Hi there: Over a span of 13 days, totaling 67 hours of observation, birders have surveyed for raptors from Greenland Rd., roughly 800 meters west of Thomas Dolan. Constance Creek is in the valley below, sandwiched between two ridges: Carp Ridge to the SW and Dunrobin Ridge (Greenland Road) to the NE. As far as hawkwatching in Ottawa goes, this is the place to be. Results so far:
Black Vulture: 0 Turkey Vulture: 229 Osprey: 7 Bald Eagle: 34 Northern Harrier: 18 Sharp-shinned Hawk: 25 Cooper's Hawk: 7 Northern Goshawk: 5 Red-shouldered Hawk: 8 Broad-winged Hawk: 5 Red-tailed Hawk: 85 Rough-legged Hawk: 10 Golden Eagle: 8 American Kestrel: 4 Merlin: 3 Peregrine Falcon: 2 Unknown Accipiter: 0 Unknown Buteo: 0 Unknown Falcon: 0 Unknown Eagle: 0 Unknown Raptor: 7 Some notes regarding the tally thus far: Given that our site is relatively northern in location compared to other sites in the east (Beamer, Derby Hill, etc.), we continue to focus a great deal of attention sorting through local vs. migrant birds, as many of the species we are documenting are also known to breed locally. We have paid special attention to our Bald Eagle tally and I believe it's quite an accurate indiciation of the volume of migrant birds that can be seen from our site. For example, on 12 April, we observed 11 Bald Eagles and subsequently discussed the nature of our observations. We determined that 9 were clear-cut migrants and 2 appeared local. Of interest, all 9 migrant birds were aged as 2nd year through to 4th year birds; no migrant adults were observed on that particular day. Today (13 April) we observed our first Broad-winged Hawks (adults) of the season. Also, of interest: we observed two migrant first-year Red-shouldered Hawks. As for non-raptor observations, Sandhill Cranes continue to provide a wonderful spectacle. Over four days (April 2, 3, 12, 13), we have observed a total of 17 migrant individuals. Over the last few days, we have enjoyed the sudden influx of lovely springtime migrant birds such as: Eastern Bluebirds, Eastern Phoebes, small numbers of Rusty Blackbirds (12 and 13 April), Tree Swallows and Wilson's Snipe, and a lone Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (13 April). There is an eBird hotspot for the site, located here: http://ebird.org/ebird/canada/hotspot/L2697365/activity?yr=all&m=. We also have a Facebook group: Ottawa-Gatineau Hawkwatchers. Lastly, the hawkwatch schedule is viewable here: http://www.ofnc.ca/events.php#.VRlz6-GPM4s Good birding, Jon _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide
