Monday, October 19 Vicki Ridge [Day 29] 0800-1850 (Peter Sherrington and Hilary Atkinson observing from the Waterton 61 wellsite on the western flank of the ridge); and Gord Petersen (1320-1830) at the western edge of Kyllo Ridge at the Waterton 68 wellsite). The temperature at 0800 was -7C that quickly rose to 1C at 0950 as the westerly flow aloft touched down and reached a high of 7C at 1200 and 1300. The temperature was then 6C to 1700 and was 4C at the end of observation. Winds were W-WSW all day, very light to 0950 then 15-20 gusting 30 km/h to 1400 after which they were 30-40 gusting 50-60 km/h for the rest of the day. Cloud cover was 100-80% stratocumulus, cumulus and altostratus to 1400 after which it gradually reduced and was 30% altocumulus and cumulus at 1850. There were occasional very light rain showers but observation conditions were good all day. There was a fairly strong and persistent raptor movement at the Waterton 61 site where 129 migrants of 6 species were seen between 0834 and 1825 that comprised 13 Bald Eagles (9a, 2sa2, 2j), 5 Sharp-shinned Hawks (1a, 4u), 1a Northern Goshawk, 1a light morph calurus Red-tailed Hawk, 5 Rough-legged Hawks (4 light, 1 dark) and 104 Golden Eagles (94a, 5sa, 4j, 1u). The highest single-hour count was 23 between 1700 and 1800, and three other hours after 1200 saw passage of at least 20 birds. At the Waterton 68 site the count was 74 birds of 6 species between 1322 and 1819 that comprised 5 Bald Eagles (3a, 2j), 6 Sharp-shinned Hawks (1a, 5u), 2 Cooper’s Hawks (1j, 1u), 1j light morph Broad-winged Hawk, 3 light morph Rough-legged Hawks and 57 Golden Eagles (41a, 4sa, 5j, 7u). The highest hourly count was 22 between 1500 and 1600. The combined site count was 203 migrants of 8 species that moved between 0834 and 1825 and comprised a season-high 18 Bald Eagles (12a, 2sa2, 4j), 11 Sharp-shinned Hawks (2a, 9u), 2 Cooper’s Hawks (1j, 1u), 1a Northern Goshawk, 1j light morph Broad-winged Hawk, 1a light morph calurus Red-tailed Hawk, 8 Rough-legged Hawks (7 light, 1 dark) and 161 Golden Eagles (135a, 9sa, 9j, 8u).  The highest combined site hourly count was 38 between 1600 and 1700 and the previous and subsequent hours saw counts of 34 and 36 birds respectively. Other birds species were a flock of 65 Snow Geese that flew high to the SE at 1321, a flock of 44 Canada Geese that flew high to the W at 1221, 10 unidentified ducks that flew south at 1335, 2u Northern Flickers (1 Yellow-shafted and 1 Red-shafted), 2 Clark’s Nutcrackers, 5 Black-billed Magpies, 26 American Crows that flew W at 1233, 96 Common Ravens, 44 American Robins and 759 Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches (200 at Waterton 68 and flocks of 250 and 300 flying south at 1420 and 1615 respectively at Waterton 61).

10.83 (299.8) BAEA 18 (104), SSHA 11 (881), COHA 2 (136), N0GO 1 (45), BWHA 1 (19), RTHA 1 (206), RLHA 8 (167), GOEA 161 (1856) TOTAL 203 (3526)

Monday, October 19 Mount Lorette [Day 30] 0820-1840 Caroline Lambert assisted by Graeme Dunlop). The observers counted 100 migrant raptors of 5 species between 0935 and 1758 that comprised 8 Bald Eagles (4a, 2sa, 2j), 1u Sharp-shinned Hawk, 2u Northern Goshawks, 3 light morph Rough-legged Hawks and 86 Golden eagles (56a, 9sa, 4j, 17u).

10.33 (336.9), BAEA 8 (101), SSHA 1 (97), NOGO 2 (53), RLHA 3 (24), GOEA 86 (2158) TOTAL 100 (2596)

Monday, October 19 Steeples (Vance Mattson). No observation (weather). Work commitments prevented Vance from observing, but low overcast conditions would have rendered that impossible anyway.

