Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch
Port Stanley, Ontario, Canada
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 12, 2015
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
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Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 240 4407 4918
Osprey 0 4 121
Bald Eagle 0 20 78
Northern Harrier 12 201 645
Sharp-shinned Hawk 24 900 5335
Cooper's Hawk 0 19 83
Northern Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 9 11
Broad-winged Hawk 0 52 12992
Red-tailed Hawk 2 54 115
Rough-legged Hawk 0 1 1
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 10 183 1788
Merlin 0 16 71
Peregrine Falcon 12 22 66
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: 300 5888 26224
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Observation start time: 07:00:00
Observation end time: 13:30:00
Total observation time: 6.5 hours
Official Counter: Jennifer Lyon
Observers: Cary Graham, Derek Lyon, Jason McGuire, Jim Dunn,
Keith Sealy, Mac McAlpine, Mary Carnahan
Visitors:
There were many visitors today at Hawk Cliff, although most were just
sightseeing and not necessarily there for the hawk watch. People seemed
more interested in just enjoying the unseasonably warm and sunny weather
and checking out the views from the cliff.
As well, thanks to visitors, Bonnie and Mark from Montreal for their
assistance with the count.
Weather:
It was another in a long string of beautiful weather days -- great for this
time of year, but with southerly winds again. Still with winds from the S
/ SSW reaching 32 km / hr near the end, it should have been a great day for
Peregrines -- and it was! Lots of sunshine throughout the watch, although
some cloud began to move in during the noon hour, but by 1:15 PM, the
clouds had mostly disappeared.
Raptor Observations:
The total for today was 300 migrants, consisting of 5 species of raptors
plus 240 Turkey Vultures. The big draw for most observers was the
potential for Peregrine Falcons and we did not go unrewarded a total of
12 Peregrines were counted, slightly more in the latter half of the count,
but number one was seen at 7:20 this morning. The majority of todays
raptors were Sharp-shinned Hawks with 24. Tied with Peregrines in second
place were 12 Northern Harriers, followed by 10 Am. Kestrels and only 2
Red-tailed Hawks.
Non-raptor Observations:
Thanks to Jen, Derek, Mac, Jim, Keith, Cary, Mary and Jason for their
assistance on the knoll, at the cliff, at the B&B and on the trails for
their raptor and non-raptor sightings today. Of note were the insect
sightings on this October 12. Butterfly species included at least 12
Monarch Butterflies, 8 tallied by Jen on the knoll and 4 others spotted by
observers away from the knoll. As well, there are still some Cabbage
Whites plus Orange & Clouded Sulphurs flying. In addition, a few Green
Darners and a single Black Saddlebags (dragonflies) were reported by
observers mainly in the fields.
Passerine species were seen along the road today as well as at the knoll,
in the woods and at the B&B. From the knoll, a few small flocks Blue Jays
(fewer than 20 per flock) were seen intermittently crossing the field to
the north. Also spotted from the knoll were Goldfinches (in flocks),
several Common Loons, a Double-crested Cormorant, Pileated Woodpecker,
Killdeer and Am. Crow. At the B&B, a large flock of European Starlings and
a small flock of Crows kept getting in the way of observers trying to count
TVs and Sharpies. Other species of note today were Common Grackle, Brown
Creeper, Song and White-throated Sparrow, Yellow-rumped and Black-throated
Blue Warbler, Ruby- and Golden-crowned Kinglets and flying along with the
Ring-billed and Herring Gulls were a couple of Great Black-backed Gulls.
Predictions:
The wind is expected to continue from the S/SW overnight with an 80% chance
of rain. Wind will shift to W by morning. That westerly flow will be
fairly brisk in the morning, rising to about 35 km / hr by afternoon.
Observers on the mound will really feel that wind at their backs, either on
the knoll or at the B&B, and the force of that headwind may prove too
strong for a good migration tomorrow afternoon. Whats more, the weather
man is forecasting a 40% chance of showers in the afternoon not a good
indicator for raptor migration. By Wednesday, however, we should be
enjoying some real fall weather with a strong NW flow exactly the
conditions to get those migrants on the move!
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Report submitted by Dave Brown ([email protected])
Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch information may be found at:
http://www.ezlink.on.ca/~thebrowns/HawkCliff/index.htm
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