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.

Sept 8... 59 raptors YTD 388

As morning approached,wind forcasts changed continuously. What was to be a day of perfect conditions,gave way to a mid-day change in winds,moving raptors inland(more north then I could see). Still,Rob,Carol,Keith and I saw some good views of several species. While a number of Sharpies and Kestrels were high the clear blue skies made it seem worse then it was. Osprey were reasonably low,2 went through together..one was a huge female. 2 Merlin passed through,one made a dive at some small unseen by us,bird. The other zipped past,Im surprised Rob got a decent shot of it as it sped by.

The Broadwinged Hawks all circled together very high up. I caught what was eventually 8 American Kestrels together..I called them out as kestrels at first,then saw a whole stack of them and said ohhh no its just Swallows..then backtracked again when I got the colour on the tail of one of them. Getting it right in the end is what matters...isnt it? The final tally of 59 raptors consisted of:

1 Turkey Vulture

5 Osprey

1 Bald Eagle(adult at 11:50am)

2 Northern Harriers

13 Sharpshinned Hawks

1 Coopers Hawk

4 Broadwinged Hawks

30 American Kestrels

2 Merlin

Tomorrow the call is for rain..depending on if/when/for how long it comes,wind conditions are excellent. Better days to come. Provided there isnt a deluge,I will be at the park.

Sept 5 Day Count 43...YTD 306

Today was another decent early September migration day despite less then optimal conditions. The sky was 100% overcast most of the day. By 1pm things had pretty much shut down. Today I shared an Osprey(pictured) with Peter and while Georgia and I chatted a Peregrine Falcon made 2 passes of the park,on its return pass it took a run at a migrating Sharp-shinned Hawk. Todays total was 42 raptors consisting of:

2 Osprey

2 Northern Harrier

30 Sharpshinned Hawk

7 American Kestrel

1 Peregrine Falcon

Above is an Osprey. There seem to be several very humid days coming and then some very promising looking days after that. Always living in hopes.

Sept 3rd:Day Count 55...YTD 264

Today was warm and abit humid,which helped? to negate the good wind conditions. Still,we saw 55 raptors. A flurry of Sharpshinned Hawks with a few Northern Harriers passed by between 10am and 11am. We are doing much as "general" birders do in very early spring,hoping..wishing..willing migration to get busy and start in ernst. It's still early in hawk migration time to get a big day,but with the prediction of favorable winds we eagerly flock to our favorite raptor watching site,anticiapting skies lousy with raptors. Tomorrow is no different,there is a chance for a good day with a north element in the wind all day and a temperature cool down. The usual suspects were in attendance today,to see some portion of the 55 raptors:

2 Osprey
5 Northern Harriers
41 Sharpshinned Hawks
4 Broadwinged Hawk
1 Redtailed Hawk
1 American Kestrel
1 Merlin
55 Day Total

Sept. 2 Sharpies Push On:Day Count 29 YTD 209

Today was abit slow,but we persevered. Rob and I saw an early Osprey only about 30ft off the bluff as it made its way down along the lakeshore. Later Bob,Fred,Carol Mike and Les all joined us in enjoying the day and a few birds. Our 29 raptors consisted of:

1 Osprey
1 Broadwing
1 Redtail
1 American Kestrel
1 Merlin
2 Coopers Hawk (neither was the local..which was also seen)
22 Sharpshinned Hawks

Better days will soon be upon us,till then we have enjoyed ourselves seeing whatever comes our way.

Sept 1..Off To A Flying Start 43 Raptors

Today was another good early migration day. Once the winds shifted,it slowed down,but not before 43 birds were added to this seasons count. Sharp-shinned Hawks were the stars of the day,with 29 flying by. At Rosetta McClain Gardens,once Sharpies start,they dont seem to care at all what the winds are,they fly anyway. Last fall between the 6th and 10th of September a large number of the nearly 1000 birds seen were Sharpies,many of which were seen on what would be considered less than perfect conditions. Additionally,Bob,Rob,Keith,Carol and I saw :

6 Osprey

1 Turkey Vulture

1 Coopers Hawk

3 American Kestrels

1 Merlin

1 Northern Harrier

1 Broadwinged Hawk

Though some of the Sharpies were abit high,everything else offered good views. Rob managed some nice shots of a Broadwing and Coopers(that Ive seen so far),while I got passable shots of Turkey Vulture and Osprey(shame the osprey is silhouetted). The next several days could be spotty for migration,but I hope for the best.

