Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area Grimsby, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 04, 2020 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 9 10 10 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 2 3 3 Northern Harrier 0 0 0 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 1 1 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 2 5 5 Rough-legged Hawk 1 1 1 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 1 1 1 Merlin 0 0 0 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 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: 15 21 21 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 16:00:00 Total observation time: 8 hours Official Counter: Lyn Hanna-Folkes Observers: Sandy Darling Visitors: Thank you to Bruce Jones (Hamilton) and Gianpiero Tondina (Grimsby) for helping out on the tower today. A total of 52 other people visited the park including 20 dog walkers, 23 walkers, one jogger and two treasure hunters walking with metal detectors. Two were photographers. Only a few visitors climbed the tower to say hello including a father and his young son from China, and Christina & Gerald from Grimsby. Weather: Cool sun/cloud mix with moderate wind gusting up to 36 km/hr. The clouds parted to provide more sun than expected. Cloud cover varied throughout the day from 0% at the start to 90% twice during the day. Visibility remained good at all times. A mass of darker thick clouds moved in by 4 pm. Temperature at the start was 2C feeling like -1C but warmed to 7C at 1 pm cooling slightly to 6C by the end. Humidity was 78% at the start but gradually decreased by 1 pm to about 60% for the remainder of the day. Literally, 'a few' snowflakes fell twice between 3 pm and 4 pm. Raptor Observations: After making their first appearance at 11 am, migrating raptors were seen flying low 'on & off' throughout the day. These included 9 Turkey Vultures, 2 Bald Eagles (one 4th yr. & one 3rd yr.), 2 Red-tailed Hawks and one light-morph Rough-legged Hawk. One American Kestrel was also seen bringing the total number of raptors recorded for the day to 15. Local raptors seen included 3 Red-tailed Hawks, a Sharp-shinned Hawk and a couple of Turkey Vultures flying in the opposite direction of migration late in the day. Non-raptor Observations: Birds were most active in the morning hours with loud song between 2 Carolina Wrens, and small loud gangs of Blue Jays and American Crows staying around the tower much of the day. Migrating birds included 41 Red-winged Blackbirds, 14 Common Grackles, one flock of 14 Tundra Swans passed along the escarpment edge, and 26 American Robins and a lone Snow Bunting flew over. 160 Canada Geese flew over in 8 V's in various directions, some going North. Other birds seen around the tower included Northern Flicker, Black-capped Chickadee, European Starling, American Goldfinch, Downy & Hairy Woodpeckers, Northern Cardinals, Mourning Doves, a White-breasted Nuthatch and 2 House Finches. Several Ring-billed and Herring Gulls flew over during the day as well. Predictions: Predictions are for slightly cooler temperatures tomorrow but also more sun and much calmer SW winds which might bring in some interesting raptors. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Len Hanna-Folkes ([email protected]) Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - 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. �2020 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. 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