Mount Lorette (27 Mar 2023) 17 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 27, 2023 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 2 | 66 | 66 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Northern Goshawk | 0 | 10 | 10 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 15 | 915 | 915 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 9 | 9 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 17 | 1002 | 1002 |
| Observation start time: | 06:30:00 |
| Observation end time: | 19:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 7.5 hours |
| Official Counter | Lori Anderson |
| Observers: |
Visitors:
In spite of the snow, about eleven very happy visitors stopped by to find out about the eagles.
Weather:
It snowed almost all day. The temperature started out cold at -8C and stayed almost the same until it the snow thinned out at 16:00, and a bit of sun helped to reach a high of -5C. The ground winds blew between 6-11 Km/h.gusting to 18 Km/h from the North all day, varying between NNW, N, and NNE. It was difficult to see what the ridge winds were doing. When the Eastern ridges were a bit visible, the clouds barely moved but seemed to be pushed from the SE. Later in the day, the clouds on the Western ridges moved from the NNW. At sunset the temperature lowered to -6.5, the winds weakened and the weather vane changed to the South.
Raptor Observations:
Luckily, some Raptors could be located when the snow and clouds cleared periodically in some key locations. All but one were found traveling near Lorette, or on the Fisher range gliding low, flapping, and soaring to maintain height. The final tally was fifteen Golden Eagles (6a, 2sa, 7u), and two Bald Eagles (1a, 1ui). Non-migrating Raptors: A resident Golden displayed repeatedly on the slopes of Old Baldy and a resident adult Goshawk cried out while hunting across the river, giving a beautiful show of strength and artistry.
Non-raptor Observations:
5 American Robins, 7 Ravens (three are always together), 2 Dark-eyed Juncos sp., 1 Black-capped Chickadee, 2 Canada Geese, 5 White-winged Crossbills, and Squirrels. The end of this turbulent day was epic. Everything changed suddenly. Four white-tailed deer moved calmly into the meadow. The winds died down, shifted to the South and a black silhouette of the last Golden Eagle moved west, high into the clouds, ending today’s movie.
Report submitted by ()
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]
