Wind (current)

November 18th - A Golden Day!

Big highlight of the day was the appearance of an adult Golden Eagle in the blue sky right in front of us. I don't recall ever seeing an adult before and if I did, it was never as good as this! Just gorgeous!!!

Today:
Northern Harrier - 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 2
Cooper's Hawk - 2
Red-tailed Hawk - 1
Golden Eagle - 1 (adult 12:40)
Total - 7

To Date:
Turkey Vulture - 1865
Osprey - 125
Bald Eagle - 67
Northern Harrier - 210
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1767
Cooper's Hawk - 93
Northern Goshawk - 19
Red-shouldered Hawk - 29
Broad-winged Hawk - 757
Red-tailed Hawk - 831
Rough-legged Hawk - 8
Golden Eagle - 5
American Kestrel - 624
Merlin - 130
Peregrine Falcon - 46
Total - 6576

Red-tailed Hawk

Cooper's Hawk


Golden Eagle






Watchers today included: Mike 3, Ann, Berle, Pat, Nancy, Allison, Theresa, Gunnar, Cori, Phil, and Carol.

Walter

November 17th - Another New Record!!!

Wind was good, sky was good, cloud cover was good, bird migration was not so good! Having said that we did however manage to break another old count record. 828 Red-tailed Hawks has been the record since 2006, with the 5 Red-tails counted today our new 'Year' record sits at 830!

Today:
Turkey Vulture - 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 2
Cooper's Hawk - 1
Red-tailed Hawk - 5
Total - 9

To Date:
Turkey Vulture - 1865
Osprey - 125
Bald Eagle - 67
Northern Harrier - 209
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1765
Cooper's Hawk - 91
Northern Goshawk - 19
Red-shouldered Hawk - 29
Broad-winged Hawk - 757
Red-tailed Hawk - 830
Rough-legged Hawk - 8
Golden Eagle - 4
American Kestrel - 624
Merlin - 130
Peregrine Falcon - 46
Total - 6569

Today's non-raptor highlight was a small flock of White-winged Crossbills that stopped off for a snack before continuing their journey westward.

Friends on hand today included: Ann, Theresa, Berle, Cori, Terry 2, and Ron.

Walter

Special Post - My Raptor Mentor

I had to post this article,which appeared on Nov 12th in The London Free Press about Hawk Cliff and a man near and dear to me,my "raptor mentor" Colin Horstead.
While other watchers at High Park helped me along,during my initial forray into raptor watching,Colin "took me under his wing" as it were. He saw how keen I was and nutured it. He would take me aside and tell me what to look for and why a bird was what it was. The only reward he asked for was that I pass it on. He often jokes,"Ive taught you everything you know(dramatic pause)but not everything I know.",in his good natured manor. He took me out winters and we did road trips,so my crash course in raptor identification could continue even in off season. He took me to Beamer Memorial Park Hawk Watch(Niagara Pennisula Raptor Watch) several times each spring early on so Id keep learning. He took me to Hawk Cliff,by which time I was fairly skilled at identification and spotting. I owe Colin a great deal. Not only did he help me to be very proficient at raptor ID,but he became and remains a very valued and even cherish friend. Because of him I not only started the watch at Rosetta,but have met so many wonderful friends. Ive tried to honour the committment to Colin to "pay it forward",since then by teaching all I am able to the many new raptor watchers at Rosetta. Id like to think what he taught me is being passed on in a way he'd be proud of or at least satisfied with.

From The London Free Press
These hawks are no ‘dicky birds’
THE WORLD OUTDOORS

By PAUL NICHOLSON, Special to QMI Agency

Dave Brown's modest reference to the skilled and loyal corps of volunteer hawkwatchers at Hawk Cliff on Lake Erie east of Port Stanley is "the usual suspects."They scour the sky rain or shine, seven days a week, logging every raptor sighting from late August to November. Brown, who is based in Mitchell, co-ordinates schedules and publishes the detailed daily findings on the organization's website (search "Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch.") The Hawk Cliff Hawkwatch is one of about six Ontario hawkwatch sites west of Toronto and is one of about 200 sites in North America that are linked to the Hawk Migration Association of North America. The common goals are to conserve, study and appreciate raptors such as hawks and eagles.
The information gathering is a form of "citizen science" and takes advantage of observers such as Tom Bolohan, Ches Caister and Ronnie Goodhand to create a continentwide understanding of the status of raptor populations.An example of a population shift would be the recovery of bald eagles and peregrine falcons in Ontario after DDT was banned in the 1970s. As an umbrella organization, the Hawk Migration Association establishes standard methodologies for counts and is a focal point for research. Scientists also liaise directly with the Hawk Cliff crew, which has local data going back to 1974.
Jim Dunn was relied on to lead the daily count from late August, when this fall's migration started. From early September to early November, Colin Horstead was the lead counter. For the past five years, Horstead has been a lead counter with the Hawkwatch. He is a Torontonian, but he checks into the Kettle Creek Inn in Port Stanley for two months each fall.Asked about the roots of his interest in hawks, Horstead recently explained "Way, way back I was fishing on the Pickerel River. This would have been in the mid-1950s. There were ospreys around, but I didn't know what they were so I got my first bird book and found out." He has never looked back. "I got into the migration after I retired in 1992."
Perhaps because of those first osprey sightings, he does still focus on birds of prey. "I like the raptors. I just like to specialize. It's the type of person I am. I call everything else a 'dicky bird,' but I'm just joking." He confesses an admiration for those birders who are good at non-raptors. Mary Carnahan is one of the hawkwatchers who is relied on to report sightings of non-raptor species.
The balance of the migration that wraps up November 30 will be charted by Brown and the London-area watchers.Regarding this year's fall migration, Brown remarked "It's been an excellent season for birds, but a rotten season for weather." Said Horstead, "This year's been tough because of threatening rain," but tough or not, Horstead will return: "I'll be back next year. It's a passion." This sentiment reflects the remarkable commitment of all "the usual suspects."
Hawk Cliff sightings The golden eagles were again particularly good last Saturday. Some were soaring very high and others, including juveniles and adults, were lower and offered excellent views. More than 600 red-tailed hawks were also spotted, along with counts of red-shouldered and rough-legged hawks, turkey vultures, and other raptors. Great V's of honking tundra swans flew over periodically. They looked spectacular in the sun against the deep blue sky. Other sightings in the woods and thickets included yellow-rumped warblers, fox sparrows, pileated and red-bellied woodpeckers, a Northern shrike, cedar waxwings, Eastern bluebirds, rusty blackbirds and a purple finch.

