Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch Port Stanley, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 08, 2012 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 0 0 Osprey 2 39 58 Bald Eagle 0 0 13 Northern Harrier 0 46 95 Sharp-shinned Hawk 13 182 189 Cooper's Hawk 1 4 5 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 17 191 Red-tailed Hawk 0 0 2 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 6 121 283 Merlin 0 6 7 Peregrine Falcon 0 1 2 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 22 416 845 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:00:00 Observation end time: 14:00:00 Total observation time: 5 hours Official Counter: Jim Dunn Observers: Keith Sealy, Mary Carnahan Visitors: Paul Nicholson and Kassliyn J., Mike Rowe and Ken Jones....along with several other visitors whose names were not recorded. A big thanks to Jim, Mary, Keith and all our visitors today for helping with the count and "Other" report. Weather: After a VERY wet start to the day the skies opened up a bit with a good mix of sun and cloud. Temps were cooler after the passage of a large cold front across the entire region...always good to get the birds moving. The high for the day was just 18C...though humidity was a bit high till midday when it finally started to drop. We've seen over previosu years how important the humidity can be....if it's too high the birds just don't move. Winds today were moderate to strong from the WNW to W to NW...always our best winds for a good flight. Raptor Observations: The flight today was just 22 raptors despite the favourable winds...likely due to the wet start. Species observed were Osprey (2), Sharpie (13), a single Cooper's Hawk and a few Kestrels (6). Not a single Broadwing today...though it's a good bet they've started to move. They almost always migrate through over the timeframe of the next 2 weeks...and usually over the course of just a few days. Non-raptor Observations: This morning was a bit of a washout, so we got a late start and relatively few songbird sightings to report. Thanks to a couple of visitors, Paul Nicholson and Kassliyn J. who reported seeing a few Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (minus any discernible ruby throats), a Northern Cardinal and a Traill's Flycatcher. Some Goldfinches were also reported and later in the day, we had 2 Woodpecker species, Red-bellied and Northern Flicker. Mary also had an Indigo Bunting, many Ring-billed Gulls and a close-up look at one of the local immature Bald Eagles who wasn't going anywhere in particular. The big non-raptor news today was the butterflies and dragonflies, especially the number of Monarch Butterflies dashing across the field and along the Cliff. Bruce Parker conducted a count at the Cliff and reported 75 Monarchs headed west in his location between 12:15 and 12:45 PM (EST); however, many other monarchs could be seen crossing the field from the mound all the way up to the ravine. It will be interesting to see if there are any monarch roosts in the trees and bushes over the next few mornings at the Cliff. Other butterflies of note were 2 fresh looking Black Swallowtails, lots of Common Buckeyes, plus Cabbage Whites, Orange & Clouded Sulphurs, 2 Mourning Cloaks seen from the mound, a couple of Painted Ladies and Red Admirals, some Viceroys, a summer Azure, and at least half a dozen Eastern Tailed Blues. Not to be outdone, the dragonflies were everywhere, in fact, rather distracting to raptor watchers. Black Saddlebags continue to be the predominant dragonfly that we are seeing from the mound, although today there were many Green Darners as well. Other species of note were 1 Caronlina Saddlebags, several 12-spotted and Widow Skimmers and at the pond a single Lance-Tipped Darner. Predictions: Sunday looks promising....winds are predicted to be moderate from the NW. I look foward to seeing you all out there. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Dave Brown ([email protected]) Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch information may be found at: http://www.ezlink.on.ca/~thebrowns/HawkCliff/index.htm _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
