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.
03/25/2022
Observers: Lori Anderson, Ruth Morrow and guest observers Patricia Pearce, Diane Stinson, Yumiko Hiraki and Pat Cullimore.
07:00 AM
08:15 PM
-7C to +6C
The day began with a thick layer of altostratus, 100% humidity, no wind, and when the Sun rose, it came with Sundog that lasted for hours. Eventually, the thick altostratus thinned out a bit and gave way to some lenticular and Cirrus clouds that barely moved because it was so calm. One of the eagles that stayed the night, slept in until well past 11 am probably waiting for some air on which to glide. At 11:30 the SW winds picked up and the birds began to move. The race to Alaska was on! Little did we know that this was going to be a day of great Eagle deluge. Soon it was as though someone had pulled the plug, creating a flow, which was continuous all afternoon, and even after sunset, by which time 256 migrating raptors had been counted. The main stage was valley center north to Lorette and north, or on to McGillivray then north. Some were located over the Fisher range before they reached the Valley North. With the ridges clear all day and abundant cloud, we had the perfect scene for locating Eagles but the high humidity created a bleeding effect in the atmosphere making it almost impossible to age many of the high and distant eagles.
245 (107 A, 10 SA, 7 J, 121 U)
Bald Eagle 6 (3A,1SA, 2 J), Coopers Hawk 1, Sharp-shinned Hawk 2, UE 1, UA 1.
17:00-20:00 with 122
256
2 Northern Goshawks, 1 Golden Eagle hunting on the flanks of Lorette in the early morning.
One Varied Thrush, a flock of Snow Buntings, many migrating Robins, European Starlings, numerous flocks of Canada Geese and a pair of Canada Geese dipping and making eyes at each other all day on the river, roaming Ravens, Bohemian Waxwings and a few Chickadees.
A squirrel.
10