Aug 31:20 Raptors...YTD 137

Todays count was 20 raptors. While abit lower then anticipated,a decent finish to August. Ron,Colin,Carol,Lynty and myself enjoyed a beautiful day and 3 of us had amazing looks at Canada's precision flying team The Snowbirds as they practised for this seasons CNE Airshow. Generally the show does seem to disturb migration,as the loud planes whizzing around the city,keeps or sends many birds north of us. Today's total of 20 raptors brought the final August total to 137. That ranks 2nd among the 4 years Ive counted at Rosetta. The final August total consisted of :

Turkey Vulture........................8
Osprey....................................15
Bald Eagle...............................4
Northern Harrier...................11
Sharpshinned Hawk..............29
Coopers Hawk........................9
Broadwinged Hawk................6
Redtailed Hawk....................19
American Kestrel..................30
Merlin.....................................3
Peregrine Falcon.....................3
August Total.........................137

A respectable start to the season,things should pick-up around September 6th when Kestrels and Sharpshinned Hawks start to move extensively.

Aug 30Best One Day August Count Ever

Hi gang up to this point,August had been extra slow,a combination of poor weather conditions coupled with my own lack of attendance. I refuse to poke even my nose from the house on days the humidex is very high! I had counted 58 birds of prey this month b4 today. Today was the best August count in the 4 years of the count..a final tally of 59 birds of prey. The day began with very grey dark skies,which momentarily gave way to some nice blue sky with white puffy clouds followed by the bright blue sky for the remainder of the day. We had some close up birds,but many were medium high today. Colin,Eleanor(sp),Ron,Leon and Tim joined me today...thanks everyone for your contributions to a great count and your comraderie. Our count consisted of:
Osprey.............5
Bald Eagle.........3(2 full adults and one juvenile)
Northern Harrier.4
Sharpie...........14
Coopers...........4
Broadwing........4
Redtail.............7
Kestrel...........15
Merlin..............1
Peregrine.........2

I expect a good day tomorrow as well,despite a very blue sky that will make spotting a challenge. This brings the August total to 117,which is about average for August. BIGFRANK

Welcome...Read...Watch...Enjoy

Hello,Im BIGFRANK,your host and avid raptor watcher. Please read the information provided,then plan to join me in watching birds of prey flying along the shoreline of Lake Ontario from atop the western end of The Scarborough Bluffs. Possible sightings of 15 species of raptors(birds of prey),including Osprey,Redtailed Hawks,Golden Eagles,Bald Eagles and Turkey Vultures.

WHERE: Rosetta McClain Gardens in Scarborough Ontario Canada,at Kingston Rd and Glen Everest. One stop-light east of Kingston Rd and Birchmount Rd. If U have them bring scopes,binoculars,cameras or bird books. The gardens are wheelchair accessible and have bathrooms and many benches.(note: no dogs,no picnics,no bicycle riding or no ball playing are allowed in the Gardens)

WHEN: From Aug1-Nov30 almost daily I will be present counting migrating raptors.Peak migration is from mid-September to mid-October. Peak time of day is most often 10am-2pm.Optimal conditions for large movements of raptors are on days with moderate north-west winds and nice white puffy clouds,though high volumes of Sharp-shinned Hawks occurred on winds with a south element.

WHAT IS SEEN: Any given day any or all of 15 species of migrating birds of prey can be seen,migrating along the shores of Lake Ontario. Some birds will land briefly in the trees of the gardens,some circle briefly,while most fly past. Last season over 5600 birds of prey were seen,including Bald Eagles,Golden Eagles,Osprey,Turkey Vultures,Northern Harriers,Rough-legged Hawks,Red-tailed Hawks,Broadwinged Hawks,Red-shouldered Hawks,Northern Goshawks,Coopers Hawks,Sharp-shinned Hawks,Peregrine Falcons,Merlin and American Kestrels. My best count was over 550 raptors in one day.

Please check back often once fall migration season starts for daily reports.If U decide to join me,I will do my best to show U whatever comes our way and pass on information to you. Contact me at raptor.watch@hotmail.com

Aug.23 2007 A Typically Slow August Count

This August has been typically slowfor raptors,with a year to date count of 43. That said some great views of Osprey,Redtailed Hawks,2 juvenile Northern Harriers and 2 early Broadwinged Hawks have been enjoyable. The 2 young Northern Harriers,circled and seemed to hunt within the area for at least a full hour. Below is are 2 photos of the Northern Harrier(s) and one of 2 juvenile Broadwinged Hawks,I shared with Jen and Derek Lyon and Carol..One even landed in the park briefly before carrying on.

Juvenile Broadwinged Hawk below.