a, 2j), 1 small unidentified Accipiter, 1 adult dark morph calurus Red-tailed Hawk, 63 Rough-legged Hawks (58 light, 1 dark, 4u), 209 Golden Eagles (146a, 8sa, 17j, 38u), 6 unidentified eagles and 1 unidentified large falcon. Movement was slow in the morning when only 16 birds were counted, but was strong throughout the afternoon with each hour between 1200 and 1800 producing between 40 and 58 migrants (combined counts). Other birds seen included 1 Ruffed Grouse, 30 Bohemian waxwings, 220 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches, 1 Red Crossbill and 1 Common Redpoll.

8.83 hours (307.6) OSPR 1 (11), BAEA 34 (141), SSHA 6 (750), COHA 1 (92), NOGO 8 (87), UA 1 (6), RTHA 1 (232), RLHA 63 (456), GOEA 209 (1681), UE 6 (7), UF 1 (2) TOTAL 331 (3604)

Steeples [Day 29] (Vance Mattson) 1245-1800. Vance arrived at the site as the low cloud that filled the valley started to lift and the weather was then beautiful with the temperature rising to 12C from a low of 3C, calm conditions and completely cloudless skies. The raptor movement, however, was disappointing with only 7 birds of 3 species seen between 1340 and 1645 comprising 3 Bald Eagles (2a, 1j) 2 Northern Harriers (1 adult female, 1u juvenile) and 2 adult Golden Eagles. The first migrant, an adult female Northern Harrier, was in the air when Vance arrived, the juvenile Northern Harrier moved at 1340, three Bald Eagles between 1420 and 1423, and, more than two hours later, the last two migrants, 2 adult Golden Eagles, glided south low in front of the ridge at 1634 and 1645. An adult Sharp-shinned Hawk was the only non-migrant seen. The consolation for low raptor numbers was again good views of all birds as they moved low and slow in front of the ridge.

5.25 hours (136.8) BAEA 3 (182), NOHA 2 (12), GOEA 2 (83) TOTAL 7 (445)

MOUNT LORETTE SUMMARY COUNT (September 20 to November 15)

DAYS 36

HOURS 394

TURKEY VULTURE (TUVU) 0

OSPREY (OSPR) 2

BALD EAGLE (BAEA) 120

NORTHERN HARRIER (NOHA) 6

SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (SSHA) 81

COOPER’S HAWK (COHA) 18

NORTHERN GOSHAWK (NOGO) 24

Accipiter sp. (UA) 3

BROAD-WINGED HAWK (BWHA) 1

SWAINSON’S HAWK (SWHA) 0

RED-TAILED HAWK (RTHA) 29

FERRUGINOUS HAWK (FEHA) 1

ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK (RLHA) 24

Buteo sp. (UB) 10

GOLDEN EAGLE (GOEA) 3098

Eagle sp. (UE) 6

AMERICAN KESTREL (AMKE) 3

MERLIN (MERL) 5

GYRFALCON (GYRF) 4

PEREGRINE FALCON (PEFA) 7

PRAIRIE FALCON (PRFA) 6

Falco sp. (UF) 3

Unidentified Raptor (UU) 2

TOTAL 3453

Friday, October 27 [Day 35] (Blake Weis, assisted by Cliff Hansen) 0830-1830. The starting temperature was -2C, the high at 1600 was 11C and it was 7C at the end of observation. It was flat-calm to 1000 then 0-5 km/h for the rest of the day, and ridge winds were light NW all day. Cloud cover was 20-30% altocumulus and cirrus to 1100 then 80-90% cirrus with minor altocumulus for the rest of the day giving very good observing conditions. The calm conditions did not appear to augur well for raptor movement but to the delight of the observers a total of 113 migrants of 6 species were counted between 1024 and 1745. The count was a season high 15 Bald Eagles (103), 1 adult male Northern Harrier, 3 adult Sharp-shinned Hawks, 2 dark morph Rough-legged Hawks, 90 Golden Eagles (74a, 4sa, 3j, 9u), which is the highest count at the site since October 21, 1 juvenile Peregrine Falcon and 1 unidentified large falcon. Movement was steady throughout the afternoon with an hourly high count of 23 from 1400 to 1500 and the subsequent 2 hours each saw the passage of 22 birds. Apart from 1 Bald Eagle and 1 Golden Eagle that flew south above the valley, all birds used the eastern route and most were located at the northern end of the Fisher Range. Ten Golden Eagles that soared high above Mount Lorette were the only birds detected there, but despite their initial altitude they quickly lost height as they crossed the valley and arrived on the lower slopes of the Fisher Range. Most birds used flapping flight in the light winds and only a few moved much above ridge level. There was a good variety of other bird species that included a Northern Pygmy-Owl that briefly perched east of the river, 1 Northern Shrike, 5 Grey Jays, 1 Clark’s Nutcracker, 2 Brown Creepers, 1 Golden-crowned Kinglet, 5 Bohemian Waxwings, 1 American Tree Sparrow, 1 Dark-eyed Junco, 1 Pine Grosbeak, 1 Red Crossbill, 3 White-winged Crossbills, 102 Common Redpolls and 3 Pine Siskins. The highlight of the day, however, occurred early as Blake heard a Grey Wolf howling as he walked to the site and on arrival saw the animal, that was mainly grey with a brown back, walk slowly northwards across the Hay Meadow. There were also 7 human visitors to the site later in the day.