Sunday, October 18 Vicki Ridge [Day 28] 1500-1730 (Peter Sherrington and Hilary Atkinson observing from the Waterton 61 wellsite on the western flank of the ridge). The temperature at 1500 was -8C that dropped to -9C at 1600 where it remained until 1730. Winds were SE-E 5-10 gusting 15 km/h and cloud cover was 100% stratocumulus throughout. Light snow fell to 1415 when the ridges cleared, and we arrived at the site at 1500 where there was 16 cm of snow on the ground. A total of 5 raptors of 3 species moved between 1555 and 1635, all either above or adjacent to Kyllo Ridge, which comprised 1a Bald Eagle, 1 light morph Rough-legged Hawk and 3j Golden Eagles.  At 1645 light snow resumed and the ridges began to cloud over and they were mainly obscured when we left at 1730. The only other bird species seen were 1 male Northern [Red-shafted] Flicker, 2 Black-billed Magpies and 2 Common Ravens.

2.5 hours (289) BAEA 1 (86), RLHA 1 (159), GOEA 3 (1695) TOTAL 5 (3323)

Sunday, October 18 Mount Lorette [Day 29] 0800-1800 (Lori Anderson assisted by Patrick Farley). Light snow began to fall at 0810 and persisted to 1700 when it became heavy. The Fisher Range was mainly obscured but periodically cleared. A total of 10 migrants of 4 species moved between 1219 and 1535 and comprised 1j Bald Eagle, 2 unidentified Buteos (1 dark, 1u), 6 Golden Eagles (2a, 4u) and 1 female grey morph Gyrfalcon.

10 hours (326.6) BAEA 1 (93), UB 2 (3), GOEA 6 (2072), GYRF 1 (2) TOTAL 10 (2496)

Sunday, October 18 Steeples (Vance Mattson). No observation (weather). Snow then rain and overcast all day with the ridges completely obscured.

Saturday, October 17 Vicki Ridge. No observation. The temperature was -8C to a high of -6C, winds were light E-SSE and light snow fell all day obscuring the ridges to 1700 when there was 8 cm on the ground. It partially cleared after 1700 but with very light upslope winds there was little prospect of migration and we didn’t go to the site.

Saturday, October 17 Mount Lorette [Day 28] 0820-1840 (Blake Weis). The Fisher Range was obscured to 1030 and was partially clear to 1300 after which it remained clear for the rest of the day. Only 9 migrant raptors were seen between 1327 and 1657 that comprised 5 Bald Eagles (3a, 1j and 1 undifferentiated immature), 1u Rough-legged Hawk and 3 Golden Eagles (1a, 1sa, 1u).

10.33 hours (316.6) BAEA 5 (92), RLHA 1 (2066), GOEA 3 (2066) TOTAL 9 (2486)

Saturday, October 17 Steeples [Day 9] 1200-1600 (Vance Mattson). The temperature was 7C, winds were light N and cloud cover was 70-100% stratus and altostratus that obscured the ridges throughout. Only 1 migrant, a juvenile Golden Eagle, was seen, and a resident adult Golden Eagle hunted, stooped and eventually perched on the ridge.

4 hours (29.75) GOEA 1 (24) TOTAL 1 (83)

