Sept26 Day Count 58 YTD 2434

Today,despite rainy periods that never amounted to much,confused winds which sometimes blew north,sometimes west and sometimes northwest brought,given the conditions a respectable 58 raptors. The local Coopers Hawk was busy,she attacked a Northern Harrier and also a Sharpshinned Hawk. 4 of todays birds were hold overs from Gunner which he saw when I was not present. He saw a Bald Eagle,2 Peregrines and a Sharpie,they are added into todays total.
3-Osprey
1-Bald Eagle
17-Northern Harriers
31-Sharpshinned Hawks
3-American Kestrels
3-Peregrine Falcons
Unfortunately all of todays photos were silhouettes. Friday is looking good for a big migration day,provided it doesnt rain too much.

Some Great Shots From Rob

The last few days have been very hot and humid,with south winds,all very incondusive to raptor migration,so I have not been present at the watch. Today(Sept.26th) I will be there,to see what moves on todays west wind after abit of rain. I missed little as I saw Cranberry Marsh Raptor Watch saw only 14 birds over the last 2 days.Friday is looking like the next best possibility for a huge day.

Sept 23 A Handfull of Falcons 36 Raptors..YTD 2376

Today,winds were very light,which meant not alot being blown right to the lakeshore. A local Redtailed Hawk flew into a tree in the park with an unknown meal. At 10am,a 2nd year Bald Eagle flew by,circling a few times before continuing its journey. The thrill of the day came when I spotted first one Peregrine Falcon..as we watched that one,a 2nd appeared above it. Rob looked towards the lake as the rest of us were looking north,and 3 more Peregrines were over the lake. All 5 flew and played together in the area for at least 5 minutes together. All were juvenile birds,which is a very interesting sighting. A good group of observers,unfortunately picked a slow day. Thanks to Leslie,Mike,Linda,Carol,Colin,Rob,Lorne and Leon for their help and passing the slow day with many interesting conversations. Todays total of 36 raptors were:
1-Bald Eagle
6-Northern Harriers
17-Sharpshinned Hawks
1-Coopers Hawk
1-Redtailed Hawk
5-American Kestrels
5-Peregrine Falcons

With high humidity and less then optimal winds over the next few days I suspect migration will slow to a trickle. Wednesdays west wind has a chance,with Fridays current forecast of a strong NW wind holding the most potenial this week. Lets hope that prediction holds true and a mega-day occurs. An outbreak of North-west Wind Virus may take place Friday if the 25kmh NW wind happens(dont worry thats just people calling in sick so they can go raptor watching).

Sept 22 Sharpies And Kestrels And Harriers Oh My

Today with the help of Rob,Lorne,Colin,Lynty,Eleanor and Christi,a total of 256 raptors were counted. A local Coopers Hawk made several appearances and I managed a few decent shots of it. Rob got some great shots today(to be added later) as well. Our most amusing sighting of the day was seeing a Ruby-throated Hummingbird attack the backside of a Sharpshinned Hawk. Later a Sharpshinned Hawk made a dive very close to us into a tree after a Chickadee. Included in my photos is one with 2 Sharpshinned Hawks,not because it is of National Geographic quality,but so Id remember to mention that right now we almost always see Sharpshinned Hawks migrating in 2's. These "pairs" are currently all juveniles and are siblings from the same nests. Later adult pairs will migrate together. Todays count was:

1-Turkey Vulture

2-Osprey

21-Northern Harriers

165 Sharpshinned Hawks

5 Coopers Hawks

1-Broadwinged Hawk

7-Redtailed Hawks

54-American Kestrels

While the mix is different,this falls total of 2340 raptors is within 3 of last years.

Sept 20 53 raptors..YTD 2084 NW WIND ALERT

Morning winds were northwest,but wind shifted around noon and raptors dried up. The 19th I took a break,and wasnt present at all,and from reports elsewhere I didnt miss much. Thursday I saw 53 raptors,consisting of:
1-Turkey Vulture
4-Northern Harriers
23-Sharpshinned Hawks
1-Coopers Hawk(plus the local)
1-Redtailed Hawk
22-American Kestrels
1-Merlin
The Merlin that had appeared to be hanging around seems to have left the area.