10 hours (383.8) BAEA 15 (103), NOHA 1 (6), SSHA 3 (80), RLHA 2 (23), GOEA 90 (2811), PEFA 1 (7), UF 1 (3) TOTAL 113 (3143)

[Correction to October 25: in the list of other bird species “52 Pine Siskins” should be “25 Common Redpolls and 27 Pine Siskins”.]

Vicki Ridge [Day 36] (Peter Sherrington, assisted by Connie Simmons, Phil Hazelton and Trevor Lewis after 1630) 0900-1800 (observation from the ridge top), and Gord Petersen 1450-1800 at the Waterton 68 site. After two weeks on the flank of the ridge because of almost continuous extreme high winds it was a pleasure to be back atop the ridge. The temperature was 6C at 0900, reached a high of 12C at 1500 and was still 10C at 1800. Winds were WNW 10-20 gusting 25-30 km/h to 1100 and subsequently W 20-30 km/h that increased to 30-35 gusting 44 km/h after 1600. It was cloudless to 1120 when cirrus cloud began to develop which reached 100% at 1200 and 1300, thickened to 100% altostratus at 1400 and 1500 and subsequently was a spectacular sky of thin cirrus altostratus and altocumulus for the rest of the day. Observing conditions were excellent all day. The first migrant was an adult Cooper’s Hawk at 0931, but the second migrant, a distant Golden Eagle, was not seen until 1226 and by 1400 only 5 migrants had been seen. The pace then slowly increased and peaked between 1600 and 1800 when 47 of the day’s 70 migrants were counted. The final count was 5 Bald Eagles (5a, 2j), 1 juvenile female Northern Harrier, 3 Sharp-shinned Hawks (1j, 2u), 1 adult Cooper’s Hawk, 5 adult Northern Goshawks, 4 adult Red-tailed Hawks (1 dark calurus, 3 dark harlani), 16 Rough-legged Hawks (14 light, 2 dark), 33 Golden Eagles (27a, 2sa, 2j, 2u) and 1 unidentified eagle. These totals include 27 migrants (2 Bald Eagles, 2 Sharp-shinned Hawks, 1 Northern Goshawk, 1 calurus Red-tailed Hawk, 9 Rough-legged Hawks and 11 Golden Eagles) seen by Gord between 1450 and 1800 from the western edge of Kyllo Ridge at the Waterton 68 wellsite. An adult Harris’s Sparrow was at the site all morning (probably a first for the site), and other birds were 2 Grey Jays, 5 Clark’s Nutcrackers, 1 Black-billed Magpie, 55 Common Ravens, 10 American Robins, 12 Bohemian Waxwings, 525 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches and 44 Common Redpolls.

9 hours (298.7) BAEA 6 (107), NOHA 1 (17), SSHA 3 (744), COHA 1 (91), NOGO 5 (79), RTHA 4 (231), RLHA 16 (393), GOEA 33 (1472), UE 1 (1) TOTAL 70 (3273)

Steeples [Day 28] (Vance Mattson) 1130-1700. The temperature was 2C at 1130 and warmed to 7C, it was calm all day, and there was a cloud cover of 100% thin altostratus at 1130 which subsequently became 50-60% of various combinations of thin altostratus, altocumulus and cirrus. It was a painfully quiet day for migration as only a juvenile Northern Harrier was seen, at 1519. Non-migrants were also scarce with single sightings of an adult Bald Eagle and adult Red-tailed Hawk, and two sightings of an adult Sharp-shinned Hawk.

5.5 hours (131.5) NOHA 1 (10) TOTAL 1 (438)

MOUNT LORETTE SUMMARY COUNT (September 20 to November 15)

DAYS 35

HOURS 383.8

TURKEY VULTURE (TUVU) 0

OSPREY (OSPR) 1

BALD EAGLE (BAEA) 103

NORTHERN HARRIER (NOHA) 6

SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (SSHA) 80

COOPER’S HAWK (COHA) 18

NORTHERN GOSHAWK (NOGO) 23

Accipiter sp. (UA) 3

BROAD-WINGED HAWK (BWHA) 1

SWAINSON’S HAWK (SWHA) 0

RED-TAILED HAWK (RTHA) 29

FERRUGINOUS HAWK (FEHA) 1

ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK (RLHA) 23

Buteo sp. (UB) 10

GOLDEN EAGLE (GOEA) 2811

Eagle sp. (UE) 6

AMERICAN KESTREL (AMKE) 3

MERLIN (MERL) 5

GYRFALCON (GYRF) 2

PEREGRINE FALCON (PEFA) 7

PRAIRIE FALCON (PRFA) 6

Falco sp. (UF) 3

Unidentified Raptor (UU) 2

TOTAL 3143