Friday, October 16 Vicki Ridge [Day 27] 0800-1845 (Peter Sherrington and Hilary Atkinson, assisted by Phil Nicholas (0945-1345) and Pat Lucas (1110-1400) observing from the Waterton 61 wellsite on the western flank of the ridge; and Gord Petersen (0840-1825) at the western edge of Kyllo Ridge at the Waterton 68 wellsite). The temperature at 0800 was 4C, the high at 1200 was 9C and it then varied between 6C and 8C throughout the afternoon to 1812 when a northern cold front arrived that lowered the temperature to 0C at 1845. Winds were strong W-WSW to 1812, 60-70 gusting to 85-100 km/h to 1030 then 45-55 gusting to 80 km/h to 1812 when the wind shifted to E-NE at 20 km/h signaling the arrival of the cold front. Cloud cover was initially 100% cirrus, cumulus and altocumulus, but for the rest of the morning it was 80-30% cumulus, stratocumulus and lenticular that gave mainly sunny conditions. Between 1300 and 1430 cloud cover was 90% stratus and cumulus and light to moderate rain fell from 1320 to 1420, then to 1745 it cleared to 60-90% cumulus and stratocumulus that produced frequent light showers and sunny periods. By 1800, however, cloud cover was 100% dark stratocumulus and after 1812 light snow began to fall. At Waterton 61 there was a moderate raptor movement of 47 birds of 5 species between 0839 and 1806 that comprised 8 Bald Eagles (1a, 5j, 2u), 3 Sharp-shinned Hawks (2a, 1u), 2a Red-tailed Hawks (1 light calurus and 1 dark harlani), 7 Rough-legged Hawks (5 light, 1dark, 1u) and 27 Golden Eagles (17a, 3sa, 4j, 4u). Twenty-eight birds moved before 1316 and when the rain started it appeared that the movement was probably over for the day, but after 1546 a further 19 migrants were seen that peaked at 13 birds between 1700 and 1800. We have found this season that the stronger the westerly winds the higher the percentage of migrants that use the westernmost ridge system at the Waterton 68 site and this was again demonstrated today as a total of 152 migrants of 6 species were counted there between 0858 and 1813. The count was 8 Bald Eagles (4a, 1sa3, 1sa2, 1sa1, and 1j), 6u Sharp-shinned Hawks, 1u Cooper’s Hawk, 2a Northern Goshawks, 54 Rough-legged Hawks (32 light, 14 dark, 8u) and 81 Golden Eagles (53a, 5sa, 15j, 8u). The highest hourly count of 48 birds occurred between 1700 and 1800 that included 42 Rough-legged Hawks, and a further 3 Rough-legged Hawks moved up to 1813 as the cold front arrived. High numbers of Rough-legged Hawks moving just ahead of an Arctic front has been noted several times before on our fall counts, but this was a particularly spectacular example. The combined site count was 199 migrants of 7 species that moved between 0839 and 1813 and comprised a season-high 16 Bald Eagles (5a, 3sa, 6j, 2u), 9 Sharp-shinned Hawks (2a, 7u), 1u Cooper’s Hawk, 2a Northern Goshawks, 2a Red-tailed Hawks (1 light calurus and 1 dark harlani),  a season-high 61 Rough-legged Hawks (37 light, 15 dark, 9u) and 108 Golden Eagles (70a, 8sa, 19j, 11u). The highest combined species hourly count was 61 between 1700 and 1800 that included 47 Rough-legged Hawks. Other bird specieswere 29 Canada Geese that flew high to the west at 1830, 1 Pileated Woodpecker, 3 Clark’s Nutcrackers, 4 Black-billed Magpies, 113 Common Ravens, 2 American Robins, and 8 Grey-crowned Rosy Finches at the Waterton 68 site.  The prospect for observation over the weekend is not encouraging as snow is forecast for both days.

10.75 hours (286.5) BAEA 16 (85), SSHA 9 (870), COHA 1 (134), NOGO 2 (44), RTHA 2 (205), RLHA 61 (158), GOEA 108 (1692) TOTAL 199 (3318)

Friday, October 16 Mount Lorette [Day 27] 0830-1405 (Caroline Lambert assisted by Cliff Hansen). A cold front brought snow to the area and by 1130 the Fisher Range was completely obscured. The observers then moved to the Lusk Creek site where 16 migrants of 3 species were seen between 1147 and 1350 that comprised 2 Northern Goshawks (1a, 1u), 2j light morph calurus Red-tailed Hawks and 12 Golden Eagles (5a, 1j, 6u). At 1405 the ridge at Lusk Creek was finally obscured and the count was abandoned for the day.

5.58 hours (306.2) NOGO 2 (51), RTHA 2 (60), GOEA 12 (2063) TOTAL 16 (2477)

Friday, October 16 Steeples (Vance Mattson). No observation. It rained and was overcast for most of the day but cleared somewhat at 1500 when Vance had to attend a meeting!