Northwest Wind Alert....Saturday,after so many poor wind days,a Northwest wind of 30kmh is currently predicted for Saturday. This will mean a very good migration of raptors. I hesitate to predict numbers,but if all else stays the same,I suspect 300-500 raptors or more will be seen at Rosetta McClain Gardens,of at least 11 species. While fairly warm temperatures are predicted,I suggest bringing some warm clothes just incase. The flight will start very early,if the winds predicted hold,by 9am on a similar day last Saturday,I had counted over 60raptors by10am and over 150raptors by 11am. If U are up early come on down. No bathrooms till 9am Saturdays!

SouthWind=Slow 28 Raptors YTD 2031

Today was slow again,with winds south and south east. Sharpshins made most of todays birds,with excitement coming when a migrating Merlin took a run at a Blue Jay. Thousands of Blue Jays were migrating all morning,through 1pm when I left for the day. Staff alerted me to a perched hawk up near the rose garden. A quick gator ride and I snapped off several photos,of a co-operative Coopers Hawk.

The next few days could be terribly slow with poor wind conditions and high humidity. That said I will likely be at the park from 8am-1pm and see what happens. The weekend now looks like the next best hope of some good count days. Sunday NE winds are predicted,which will move some birds.

Sept 16 Wind Shift..Slower Day 76 Raptors YTD-1977

Todays early west wind brought a small upflight,followed by a shift in winds,to the south which meant a real slow down in birds. That said the day was exactly as I had believed it would be,someplace between 50 to 80 raptors. Karen and Matt,Bruce,Fred,Les,Mike,Lorne,Keith,Rob and his "Muffin" all shared some of the birds today. At 1:20pm and adult Bald Eagle went past,abit high but,it was right overhead. One of the local family of Crows attacked a passing Sharpshinned Hawk on two different occassions,sorta waking us from our lethargy. Our final total was 76 birds,consisting of

1-Osprey

1-Bald Eagle

7-Northern Harrier

53 Sharpshinned Hawk

3-Coopers Hawk

4-Broadwinged Hawk

2-Redtailed Hawk

5-American Kestrel

The coming week's warm up is likely to mean several slow days,with some Sharpshinned Hawks moving and not alot else. While currently Thursday has a good north wind predicted,it also has a rather warm temperature and some humidity predicted which may work against the good wind. Right now it is the most promising day though. Saturday and Sunday at this stage look reasonable. Sunday's predicted Northeast wind is promising,but you should be aware that birds tend to be higher on NE winds as opposed to N or NW. That said its a crap shoot,and if you want to enjoy a day out,then come join in!

Record Day!! 755 Raptors..YTD-1901

First,sorry for the late post...computer difficulties. Now then,near perfect weather conditions,along with the able assistance of so many who joined in the watch today,resulted in the best one day count ever at Rosetta McClain Gardens Raptor Watch. Over the course of a very busy day,many thanks to Rob,Bob,Andrew,Carol,Susan,Bruce and Lorne(sorry to those I was so busy I didnt get to pay special attention too and get names..thanks to others who did though),for helping with spotting,identification and informing passersby of what we were doing. Some photos Rob took will be added later today(Sunday). Together we all really enjoyed many close views of multitutes of Sharpshinned Hawks,which sometimes passed as rapid fire as Blue Jays. I might also mention that early in the morning Bruce Rob and I saw somewhere between 5000-10000 Blue Jays migrating in wave after wave. 2 very close juvenile Peregrine Falcons interacting gave Rob and Bruce a real thrill(Id vacated for coffee...thanks Georgia for the hot coffeeRob Bruce and I enjoyed). Id promised Rob a low Bald Eagle and we vigilantly kept our eyes low along the lakeshore. Around 940am,Rob hollered that something big was flying low along the bluffs.It was so low and close,we lost sight of it in tight to the bluffs. It emerged giving us an amazing view of a juvenile(nest year) Bald Eagle. Rob,Bruce and myself shall not forget that one for awhile. Later another juvenile Bald Eagle passed by very close again as more of us were gathered to watch,providing more thrills. Some very low Broadwinged Hawks provided excellent views and Sharpshinned Hawks were appearing everywhere.By the end of the day,last seasons record one day count of 559 was shattered,with 755 raptors being recorded. This great total consisted of

6-Turkey Vultures

5-Osprey

5-Bald Eagles

54-Northern Harriers

569-Sharpshinned Hawks

4-Coopers Hawks

61-Broadwinged Hawks

9-Redtailed Hawks

39-American Kestrels

1-Merlin

2-Peregrines

Todays fantastic total puts my Year To Date count 724 raptors ahead of last season at the same date. Hopefully this trend continues. Thanks again to everyone for their contributions today.(please ignore the conflict in my running year to date counts if U read previous postings,with Sept 15 totals,a review and correction of all totals was done and as at today,all totals are correct and current that are stated in this post.