November 16th - 4 More!

A very similar day to yesterday weather-wise and bird-wise. The wind was from the west once it kicked-up about mid-day.

Today:
Northern Harrier - 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1
Red-tailed Hawk - 2
Total - 4

To Date:
Turkey Vulture - 1864
Osprey - 125
Bald Eagle - 67
Northern Harrier - 209
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1763
Cooper's Hawk - 90
Northern Goshawk - 19
Red-shouldered Hawk - 29
Broad-winged Hawk - 757
Red-tailed Hawk - 825
Rough-legged Hawk - 8
Golden Eagle - 4
American Kestrel - 624
Merlin - 130
Peregrine Falcon - 46
Total - 6560

24 species of birds counted in and around the park today including: Hairy Woodpecker, Red-necked Grebe, Common Goldeneye, and White-winged Scoter.

Hawk watchers today consisted of: Tony, Berle, Cori, Ron, Phil, Peter, Terry 2, and Ann.

Walter

November 15th - 4 Afternoon Birds

With overcast skies in the morning I didn't arrive to the park 'til just after 12:00PM and as I approached our Watch site the folks gathered were ID'ing their first bird of the day, an adult Northern Harrier way out over the lake. Shortly after that our next 2 birds appeared in the sky over the Gardens. It was over an hour before our fourth and final bird flew by. An incredibly nice afternoon weather-wise for mid-November.

Today:
Northern Harrier - 1
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1
Cooper's Hawk - 1
Red-tailed Hawk - 1
Total - 4

To Date:
Turkey Vulture - 1864
Osprey - 125
Bald Eagle - 67
Northern Harrier - 208
Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1762
Cooper's Hawk - 90
Northern Goshawk - 19
Red-shouldered Hawk - 29
Broad-winged Hawk - 757
Red-tailed Hawk - 823
Rough-legged Hawk - 8
Golden Eagle - 4
American Kestrel - 624
Merlin - 130
Peregrine Falcon - 46
Total - 6556

A large gathering of Long-tailed Ducks spent the day out on the lake off of RMG.

At the park today were: Theresa, Pat, Nancy, Ann, Carol, Phil, Paul, and Cori. Oops, and Terry 2 too!

Walter

Special Post: Toronto Parks Plan Survey

Les emailed me and suggested this. I did the survey and it doesnt take long. The Parks, Forestry and Recreation department of the City of Toronto is holding meetings for a new five-year parks plan. You can also go to www.toronto.ca/parks/parksplan to fill out a survey. As bird and nature lovers we should let them know what is important to us. Be sure to do a complete list of parks you've been to,I know for some of us that is pretty lengthy. Will it be listened to? The least we can do is have our say.

Frank

November 13th - Got Us Again!!!

With south wind all day we sat and waited but, sadly once again, nothing came our way. Well actually one bird did, our local Red-tail. Oh well we'll try again next November 13th.

Walter

Special Post - A Few Questions Answered

Q - How rare is a Golden Eagle sighting at Rosetta?
A - Out of the 37,603 raptors ever counted since 2004 only 60 of them have been Golden Eagles.

Q - Will there be another 'big' day this year?
A - 149 Red-tails were counted on the 16th of November in 2007, 171 Red-tails were counted on the 18th of November in 2008, and 100 Red-tails were counted on the 20th of November in 2006. With the warmer temperatures this Fall season it's quite possible that there are still many more Red-tails to come. They could even be later then the above dates.

Q - What's the latest dates that we've ever seen birds migrating at Rosetta?
A - The following is a list showing the latest date for each species.
October 26th - Osprey
October 29th - Broad-winged Hawk (A very late bird!)
November 18th - Rough-legged Hawk
November 21st - Turkey Vulture
November 22nd - Bald Eagle
November 23rd - Merlin
November 25th - Northern Goshawk
November 25th - Golden Eagle
November 25th - American Kestrel
November 27th - Peregrine Falcon
November 28th - Northern Harrier
November 30th - Sharp-shinned Hawk
November 30th - Cooper's Hawk
November 30th - Red-shouldered Hawk
November 30th - Red-tailed Hawk

Q - What's the deal with November 13th? A raptor day of rest?
A - Since BIGFRANK started to count birds of prey flying over Rosetta back in the Fall of 2004, on the 13th of November only 1 single bird has ever been counted...a lone Rough-legged Hawk. I'll be at the park early Sunday to try and at least double that number.

Walter