Mount Lorette (07 Apr 2025) 16 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 07, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 6 | 62 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 4 | 6 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| American Goshawk | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 11 | 13 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 13 | 87 | 1025 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 2 | 9 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 16 | 112 | 1126 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 20:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 10 hours |
| Official Counter | Lori Anderson |
| Observers: | Peter Lloyd |
Visitors:
15 visitors including Rachelle Gauvin from the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary and Jim St. Laurent. Thanks to both for your visit and your help!
Weather:
The forecast called for 30% chance of rain all day and indeed, it was a fairly grey day. The sun only popped through the clouds a few times and we were lightly showered with drizzle and windâdriven droplets of rain at intervals throughout the day. The thermometer registered 3C at 9:00 and rose to a high of 11.5C by noon after which it dropped to 11C for the rest of the afternoon. At the end of the count the reading was 9.5. SW ground winds averaged between 5-10 Km/h with gusts up to 20 Km/h. Ridge winds appeared to be moderately strong from the SW all day. Having said all this I must add that the first hours of the morning were calm and, with all the birdsong and prenuptial activity, it felt like a glorious spring morning.
Raptor Observations:
All of the migrating raptors were located between 12:00 and 4:00 pm. The final count was 13 Golden Eagles (1a, 2sa, 3j, 7u), 1 Coopers Hawk, 1 American Goshawk, 1 Red-tailed Hawk. The first migrants appeared very high over the Fisher Range and glided to Lorette then on to Mcgillivray. Later we found most of the eagles coming into Lorette from the east side. Some passed right over top and continued North and others passed in front or behind and continued onward. No flapping was necessary today. It was exceedingly difficult to age the eagles due to the white/grey cloud back-drop, low light conditions and, humidity in the air creating a diffused effect in the telescope. Resident raptors seen were 1 adult Golden Eagle, 2 adult Bald Eagles and, 1 Goshawk.
Non-raptor Observations:
As I walked into the site this morning I came upon a frozen statue of a Ruffed-grouse with his black ruff out. The mate he was trying to entice was up in the tree beside him. He would not budge even as I approached. She eventually flew to the ground, and he wrapped up his show unveiling a full peacock tail before he strutted away following her into the forest. An orchestra of bird sounds filled the air with drumming and singing, buzzing and clucking. The deep wing beats of the Ruffed-Grouse vibrated in my throat. Other players in the orchestra were: 1 Pileated Woodpecker, 1 Hairy woodpecker, 4 Varied Thrush, 1 European Starling, 1 Canada Geese, 5 Dark-eyed Juncos, Robins everywhere, 9 Ravens, 2 Red-winged Blackbirds (not usual to see them here), 3 Mallards, 5 Mountain Bluebirds (3 male, 2 female), 3 Common Mergansers, 1 Northern flicker, 1 Black-capped Chickadee, 9 White-tailed deer, 1 Red Squirrel.
Report submitted by ()
Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Mount Lorette (06 Apr 2025) 16 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 06, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 3 | 6 | 62 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 7 | 10 | 12 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 3 | 74 | 1012 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 1 | 2 | 9 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 16 | 96 | 1110 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 17:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 9 hours |
| Official Counter | Dan Parliament |
| Observers: | Xavier Gorloo |
Visitors:
There were approximately 25 visitors, including 10 visitors with chairs who enjoyed the sunshine along the river bank while observing the migration.
Weather:
For the observers, it was a gorgeous blue sky day with minimal ground winds. Unfortunately, the ridge winds were also “low”, resulting in poor flight and migration conditions. The opening temperature was minus 3 and the high was at 1600 hrs (MDT) at +15 C. Ground wind direction was variable, but predominately from southwest direction. Ground winds were 1-5 km/hr in the morning and increasing to 10-15 km/hr in the afternoon.
Raptor Observations:
A total of 16 migrating raptors were observed throughout the day. The Golden Eagle count was at three migrants (Adult x 1, Unaged x 2). The Golden Eagle migration passage was from 1134- 1208 hrs (MDT). Other migrating raptors where seven Red-tailed Hawks, two Sharp-shinned Hawks, Three Bald Eagles and one Unidentified Eagle. The resident Golden Eagle was observed once during the day hunting near Patrick.
