Grimsby, ON - Beamer Conservation Area Grimsby, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: May 04, 2019 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 5 Turkey Vulture 0 6 6206 Osprey 0 0 35 Bald Eagle 0 4 58 Northern Harrier 0 1 51 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 91 1069 Cooper's Hawk 0 2 96 Northern Goshawk 0 0 1 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 415 Broad-winged Hawk 0 330 3390 Red-tailed Hawk 0 1 1004 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 24 Golden Eagle 0 0 9 American Kestrel 0 2 26 Merlin 0 2 12 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 11 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 9 Unknown Buteo 0 0 48 Unknown Falcon 0 0 1 Unknown Eagle 0 0 1 Unknown Raptor 0 0 17 Total: 0 439 12488 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 07:45:00 Observation end time: 15:15:00 Total observation time: 7.5 hours Official Counter: Chris Escott Observers: Visitors: A foursome of birders doing a big day stopped to chat but otherwise there were no visitors. Weather: Fogbound all day, with little breeze. Mid-afternoon the fog started to lift and a bit of breeze was felt, but it didn't last long and the fog settled back in, which prompted me to terminate the day's count. Raptor Observations: One Sharp-shinned Hawk was flushed from a tree in the woods, and two - probably local - Turkey Vultures drifted by in the afternoon fog. None were considered to be migrants. Non-raptor Observations: Excellent day for migrant songbirds. In the fog, with no raptor action, I wandered around for most of the day in the woods surrounding the count site and out onto the access road, and I recorded 48 species. These included 2 flycatcher species (Least and Great Crested), 2 vireos (Warbling and Blue-headed), 3 thrushes (Veery, Swainson's, Hermit), 2 very vocal Brown Thrashers, 2 male Purple Finch, 6 sparrows (incl. Field, Swamp and Chipping), 10 warblers (incl. Ovenbird, N. Waterthrush, Nashville, Blackburnian, Palm, Pine, Black-throated Blue and Black-throated Green), and truly large numbers of Ruby-crowned Kinglet, White-throated Sparrow and Yellow-rumped Warbler. Predictions: The weather report for tomorrow looks very good (compared to today), and after two days of inclement weather I would expect a decent movement of raptors. However, today's weather report looked OK by mid-afternoon, but the sun never appeared as predicted, so one never knows how accurate a forecast is! ======================================================================== Report submitted by Chris Escott ([email protected]) Grimsby, ON - Beamer Conservation Area information may be found at: http://www.niagarapeninsulahawkwatch.org/ More site information at hawkcount.org: http://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=389 Site Description: Hawk migration monitoring at the Beamer Memorial Conservation Area in Grimsby, Ontario is conducted by the Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch (NPH). All counting is done by volunteers. Not all members are counters nor does a counter have to be a member. Typically one person is the designated counter for each day but other observers present assist with the spotting and identification. Counting is done from a steel observation tower with a wooden floor. For wind protection on cold days, particularly in March, a black plastic wind guard is installed around the tower's platform. This platform easily accommodates ten people but on most busy days, no more than five or six observers would be on it. The site lies within a publicly accessible property owned by the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority. There is no charge for admittance. The tower stands in the centre of a mowed area with a gravel ring road near the outer edge. This provides lots of room to park vehicles (along the road) and set up lawn chairs, telescopes and cameras. Toilet facilities are present. During the counting season, the NPH erect a counting board to display seven day's worth of observation data for the public. The box enclosing the sign contains brochures and silhouette sheets for the public as well as bulletin boards with news and historical sighting records. Directions to site: To get to Beamer CA, take the QEW to Exit 71/72, follow Christie St./Mountain St. to the top of the escarpment, turn right on Ridge Road West, and go 1.6km to Quarry Rd. Turn right on Quarry Rd. and drive 100m to the conservation area. Parking is normally available inside the park. If parking at the entrance or on the roads, do NOT leave valuables in your car. Please note: 1) Data in this report is not official until reviewed and finalized after the end of the season. ©2019 Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch. 2) Vehicular traffic into the park is allowed, but visitors are asked to have their cars outside the gate by 3PM. If parking at the gate DO NOT LEAVE VALUABLES IN YOUR VEHICLE!!! _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - 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 Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
