Mount Lorette (31 Mar 2026) 13 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 31, 2026 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 1 | 62 | 62 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 8 | 8 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Golden Eagle | 11 | 1026 | 1026 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 15 | 15 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Total: | 13 | 1124 | 1124 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 19:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 10.52 hours |
| Official Counter | Caroline Lambert |
| Observers: | Susan Wilberg |
Visitors:
Of the two dozen or so passers-by, only three people stopped to chat for any length of time.
Weather:
The temperature started out unusually cold for the end of March, at -14C. It rose to 0C and ended the day at -1C. With yesterday’s snow still looking fresh, all signs of spring had disappeared, except for a few intrepid catkins on the willows. The ground wind started out calm and was never very strong. Around the middle of the day it was from the north and northeast, but by midafternoon was from the west to southwest. Initially the sky was overcast with thin stratus clouds, which gradually gave way to a mix of cirrus and cumulus that allowed enough sun through to keep us warm until the sun went behind the west ridge. Judging by the snow blowing off the ridges, the ridge wind was initially calm and stayed that way most of the day. Occasional plumes were seen coming off the ridges by late afternoon, indicating a southwest wind.
Raptor Observations:
The first migrant raptor, a Golden Eagle, wasn’t seen until after noon, after that there was a slow trickle of one Golden Eagle per hour, until late in the day when five were seen between 1800 and 1900. A couple were seen on the west ridge, but the rest were mostly coming up from behind the east ridge and then kiting high above the ridge before turning to head towards Mt Lorette. The total was a disappointing 11 (6a, 3sa, 1ui, 1u). Other migrants were an adult Bald Eagle and an adult dark morph Red-tailed Hawk.
Non-migrants spotted were an intermediate morph adult Red-tailed Hawk and a Bald Eagle.
Non-raptor Observations:
Other birds were very quiet, not surprising given the unusually cold start to the day. Seen or heard were 3 Canada Geese, 1 Common Goldeneye, 2 Common Mergansers, 1 Hairy Woodpecker, 1 Northern Flicker, about 8 Common Ravens, 2 Black-capped Chickadees, and 2 American Robins.
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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 Trektellen.org – [Project Details]
