Mount Lorette (30 Oct 2026) 40 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 30, 2026 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 42 | 52 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 6 | 10 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 55 | 83 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 10 | 22 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 12 | 24 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 16 | 19 |
| Golden Eagle | 39 | 1766 | 2032 |
| 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 | 1 | 5 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 4 | 9 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 5 | 8 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 14 | 18 |
| Total: | 40 | 1946 | 2312 |
| Observation start time: | 07:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 18:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 9.62 hours |
| Official Counter | Ethan Denton |
| Observers: | Peter Christensen |
Visitors:
About a dozen people dropped by today, with 8 stopping to chat. Many thanks to Lucie and Brian who dropped by to help spot and shared their pictures of a Red Phalarope they had photographed earlier in the day at Wedge Pond.
Weather:
The day started out at a brisk -12�C but warmed quickly once the sun crested the ridge. By 3pm, temps had reached +1�C. Ground winds were about as low as ridge winds, which were generally under 10km/h.
Raptor Observations:
The low winds were reflected by the flightpath used today. Almost every single Golden came through very low amd flapping hard. Several were seen stopping to rest on the ridge or in trees on the mountainside, before continuing after 10-45 minutes. Despite the clearly poor conditions, 39 Goldens made their way past the countsite. Low-flying eagles were, for the most part, fairly easy to age. The split was 26ad, 4sub, 1juv, and 8u.
Only two other raptors showed – a buteo which dipped beyond the ridge before being IDed, and the local Goshawk.
Non-raptor Observations:
Overall, not a bad day out! A pair of Dippers chased each other up and down the river, a handful of Canada Geese flew over high, and a flock of Grey-crowned Rosy-Finches foraged in the meadow. Our Sparrow flock is still around, and the American Tree, White-crowned, Swamp, and Dark-eyed Juncos were accounted for. A pair of Downy Woodpeckers flipped their way through the willows, and the forcefully friendly Canada Jays hung around for the afternoon.
Report submitted by Ethan Denton (ethan@suechick.com)
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]
