The main observation site is the Hay Meadow, Mt. Lorette Site. The site is located in Kananaskis on the bank of the Kananaskis River. It has a view of the open valley. which allows excellent (though rather distant) viewing of the Fisher Range to the east. The bulk of the Golden Eagles and other raptors use this ridge as part of their preferred migration route.
Mt. Lorette Observations
See the seasonal count reports and daily summaries for historical observation counts. The following observations started in Fall 2021.
04/07/2022
Observers: Caroline Lambert, Rick Robb
07:00 AM
08:30 PM
A cool -3C to start, rising to a sweltering hot +13C, then cooling down to +8C.
The day was marked by bands of altostratus clouds that ranged from 20% coverage to 90% coverage of the sky. The ridges were clear all day, and ridge winds appeared to be strong from the west, resulting good migration conditions and a good number of migrants in the afternoon and evening.
36 (16 adults, 7 subadult, 4 juvenile, 9 unaged)
4 Bald Eagles (2 adult, 2 juvenile), 1 Northern Goshawk, 1 Prairie Falcon, 1 unidentified eagle
Migrants were evenly spread through the afternoon after 14:00.
43
Two adult Golden Eagles and one adult Red-tailed Hawk
There was a nice variety of birds, though nothing unexpected: Canada Goose 6, Mallard 3, Common Merganser 3, Ruffed Grouse 1, American Three-toed Woodpecker 2,
Hairy Woodpecker 1, Northern Flicker 1, Northern Shrike 1, Common Raven 10, Black-capped Chickadee 3, Mountain Chickadee 2, Boreal Chickadee 1, Red-breasted Nuthatch 2, Mountain Bluebird 2, Varied Thrush 3, American Robin 15, Dark-eyed Junco 2, Song Sparrow 2
10