Sept 13 South Winds..Slow Day 54...YTD 1128

Today was exactly what I expected. Winds shifted to the south and the skies were painfully blue. Spotting in a purely blue sky,it is tough to see the raptors and rough on the eyes. The morning was abit busier then the afternoon,as after a big day like yesterday,a decent "upflight"(birds that stopped overnite nearby)can be expected. Again Sharpshinned Hawks were the most commonly seen raptor followed closely by American Kestrels. A few Osprey were seen very well in the morning also. A Merlin attacked a Sharp-shinned Hawk again today. Terry,Jaques,myself and later Tim saw :

1 Turkey Vulture
3 Osprey(ytd over 50)
1 Northern Harrier
26 Sharpshinned Hawk
20 American Kestrel
3 Merlin

Friday should be a better day for counting,with Saturdays forecast still looking great for a big movement of raptors again. Get to your favorite raptor watching site on Saturday if the predicted northwest winds hold true.

Sept 12 Raptorous Day 445...YTD 1075

Today,almost perfect conditions existed most of the day for a large movement of raptors. All southern Ontario raptor watches reported fantastic results. While Rosetta doesnt get the huge counts of other sites,we are blessed with some fantastic views that are as good as any U will get anywhere. The days count was predominantly Sharp-shinned Hawks. 63 Broadwinged Hawks(at least 50 were very close or reasonably close views) offered some terrific views,allowing me to point out various field marks to a few attending birders who are newish. The resident Coopers Hawk is very territorial and took runs at several Sharp-shinned Hawks. Low Sharpies blasted through the park through the trees,while others were along the lakeshore. By days end myself,carol,2 Eleanors,Ron,Susan and Leon enjoyed 445 raptors consisting of:

8 Osprey

1 Turkey Vulture

6 Northern Harrier

345 Sharp-shinned Hawk

3 Coopers Hawk

63 Broadwinged Hawk

7 Redtailed Hawk

11 American Kestrel

1 Merlin

Saturday still looks great for another big day.

Sept 11 TFN Visit Day Count 156..YTD 630

Today about a dozen members of the Toronto Field Naturalists joined Carol and I for some raptor watching. The weather was less than optimal at the beginning of the day,which unfortunatly meant things started very slow. With perseverence,an Osprey flew past very close offering a fantastic view. We did share a number of sightings of Sharp-shinned Hawks and Markus saw an American Crow attack a Broadwinged Hawk. A Merlin attacked a Sharpshinned Hawk too. As the last remaining TFN member left at 2pm,we had seen only 55 raptors. From 2pm-2:08pm (not a typo)Carol and I saw 31 Sharpshins,18 of which were in a messy kettle with one Coopers Hawk. Soon a few straggling TFN members arrived surprised to find us still on site and counting up a storm. Sharp-shinned Hawks were flying fast and furious,a few Broadwinged hawks(one attacked by the local Coopers Hawk),a few more Osprey,a few Kestrels and another Merlin attacking another Sharpie. In both cases the explosive speed of the Merlin was seen and marvelled at! At 4:30pm when things were finally packed in,156 raptors were seen.

1 Turkey Vulture

6 Osprey

1 Northern Harrier

126 Sharp-shinned Hawk

2 Coopers Hawk

4 Broadwinged Hawk

7 Redtailed hawk

5 American Kestrel

4 Merlin

Tomorrow and Saturday look very good if weather forecasts hold.

Sept 10 86 Raptors Today..YTD 474

Today,Carol and I strained alot to find many of the Sharpies. Keith dropped in for a short visit,but did see a few Sharpies. We had one group of 8 and later a group of 7 Sharp-shinned Hawks. The 86 raptors broke down this way
2 Osprey
2 Northern Harriers
78 Sharpshinned Hawks
1 Coopers Hawk
3 Redtailed Hawks

This was the best day of the season so far,with many more to come. Right now Saturday could be really good,but of course that forecast is subject to change.