Today went a little better than expected. This morning while chatting away we saw a Merlin flash across the middle of the park and heading west. Awhile later we had our first Sharp-shinned Hawk fly past just out over the edge of the bluffs. Shortly after that we saw our now local Cooper's Hawk fly up and by very close. An hour or so later we watched another 'Sharpie' fly along the same path as the first one. We now have 4 birds counted for the season!
We added 3 new birds to our ever-growing 'Park' list, the Merlin, the Sharp-shinned Hawk and a Yellow Warbler which I forgot to add the other day. That brings us up to a total of 45 different species.
There seemed to be fewer Bank Swallows flying over the park this morning so many of them might have left to go south already.
On hand for today's excitement were Phil, Gord, Lorne, Berle and Betty. Terry was at the park between 1:30 - 2:00 PM but didn't have any luck unfortunately.
Walter
August 5th - Cooper's Hawk...Maybe.
Today's only hawk sighting was that of a lone Cooper's Hawk. It appeared to be doing a lot of hunting which gives me the impression that it might be a local bird. It was quite tattered looking so I'll know it again if I see it. I'll keep an eye out for it over the next few weeks.
It was a good day for 'other' bird sightings with 7 new species added to the list. Also 2 new butterflies were spotted today.
Red-breasted Nuthatch, Black-capped Chickadee, Warbling Vireo, Chipping Sparrow, Belted Kingfisher, Herring Gull, and Cooper's Hawk.
American Lady and Wild Indigo Duskywing.
This morning I had a wonderful visit with Rob & Angie and this afternoon my 'butterflying' friend Susan was in the park.
Walter
It was a good day for 'other' bird sightings with 7 new species added to the list. Also 2 new butterflies were spotted today.
Red-breasted Nuthatch, Black-capped Chickadee, Warbling Vireo, Chipping Sparrow, Belted Kingfisher, Herring Gull, and Cooper's Hawk.
American Lady and Wild Indigo Duskywing.
This morning I had a wonderful visit with Rob & Angie and this afternoon my 'butterflying' friend Susan was in the park.
Walter
August 4th - Hurray, One Osprey!
I thought, or hoped, there might have been a couple more raptors but, oh well we'll take anything we can get at this early stage of the game. This might have even been Ann's Osprey from yesterday as it flew over the park at 9:40 AM. I was at the park from 8:00 AM till 2:00 PM.
New birdies for the list were a Baltimore Oriole and the Osprey. That brings us to 35 different species. Four Great Blue Herons were seen flying together out over the lake. And also of note, the dragonflies were in great numbers by mid-day today.
Visitors included Lorne, Betty, and Cori.
The next several days aren't going to be too spectacular wind-wise.
Walter
New birdies for the list were a Baltimore Oriole and the Osprey. That brings us to 35 different species. Four Great Blue Herons were seen flying together out over the lake. And also of note, the dragonflies were in great numbers by mid-day today.
Visitors included Lorne, Betty, and Cori.
The next several days aren't going to be too spectacular wind-wise.
Walter
August 3rd - More of the Same...but
Nuttin' again today but that's okay cuz a few are gettin' closer. Today Ann reported seeing 1 Osprey and 7 Turkey Vultures over her neighbourhood roughly 6 kms away to the east. If any of those birds got passed us at the park it wasn't for the lack of trying. Betty and I scanned the sky for at least 20 minutes after we got the call. The best we could do was a local Turkey Vulture and a local Red-tailed Hawk.
New additions today to the BIRDS, BUTTERFLIES and MAMMALS lists were a juvenile Brown-headed Cowbird, a Downy Woodpecker, and the local Turkey Vulture for birds. Butterflies species included Question Mark, Red Admiral and Viceroy. No new mammals to report.
Lots of good folks stopped by today including Lorne, Pat & Nancy, Pat's brother Mike, Betty, and Gunnar and his wife Vivian.
With tonight's single digit temperatures in the north and tomorrow's predicted NW 20-25 wind in the GTA, that might just do the trick and bring us some early migrants. Fingers crossed!
Walter
New additions today to the BIRDS, BUTTERFLIES and MAMMALS lists were a juvenile Brown-headed Cowbird, a Downy Woodpecker, and the local Turkey Vulture for birds. Butterflies species included Question Mark, Red Admiral and Viceroy. No new mammals to report.
Lots of good folks stopped by today including Lorne, Pat & Nancy, Pat's brother Mike, Betty, and Gunnar and his wife Vivian.
With tonight's single digit temperatures in the north and tomorrow's predicted NW 20-25 wind in the GTA, that might just do the trick and bring us some early migrants. Fingers crossed!
Walter
August 2nd - A Repeat
Day two is now in the books and unfortunately again we ended up with zero raptors - not really a big surprise. Today was another gorgeous day to be out. My time was split between looking for birds and chatting with Tom, Berle, Phil and his daughter Marrisa, Betty, Lee and several park walkers who all stopped by to say hi.
