Mount Lorette (30 Oct 2023) 15 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 30, 2023 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Osprey | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Bald Eagle | 8 | 80 | 82 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 7 | 8 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 108 | 138 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 7 | 8 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 29 | 33 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 19 | 24 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 12 | 12 |
| Golden Eagle | 7 | 2726 | 2883 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 10 | 14 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Accipiter | 0 | 27 | 45 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 8 | 9 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 9 | 14 |
| Total: | 15 | 3049 | 3298 |
| Observation start time: | 08:30:00 |
| Observation end time: | 18:30:00 |
| Total observation time: | 10 hours |
| Official Counter | Lori Anderson |
| Observers: | Lynette MacCulloch |
Visitors:
One very interested man showed us a picture he’d taken of a raptor. It was Golden Eagle! A large number of young students passed by the site.
Weather:
The day started out on the chilly side at -14.5 and reached -2 at 15:00, falling short of the forecast. It stayed at that temperature for the rest of the afternoon and only fell to -3 at sunset when we finished. The storybook cirrus clouds painted many tales throughout the day increasing in thickness until a 100 % layer was formed by 17:00. Luckily it was a cirrus layer and none of the ridges were affected. The wind was very slow and even calm at times and consequently, there was very little raptor movement. The wind speed did pick up a bit after 15:00 and brought with it a few more raptors. Those that ventured out had to flap their way south and were seen low on the slopes or ridge level at most.
Raptor Observations:
All of the Goldens glided along the Eastern route and the Balds flapped laboriously along the Western slopes. One Bald glided low along Valley Center. 7 adult Golden Eagles, 8 Bald Eagles, (3a, 4j, 1sa) We also saw the two resident Goshawks, one adult and one juvenile.
Non-raptor Observations:
My binocularâs field of view today came with Ravens included with every sweep. Iâm sure it must have been a regional celebration concerning freedom of flight for Ravens. Near the end of the day, we even witnessed a harassment event involving two Ravens and a lone Golden over the bumps. Non-human visitors to the site included two Wihsakecahkw, doing of course what they are known best for, scavenging campsites, and the sweetest little short-tailed weasel with its triangular clown eyes and black-tipped tail. It seemed to be involved in the same activity as the birds, checking out tidbits in the snow and investigating Lynetteâs backpack. Other birds seen were: a White-throated Sparrow, a Ruffed Grouse, an American Dipper, 5 Ducks sp. 2 American Robins, a Woodpecker(maybe Downy), 7 Bohemian Waxwings, 10 Pine Siskins, 1 Pine Grosbeak, 1 Magpie and a few Dark-eyed Juncos.
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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]
