Mount Lorette (19 Oct 2022) 16 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 19, 2022 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 57 | 70 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 17 | 46 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 12 | 23 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 18 | 25 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 22 | 31 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 8 | 8 |
| Golden Eagle | 16 | 1467 | 1622 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 11 | 13 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 8 | 14 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 9 | 10 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 14 | 18 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| Total: | 16 | 1659 | 1910 |
| Observation start time: | 07:15:00 |
| Observation end time: | 17:45:00 |
| Total observation time: | 10.43 hours |
| Official Counter | Annie Finch |
| Observers: | Ian Dowson |
Visitors:
We were treated to a steady stream of delightful visitors, many of whom stayed to chat and help scan the sky. The volume and calibre of keenly interested (and interesting!) visitors was remarkable.
Special thanks to Linda and Jeff for their time with us today.
Weather:
Following the established pattern of this magnificent fall, the day started just below freezing and had us hiding in the shade by the afternoon. But change is in the air. The soft ground of the trail near the site was frozen a few inches deep, rather than just frosty. The sky was an interesting backdrop all day, changing each hour with varying displays of cirrus and cirrocumulus cloud formations, culminating in a sunset of subtle beauty. Wildfire smoke hung in the valley all day which noticeably affected observation and air quality.
Raptor Observations:
There were just 16 raptors observed today, all Golden Eagles (7 adult, 3 undifferentiated immature, 6 of unknown age). They all took the route from Mt. Lorette to behind or above the Fisher Range. Some found winds and were able to maintain altitude while gliding south while others noticeably sacrificed height for distance. High clouds helped with scanning and spotting, and while the light seemed favourable for aging it did more to light up the smoke than the eagles. Aging became possible only after 3:00pm.
No other raptors, migrating or resident, were observed.
Non-raptor Observations:
The Red Crossbills (Type 2) were again the non-raptor highlight of the day.
List of birds that were there today and we noticed and remembered to record: 1 Common Merganser 1 Northern Flicker 3 Canada Jay 2 Black-billed Magpie 8 Common Raven 4 Black-capped Chickadee 1 Mountain Chickadee 2 Boreal Chickadee 3 Red-breasted Nuthatch 1 Brown Creeper 1 European Starling 2 American Robin 2 American Pipit 30 Red Crossbill (Ponderosa Pine or type 2) 2 American Tree Sparrow
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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 Dunkadoo – [Project Details]
