Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area Grimsby, Ontario, Canada OVER 50 YEARS Of ANNUAL SPRING COUNTS Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 26, 2025 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 363 2671 2671 Osprey 0 1 1 Bald Eagle 1 41 41 Northern Harrier 0 10 10 Sharp-shinned Hawk 3 106 106 Cooper's Hawk 0 39 40 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 210 210 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 7 366 366 Rough-legged Hawk 0 6 6 Golden Eagle 0 3 3 American Kestrel 0 3 3 Merlin 0 2 2 Peregrine Falcon 0 2 2 Unknown Accipitrine 0 2 2 Unknown Buteo 0 12 12 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 2 2 Total: 374 3476 3477 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 16:00:00 Total observation time: 8 hours Official Counter: Bill Lamond Observers: Barry Cherriere, Simon Carter Visitors: Barry Cherriere was present for a few hours. Gerry Whitworth regaled us with some birding and Beatles stories. Weather: Weather today was quite mixed but moderate to blustery WNW winds were constant. Mostly cloudy for the majority of the day but most hour increments had patchy blue skies. Sun on face at times was most welcome. Snow in a few hour-increments, mostly insignificant flurries but one bout stopped the TV flight and another bout had huge flake aggregations. Pretty. No snow accumulated anywhere. Raptor Observations: The weather was much better than expected and thus the hawks were better than anticipated which is always a good thing. It was a Turkey Vulture day with only four species recorded. Of 374 total birds, 363 were TVs. Non-raptor Observations: A fair number of robins were on the move but little else was moving save for one large blackbird flock that flew over while it was snowing. Two Fox Sparrows were present and at least one of them was a frequent singer. An Eastern Phoebe put in a brief appearance by the Hawkwatch info board and one Rusty Blackbird was also a welcome sight. Predictions: It will be chilly to start tomorrow (-2 Celsius) but temperature is to climb to +9 by 4 p.m. Moderate cloud cover is predicted. No Precipitation. Winds are substantial from the SW at 20-25 km/hr. Should be a better hawk-day than today with hopefully more diversity. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Bill Lamond (bill-lamond@hotmail.com) Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area information may be found at: http://www.niagarapeninsulahawkwatch.org/ More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=389 Site Description: Hawk migration monitoring at the Beamer Memorial Conservation Area in Grimsby, Ontario is conducted by the Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch (NPH). All counting is done by volunteers. Not all members are counters nor does a counter have to be a member. Typically one person is the designated counter for each day but other observers present assist with the spotting and identification. Counting is done from a steel observation tower with a wooden floor. For wind protection on cold days, particularly in March, a black plastic wind guard is installed around the tower's platform. This platform easily accommodates ten people but on most busy days, no more than five or six observers would be on it. The site lies within a publicly accessible property owned by the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority. There is no charge for admittance. Only the counter and designated spotters can drive into and park in the conservation area; there is a parking lot outside for visitors. The tower stands in the centre of a mowed area with a gravel ring road near the outer edge. This provides lots of room to set up lawn chairs, telescopes and cameras. Toilet facilities are present. During the counting season, the NPH erect a counting board to display seven day's worth of observation data for the public. The box enclosing the sign contains brochures and silhouette sheets for the public as well as bulletin boards with news and historical sighting records. Directions to site: To get to Beamer CA, take the QEW to Exit 71/72, follow Christie St./Mountain St. to the top of the escarpment, turn right on Ridge Road West, and go 1.6km to Quarry Rd. Turn right on Quarry Rd. and drive 100m to the conservation area. If parking at the entrance or on the roads, do NOT leave valuables in your car. Please note: 1) Data in this report is not official until reviewed and finalized after the end of the season. ©2020 Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch. 2) Vehicular traffic into the park is allowed, but visitors are asked to have their cars outside the gate by 3PM. If parking at the gate DO NOT LEAVE VALUABLES IN YOUR VEHICLE!!!