Holiday Beach Hawk Watch Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 03, 2023 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Turkey Vulture 305 1644 68832 Osprey 0 0 46 Bald Eagle 2 14 273 Northern Harrier 1 7 754 Sharp-shinned Hawk 3 79 8865 Cooper's Hawk 2 9 319 American Goshawk 0 1 5 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 35 409 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 56725 Red-tailed Hawk 5 185 1764 Rough-legged Hawk 0 4 8 Golden Eagle 0 2 14 American Kestrel 0 3 2611 Merlin 0 1 128 Peregrine Falcon 0 1 89 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 318 1985 140842 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 14:30:00 Total observation time: 6.5 hours Official Counter: Hugh Kent Observers: Liz Kent, Peter Veighey Visitors: Thanks to Peter for turning up to help count and observe, not an onerous task today, but the weather although blustery was pleasant. It was good to meet Mary-Sue and Bob with their dog, Buddy. They were interested in Raptor identification. Weather: The wind was strong to very strong from the South south west. The day started with scattered clouds but became overcast in the early afternoon. The temperature started at about 8c and rose to 12c mid afternoon. It was a clear day and the visibility was good. Raptor Observations: We hit a milestone today with the total of Turkey Vultures (305) seen so far this year reaching 68,832, 258 higher than the highest yearly total of 68,574 reached in 2021. The inexorable rise of the Turkey Vulture continues.... Apart from that it was a quiet day with Red-tailed Hawk (5) the next highest, three Sharp-shinned Hawks, two each of Bald Eagles and Cooper's Hawk and a single Northern Harrier. All birds were low due to the strong wind. Non-raptor Observations: Ducks continue to dominate the list with ten species seen and numbers maintained. It was fun counting the big rafts of Ring-necked Duck (1860) for once in the open water of the marsh. Bonaparte's Gull (48) continue to float across the marsh with their graceful tern-like flight. Five sparrow species were around the tower, including Fox Sparrow, though in low numbers. Yellow -rumped Warblers (2) have turned up again. Rusty Blackbirds (270) are now the dominant Blackbird species with Red-winged Blackbirds (12) in low numbers. The list is at https://ebird.org/checklist/S153674638 Predictions: The forecast indicates a light wind from the south west with a slight chance of rain early morning. Temperatures similar to today, overcast possibly clearing a bit late afternoon. Will the lighter winds encourage more raptors to appear? We hope so. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Hugh Kent (Hughnkent@gmail.com) Holiday Beach Hawk Watch information may be found at: http://hbmo.ca/ More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=100