Much of what was observed yesterday was seen again today but I did manage to get a few new additions:
TIME:
8:30AM - 12:30PM
BIRDS:
Great Egret
Barn Swallow
BUTTERFLIES:
Eastern Comma
Mourning Cloak
MAMMALS:
American Red Squirrel
Again today I had 2 Hummingbird sightings but like yesterday they appeared to be just flying through, not sure if they're stopping anywhere in the park. This year's gardens unfortunately lack the Black and Blue Salvia flowers that kept so many Hummers and so many people happy last season. There are likely other flowers that they'll stop and feed from but they may not stay so long at them.
Walter
Much of what was observed yesterday was seen again today but I did manage to get a few new additions:
TIME:
8:30AM - 12:30PM
BIRDS:
Great Egret
Barn Swallow
BUTTERFLIES:
Eastern Comma
Mourning Cloak
MAMMALS:
American Red Squirrel
Again today I had 2 Hummingbird sightings but like yesterday they appeared to be just flying through, not sure if they're stopping anywhere in the park. This year's gardens unfortunately lack the Black and Blue Salvia flowers that kept so many Hummers and so many people happy last season. There are likely other flowers that they'll stop and feed from but they may not stay so long at them.
Walter
August 1st - A Beautiful Opening Day!
Well, today went pretty much as expected...no countable raptors! But what a beautiful day to be out enjoying the park, the sun and a nice cool breeze off the lake. I think this might have actually been the best opening day to the Hawk Watch that I've ever experienced. Even with the big puffy white clouds overhead there was still lots of sunshine and like always the little Maple tree was there as my protection from getting too burnt.
The only raptor that was seen was a 'local' Red-tailed Hawk. It soared over the park from west to east and was searching for it's lunch.
The following is a report of what was seen today:
TIME:
10:00AM - 2:00PM
BIRDS:
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Red-tailed Hawk (local bird)
Ring-billed Gull
Caspian Tern
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Northern Flicker
Eastern Kingbird
Blue Jay
American Crow
Purple Martin
Bank Swallow
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
BUTTERFLIES:
Silver-spotted Skipper
Northern Broken-Dash
Black Swallowtail
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Cabbage White
Monarch
MAMMALS:
Eastern Gray Squirrel
Eastern Cottontail
Over the course of the next four months I'll be keeping a running list on my computer of what is seen at the park for the above BIRDS, BUTTERFLIES and MAMMALS and I'll report anything of interest in the daily postings. Of course, anything else that we can identify will be listed as well.
Walter
The only raptor that was seen was a 'local' Red-tailed Hawk. It soared over the park from west to east and was searching for it's lunch.
The following is a report of what was seen today:
TIME:
10:00AM - 2:00PM
BIRDS:
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Red-tailed Hawk (local bird)
Ring-billed Gull
Caspian Tern
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Northern Flicker
Eastern Kingbird
Blue Jay
American Crow
Purple Martin
Bank Swallow
White-breasted Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
House Wren
American Robin
Gray Catbird
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
BUTTERFLIES:
Silver-spotted Skipper
Northern Broken-Dash
Black Swallowtail
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Cabbage White
Monarch
MAMMALS:
Eastern Gray Squirrel
Eastern Cottontail
Over the course of the next four months I'll be keeping a running list on my computer of what is seen at the park for the above BIRDS, BUTTERFLIES and MAMMALS and I'll report anything of interest in the daily postings. Of course, anything else that we can identify will be listed as well.
Walter
A Quick Note...
Hi everyone, It looks as though the start of this year's Raptor Watch is going to be a soggy one. I'll be down at Rosetta when the rain stops and I'll be patiently watching for bird #1.
As most of you know it's going to be painfully slow for the first few weeks. The only hope I have right now for anything flying earlier than normal is due to the fact that we're experiencing much cooler temperatures lately. We'll see what happens.
As in the past, we should see somewhere in the neighbourhood of 15-20 raptors total over the first 15 days. After that we'll see a slow but gradual increase in volume, usually jumping up towards the final days of the month. Over that time we'll see a number of Osprey, Bald Eagles, Sharp-shinned Hawks and American Kestrels starting on their journey south. Several of the other raptor species will be seen as well but in much lower numbers.
For the most part I suggest waiting till later in the month when things start to pickup before coming to the park but, if you're in the neighbourhood, don't hesitate to stop in and say hello. The park is full of beautiful flower gardens and there are plenty of benches to sit on and enjoy the day.
Officially the hawk watch season doesn't start till August 15th but we're not official so we start now!
Walter
As most of you know it's going to be painfully slow for the first few weeks. The only hope I have right now for anything flying earlier than normal is due to the fact that we're experiencing much cooler temperatures lately. We'll see what happens.
As in the past, we should see somewhere in the neighbourhood of 15-20 raptors total over the first 15 days. After that we'll see a slow but gradual increase in volume, usually jumping up towards the final days of the month. Over that time we'll see a number of Osprey, Bald Eagles, Sharp-shinned Hawks and American Kestrels starting on their journey south. Several of the other raptor species will be seen as well but in much lower numbers.
