Mount Lorette (19 Oct 2023) 159 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 19, 2023 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Osprey | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Bald Eagle | 1 | 40 | 42 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 96 | 126 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 6 | 7 |
| American Goshawk | 1 | 26 | 30 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 16 | 21 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Golden Eagle | 156 | 1979 | 2136 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 9 | 13 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 25 | 43 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 8 | 9 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 8 | 13 |
| Total: | 159 | 2227 | 2476 |
| Observation start time: | 07:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 18:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 9.58 hours |
| Official Counter | Caroline Lambert |
| Observers: | James Bannon, Theresa Gawron |
Visitors:
There were two visitors, and one with binoculars to help spot.
Weather:
The starting temperature was a ridiculously warm 10C. It warmed up to 14C and dropped to 12C by the end of the count. The start of the count was delayed slightly, again, due to rain and low clouds. The clouds lifted so that the ridges were clear most of the time, but dark rain clouds sat over the west ridge and the south and west halves of the valley all day, throwing occasional rain drops our way, and occasionally blurring our view of the east ridge. Ground winds were blustery and from the southwest, occasionally strong enough to knock camp chairs over. Ridge winds on Nakiska were strong from the southwest, ranging from 30 kph up to 65 kph, with gusts up to 87.
Raptor Observations:
The strong southwest ridge winds made for good migrating conditions, and there was a steady parade of eagles, with over 20 each hour between 1300 and 1700. Most came in above ridge level and were able to gain height without soaring, but some were having trouble with the wind gusts at times and ended up flying below ridge level for a while until finding the lift they needed. With nearly all the migrants never needing to soar or use powered flight, misty rain in the air, and with the sun behind dark clouds most of the day, many of the birds went unaged. The totals were 156 Golden Eagles (49a, 10sa, 3j, 94u), 1 adult Bald Eagle, 1 American Goshawk, and 1 Red-tailed Hawk.
Non-raptor Observations:
Other birds were: Belted Kingfisher 1, Canada Jay 2, Common Raven 15, Mountain Chickadee 1, American Dipper 1, Bohemian Waxwing 25, Pine Grosbeak 3, Pine Siskin 9
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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]