Non-raptor Observations:
Canada Goose x 2, Mallard x 2, Northern Flicker x 1, Common Raven x 15, Black-capped Chickadee x 4, Mountain Chickadee x 2, Mountain Bluebird x 3 (Male x 2, Female x 1), Varied Thrush x 1, American Robin x 23, Bohemian Waxwing x 21, Swallow sp x 1
Report submitted by ()
Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Mount Lorette (05 Apr 2025) 12 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 05, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 1 | 3 | 59 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 11 | 71 | 1009 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 12 | 80 | 1094 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 17:30:00 |
| Total observation time: | 9.5 hours |
| Official Counter | Blake Weis |
| Observers: | Lynn Macintosh |
Visitors:
65 people stopped to talk, mostly in tour groups.
Weather:
The temperature was -3 C at the start of observation, it rose to 11, and was 10 as we were leaving. It was a bright and sunny, only a few small cirrus and cumulus clouds appeared all day. Ground wind was from the SW, up to 10 km/h in the morning, and gusting up to 30 in the afternoon. Ridge wind was also from the SW, moderate in the morning, and strong in the afternoon.
Raptor Observations:
The count was 11 Golden Eagles (4 adults, 1 juvenile, 2 sub-adults, 2 undifferentiated immature, 2 unaged) and 1 adult Bald Eagle. Most of them seemed to originate near Old Baldy hill to the southeast, then flew NW over the middle of the valley to Skogan Pass or along the east side of the valley to Mt. Lorette. The first migrant was recorded at 9:30 am, and The last at 4:40 pm. Most of the movement was sporadic in the afternoon.
Resident raptors included an adult Golden Eagle that flew west to east across the valley, and adult Bald Eagle hunting along the river, and an adult Red-tailed Hawk hunting near Mt. Lorette.
Non-raptor Observations:
1 Common Merganser, 1 Downy Woodpecker, 1 Pileated Woodpecker, 1 Northern Flicker, 1 Northern Shrike, 1 Black-billed Magpie, 13 Common Ravens, 1 Black-capped Chickadee, 2 Mountain Chickadees, 1 European Starling, 1 Mountain Bluebird, 30 American Robins, 8 Bohemian Waxwings, 7 Dark-eyed Juncos and 3 White-tailed Deer.
Report submitted by ()
Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Mount Lorette (04 Apr 2025) 3 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 04, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 2 | 58 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 2 | 60 | 998 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 3 | 68 | 1082 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 19:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 10.17 hours |
| Official Counter | Caroline Lambert |
| Observers: | Sofia Preece |
Visitors:
A conference at a local hotel resulted in a number of groups of conference attendees passing by the site towards the end of the day. Each group of about 15 had a guide that was familiar with the area. In all, about 75 people stopped by.
Thanks to Ed for keeping us company while there was nothing to count.
Weather:
It was a beautiful day out at the count site, after a chilly start with the temperature at -10C. With no clouds to block the heat of the sun, and little wind, it soon warmed up and by mid-afternoon was 6C, dropping to 3C at the end when the sun was behind the west ridge. Ground wind was light most of the day with a few gusts up to 20kph in the late afternoon. Judging by the blowing snow on the ridges, there was no ridge wind early in the day, but it was blowing quite strongly from a westerly direction late in the day.
Raptor Observations:
The beautiful spring weather was offset by a surprising dearth of birds of any kind, particularly migrating raptors. Only two migrant Golden Eagles were seen all day – one juvenile being escorted away by ravens on the west ridge, and a lone adult that soared high over Patrick before zooming off to Lorette. One Sharp-shinned Hawk made an appearance.
The resident Golden Eagles showed up a couple of times during the day.
Non-raptor Observations:
20 or so American Robins made a welcome distraction in the meadow throughout the day. Besides the robins and the usual ravens, other birds were few and far between: one Black-billed Magpie, two Black-capped Chickadees, one Mountain Chickadee, and three European Starlings.
Report submitted by ()
Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Mount Lorette (03 Apr 2025) 5 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 03, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 2 | 58 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 4 | 58 | 996 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 5 | 65 | 1079 |
| Observation start time: | 09:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 17:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 8 hours |
| Official Counter | Lynette MacCulloch |
| Observers: | Neil Denton |
Visitors:
12 visitors came by, 6 stopped to chat.
