Mount Lorette (17 Oct 2026) 30 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 17, 2026 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 20 | 30 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 5 | 9 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 52 | 80 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 6 | 18 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 11 | 23 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 11 | 14 |
| Golden Eagle | 30 | 1030 | 1296 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 5 | 7 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 4 | 9 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 4 | 9 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 12 | 16 |
| Total: | 30 | 1167 | 1533 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 17:30:00 |
| Total observation time: | 9.5 hours |
| Official Counter | Blake Weis |
| Observers: | Caroline Lambert, Christa Clifford |
Visitors:
Nearly 200 visitors passed through the meadow and either stopped to talk or read the signs. About 20 people stayed and tried to watch migration for varying periods of time. Thanks to everyone who did, come back anytime!
Weather:
It was 12 C at the start of the count, it briefly reached a high of 13 in the morning, then fell to 10 as we were leaving. Ground wind was from the SW, 10-20 km/h gusting to 30 with occasional gusts reaching 40 in the afternoon. Ridge wind was also from the SW, gusting between 60 and 120. Rain started around 12:30 PM and continued until 4 PM. Cloud cover varied between 60% and 100%. The clouds didn’t lower enough to obscure any ridges.
Raptor Observations:
The count was 30 Golden Eagles (1 Juvenile, 3 undifferentiated immature, 26 unaged). One used the west ridges, and the rest were on the east. They were gliding high and silhouetted in front of clouds which made ageing impossible in most cases. 15 migrants were counted between 10 AM and 12:30 PM. Once the rain arrived movement slowed, and it remained slow for the rest of the day. One Golden Eagle flew north high above the Fisher Range, presumably one of the local population. An unidentified buteo was also flying north.
Non-raptor Observations:
Other birds were 2 Common Mergansers on the river, 18 unidentified gulls flying low and struggling against the wind, 1 unidentified loon that flew high over the Fisher Range, 2 Canada Jays, 1 Clark’s Nutcracker, 44 Common Ravens including a conspiracy of 32 that flew south down the Fisher Range in the evening, 2 Mountain Chickadees, 1 Golden-crowned Kinglet, 2 Red Crossbills, and 2 Pine Siskins.
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Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Count data submitted via Trektellen.org – [Project Details]
