RMERF counts March 6

Wednesday, March 6 Mount Lorette [Day 5] 0750-1740 (Caroline Lambert, assisted by Rosemary Power). The temperature at 0750 was -24C, the high at 1500 was -6C and it was -9C at the end of observation. Ground winds were light and variable in the morning and NE-N 5-10 gusting 20 km/h throughout the afternoon and ridge winds were probably moderate NE. Cloud cover was 80-90% cirrostratus and altostratus to noon when it quickly cleared to 10% after which it steadily increased throughout the afternoon reaching 60% cumulus and cirrostratus at 1400 and 100% by 1700. The ridges were clear all day but no migrant or resident raptors were seen. Other bird species in the area were 1 Hairy Woodpecker, 6 Canada Jays, 4 Black-capped Chickadees, 4 Mountain Chickadees, 3 Boreal Chickadees and 8 White-winged Crossbills. Five visitors made it to the site today.

9.83 hours (42.74) TOTAL 0 (1)

Wednesday, March 6 Beaver Mines [Day 5] 0730-1830 (Peter Sherrington, assisted by Hilary Atkinson). The temperature at 0730 was -17C, the high was -12C (1100-1500) and it was -14.5C at 1830. Winds were again mainly light, W-NE to 1300 and then E-ESE for the rest of the day. Cloud cover was 100% stratus for most of the day that produced light to moderate snow and occasional freezing rain, apart from 1340-1410 when the snow stopped and cloud cover was briefly 100% altostratus and cumulus with small patches of blue sky. Once again migration conditions were poor and the only migrant raptor was a light morph Rough-legged Hawk at 1716. At 1747 a non-migrant juvenile Bald Eagle flapped low from the NE and roosted in a tree low on the NE flank of the ridge. Other birds seen were 2 Rock Pigeons, 4 Downy Woodpeckers, 15 Blue Jays, 17 Black-billed Magpies, 51 Common Ravens, 48 of which flew high towards the SW to roost between 1646 and 1759, 8 Black-capped Chickadees, 3 Mountain Chickadees, 7 Bohemian Waxwings, 40 Evening Grosbeaks, 14 Common Redpolls, 60 Pine Siskins and 8 Dark-eyed Juncos (3 hyamelis, 2 cismontanus and 3 montanus).

11 hours (55) RLHA 1 (2) TOTAL 1 (4)

Wednesday, March 6 Steeples (Vance Mattson). NO OBSERVATION.