Weather:
Arriving at the site in a bit of a snowstorm with only Mt Lorette visible, the start was delayed will 10:00.Temperatures started at minus 5 went up to plus 1 and then back down to minus 1 when we left. Almost complete cloud cover to start which cracked open in the middle of the sky with a bit of blue showing and spread to create a ring of clouds around the periphery. After the snow stopped were pelted with a bit of graupel. The mostly cumulus clouds came and went with almost imperceptible movement. There was no scudding across the valley more of a slow morphing from one shape to another as high winds were very low mostly from the North or North west and ridge winds occasionally could be seen moving the lower clouds from the North east. Ground winds were low from the North and Northeast. Once or twice the ground wind was from the west or south, always changing but always light.
Raptor Observations:
The first raptor seen was a Juvenile Bald eagle was flew across the valley west to east and then turned and flew up the river. The adult Bald eagle flew from the south right over top of us at tree top level when we had two visitors who were thrilled to see it. A Red-tailed Hawk flew south along the river in hunting mode. The actual migrating bird numbers were very low. There were 4 Golden Eagles ( 2a, 1sa, 1u) and 1 juvenile Red-tailed Hawk. Three of the eagles came from Patrick and one was seen over Skogan pass trying to climb before sailing off. they all flapped at some point as the wind was not helpful
Non-raptor Observations:
Other birds seen at the site were: 5 Black-capped Chickadees 3 Dark -eyed Juncos 2 Starlings 4 Bohemian Waxwings 12 Ravens 10 Mallard Ducks 1 American Tree Sparrow !Song Sparrow ! Dipper 4 Robins 1 Hairy woodpecker
Predictions:
Hopefully tomorrow will be a more productive day if there is some wind.
Report submitted by ()
Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Mount Lorette (02 Apr 2025) Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 02, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 0 | 2 | 58 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 54 | 992 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 0 | 60 | 1074 |
(No count conducted today)
Weather:
No count was conducted as snow and low cloud obscured the mountains all day.
Raptor Observations:
Non-raptor Observations:
Report submitted by Annie Finch (annie.finch@gmail.com)
Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
Mount Lorette (01 Apr 2025) 60 Raptors
Alberta, Canada
| Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 01, 2025 | |||
| Species | Day’s Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Turkey Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 2 | 2 | 58 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Cooper’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Swainson’s Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Ferruginous Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Golden Eagle | 54 | 54 | 992 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Merlin | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gyrfalcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prairie Falcon | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total: | 60 | 60 | 1074 |
| Observation start time: | 06:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 19:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 11.87 hours |
| Official Counter | Caroline Lambert |
| Observers: | Lynette MacCulloch |
Visitors:
Few people came by today. Only about six stopped to talk.
Weather:
It was a pleasant day weather-wise to start, with few clouds initially, but clouds built up throughout the day, advancing and retreating, occasionally throwing graupel at us, occasionally obscuring various parts of the ridges, then clearing up. As we were leaving, low clouds were closing in, seemingly from all sides. The temperature started out at -3C, rose to 6C, then fell to 2C at departure. Ground winds were calm until late afternoon when there were gusts over 20 kph from the northeast. The clouds were moving from the northwest most of the day, swinging around to west by day’s end. Ridge winds could not be ascertained.
Raptor Observations:
The first Golden Eagles were seen shortly after 1000, and the last just before 1800. Initially the observations flipped back and forth between the east ridge and west ridge, but after noon there was a steady progression of eagles flying high and fast over the east ridge. Later in the afternoon the ridge wind must have died down as the last few were needing powered flight to make progress. There was not much light as the sun was often behind clouds, and with the eagles flying against a backdrop of clouds it was difficult to age most of them. The total number of Golden Eagles was 54 (21a, 2sa, 1j, 2ui, 28u). In addition there were two Bald Eagles (1a, 1sa), one adult Sharp-shinned Hawk, two Red-tailed Hawks (one adult light morph and 1u dark morph), and one unidentified eagle.
The resident Golden Eagles were spotted in various places – hunting over Hummingbird Plume, doing display dives over Nakiska. An immature Bald Eagle (second year) flew low over our heads, and one or both of the local American Goshawks were seen and heard several times.
Non-raptor Observations:
There was a good variety of other birds: Trumpeter/Tundra Swan 4, Common Merganser 2, Ruffed Grouse 1 (drumming), Pileated Woodpecker 1, Northern Shrike 2, American Crow 4, Common Raven 8, Black-capped Chickadee 4, Mountain Chickadee 2, American Dipper 1, European Starling 6, Mountain Bluebird 2, Varied Thrush 2, American Robin 5
Report submitted by ()
Mount Lorette information may be found at: eaglewatch.ca
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