Thursday, October 15 Vicki Ridge [Day 26] 0810-1910 (Peter Sherrington and Hilary Atkinson observing from the Waterton 61 wellsite on the western flank of the ridge; and Gord Petersen (0825-1210) and Denise Cocciolone-Amatto, Pat Lucas and Raymond Toal (1337-1740) at the western edge of Kyllo Ridge at the Waterton 68 wellsite). The temperature at 0810 was -2C, the high at 1400 was 7C and it was 3C at 1910. Winds were WSW-W all day initially 20 km/h then gradually increasing to 20-30 gusting 50 km/h at 1300 and gusting to 60 km/h between 1700 and 1800 before dropping to 30 km/h at the end of observation. Cloud cover was 0-20% cumulus to 1100 after which it was 50-70% cumulus with altocumulus, lenticular and cirrus cloud developing after 1700 as the wind increased. Observing conditions were good throughout although wind-chill made watching uncomfortable in the afternoon. At Waterton 61 a total of 119 migrants of 10 species moved between 0816 and 1851 that comprised 5 Bald Eagles (4a, 1j), 1j female Northern Harrier, 8 Sharp-shinned Hawks (4a, 4u), 2a Cooper’s Hawks, 10 Northern Goshawks (6a, 2j, 2u), 3 Red-tailed Hawks (1a, 1j light morph calurus and 1 undifferentiated dark bird), 5 light morph Rough-legged Hawks, 82 Golden Eagles (67a, 5sa, 10j), 1 unidentified eagle, 1 male American Kestrel and the first Gyrfalcon of the season, a grey morph adult male at 1235. The highest hourly count was 18 between 1400 and 1500 but movement was steady all day. At theWaterton 68 site observers counted 131 migrants of 7 species between 0828 and 1206, and between 1340 and 1736 that comprised 5 Bald Eagles (3a, 2j), 20 Sharp-shinned Hawks (4a, 1j 15u), 4u Cooper’s Hawks, 6 Northern Goshawks (1a, 3j, 2u), 1a dark morph calurus Red-tailed Hawk, 3 light morph Rough-legged Hawks, 90 Golden Eagles (66a, 6sa, 13j, 5u) and 2 unidentified eagles. The highest single-hour count was 29 between 1500 and 1600 but movement was steady all day. The combined site count was 250 migrants of 10 species that moved between 0816 and 1851 and comprised a season-high 10 Bald Eagles (7a, 3j), 1j female Northern Harrier, 28 Sharp-shinned Hawks (8a, 1j, 19u), 6 Cooper’s Hawks (2a, 4u), a season-high 16 Northern Goshawks (7a, 5j, 4u), 4 Red-tailed Hawks (1a, 1j light morph and 1a dark morph calurus, and 1 undifferentiated dark bird), 8 light morph Rough-legged Hawks, 172 Golden Eagles (133a, 11sa, 23j, 5u), 3 unidentified eagles, 1 male American Kestrel and the first Gyrfalcon of the season, a grey morph adult male at 1235. The highest hourly combined count was 44 between 1500 and 1600, but apart from 1200-1300 and 1800-1900 all hourly counts were in double-digits. Other bird species were 58 Snow Geese that moved to the north over Kyllo Ridge in two flocks: 50 at 1116 and 8 at 1136, 1 Canada Goose that flew high to the east at 1449, 1 Clark’s Nutcracker, 5 Black-billed Magpies, 18 American Crows, 37 Common Ravens, 2 Red-breasted Nuthatches, 8 American Robins and a total of 250 Grey-crowned Rosy Finches at the Waterton 68 site that were the first for the season.

11 hours (275.7) BAEA 10 (69), NOHA 1 (24), SSHA 28 (861), COHA 6 (133), NOGO 16 (42), RTHA 4 (203), RLHA 8 (97), GOEA 172 (1584), UE 3 (8), AMKE 1 (14), GYRF 1 (1) TOTAL 250 (3119)

Thursday, October 15 Mount Lorette [Day 26] 0800-1915 (Graeme Dunlop assisted by Glenn Webber). A total of 226 migrant raptors of 7 species were seen between 0810 and 1905 that comprised 1 Osprey, 9 Bald Eagles (5a, 3sa, 1u), 3a Cooper’s Hawks, 3 Northern Goshawks (2a, 1j), 1 undifferentiated light morph Red-tailed Hawk, 5 Rough-legged Hawks (3 light, 2 dark), 203 Golden Eagles (103a, 16sa, 30j, 54u) and 1 Prairie Falcon.

11.25 hours (300.7), OSPR 1 (6), BAEA 9 (87), COHA 3 (19), NOGO 3 (49), RTHA 1 (58), GOEA 203 (2051), PRFA 1 (4) TOTAL 226 (2461)

Thursday, October 15 Steeples [Day 8] 1615-1730 (Vance Mattson). The temperature was 12C winds were light SW and 50% cumulus cloud cover allowed sunny conditions. Four migrants were seen: 3 juvenile Bald Eagles and 1 unidentified eagle, all of which moved before 1638. A resident adult Golden Eagle soared above the ridges at 1704 and then executed a fairly spirited display flight.

1.25 hours (25.75) BAEA 3 (40), UE 1 (2) TOTAL 4 (82)