For the most part I suggest waiting till later in the month when things start to pickup before coming to the park but, if you're in the neighbourhood, don't hesitate to stop in and say hello. The park is full of beautiful flower gardens and there are plenty of benches to sit on and enjoy the day.
Officially the hawk watch season doesn't start till August 15th but we're not official so we start now!
Walter
Year 10 begins...
Hello and welcome to the 2013 edition of the Rosetta McClain
Gardens Raptor Watch. This year we are
celebrating our 10th anniversary of hawk (raptor) watching in the
park.
If you are new and don't know me, my name is Walter. I’ve been an avid hawk watcher since 2008,
the year that I first met BIGFRANK. In
that first year Frank taught me almost everything he knew about hawks and what
to look for to help me identify them. I
was easily hooked! I was Frank’s daily
helper at the Watch 4 out of the last 5 years. In 2011, I had the opportunity to conduct the
Watch in Frank’s absence. I was not
alone though that year, I had an amazing group of watcher’s that pulled
together to give me a hand. What a time
we had! Frank was back at it in 2012 to
watch and count a record breaking 7267 ‘birds of prey’ that flew over the
park.
This year I've committed myself, with the help of many others,
to doing the Watch once again. We look
forward to seeing all those who will be returning and also to welcoming many
new folks who will be attending for the first time. As many of you know, our Watch at Rosetta is
not an 'official' Watch so just getting out and enjoying the migration of these
spectacular birds has always been the goal. Frank’s passion right from the beginning was
to share with others what he was seeing.
The number counting has almost become secondary.
Some information about our Raptor Watch...
WHERE: Rosetta McClain Gardens, a small park situated on top
of the Scarborough Bluffs overlooking Lake Ontario. It is located in Toronto
(Scarborough), Ontario, at the intersection of Kingston Road and Glen
Everest Road. It's one stoplight east of
the main intersection of Kingston Road and Birchmount Road. The gardens are fully wheelchair accessible
and have bathrooms and lots of benches. NOTE - the following ARE NOT ALLOWED in
the Gardens: dogs, picnics, bicycle riding or ball playing.
WHEN: From August 15th - November 30th. Almost daily we will
be present watching and counting migrating raptors. Peak migration is from mid-September to
mid-October. Peak time of day is most often 10am-2pm. Optimal conditions for a large movement of
birds are on days with moderate to heavy northwest winds and nice white puffy
clouds, though anything can happen.
WHAT IS SEEN: Any or all of 15 species of birds of prey can
be seen migrating along the north shore of Lake Ontario. Some birds, if we're
lucky, will land briefly in the trees in the Gardens, some will circle briefly
above us, while most others will just fly past us as they continue their long
journey southward. In past years, between 4000 and 7000 raptors have been seen. On our best day last year, and best day ever,
we counted over 2000 birds! Of these,
1750 were Turkey Vultures. Incredible!
So if you have time and are able to get out and join us at
the Watch, you may see any of the following 15
species of raptors (hawks, birds of prey): Turkey Vultures, Osprey, Bald
Eagles, Northern Harriers, Sharp-shinned Hawks, Cooper's Hawks, Northern
Goshawks, Red-shouldered Hawks, Broad-winged Hawks, Red-tailed Hawks,
Rough-legged Hawks, Golden Eagles, American Kestrels, Merlins, and Peregrine
Falcons.
If you have them, bring any of the following items with you:
a pair of binoculars, a scope, a camera, and also a birding book, a snack to
eat, and a small folding chair if you like.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Walter
Another excellent tribute to Big Frank
Our friend and fellow hawk watcher Phil Lameira of the Beach Metro Community News has written an excellent tribute to Big Frank. He covers Frank's young life, how Frank got hooked on Raptors, Phil's own first encounter with the Rosetta gang and his first meeting with Frank. A truly wonderful account.
The Beach Metro Community News 'Frank Bert Butson, 1965-2013' by Phil Lameira
The Beach Metro Community News 'Frank Bert Butson, 1965-2013' by Phil Lameira
Meet Big Frank
First posted to the Toronto and Southern Ontario Birding board by Rob'in'To and used here by permission.
On Wednesday May 29, 2013, the Canadian Peregrine Foundation and the Ministry of Natural Resources banded 4 baby Falcons at the Etobicoke Sunlife building nest site. One male, actually the only male in the bunch, was named "Big Frank" in honor of their fallen guardian. This site was monitored during the fledge watch mostly by Big Frank.
On Wednesday May 29, 2013, the Canadian Peregrine Foundation and the Ministry of Natural Resources banded 4 baby Falcons at the Etobicoke Sunlife building nest site. One male, actually the only male in the bunch, was named "Big Frank" in honor of their fallen guardian. This site was monitored during the fledge watch mostly by Big Frank.
The Birch Cliff News
Hedy Korbee of The Birch Cliff News asked Ann and I if we could help her write a story about Frank. I think she has done an amazing job with what we gave her. It's just a beautiful tribute.
The Birch Cliff News 'Raptor Watch Founder Dies' by Hedy Korbee
The Birch Cliff News 'Raptor Watch Founder Dies' by Hedy Korbee
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