Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch
28 Quarry Rd L3M 4E7 Grimsby, ON, Canada

All NPH Members, Counters and Supporters: Hawks in Flight Identification Workshop All welcome!... Free admission! Date: Saturday, February 22 @ 1:30 p.m. to 4 pm Location: St. John the Baptist Church Hall, 128 Edgemont Street South, Hamilton. The Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch (NPH) is pleased to announce the Hawks in Flight Identification Workshop for counters and for all those who would like to learn about identifying eagles, hawks, falcons, and vultures. The Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch mandate is to: - promote the enjoyment of hawkwatching - educate people about hawks and hawk migration - conduct systematic counts of raptors migrating over the Niagara Peninsula (at Beamer Memorial Conservation Area) - and work for the preservation of raptors in Ontario. If you are interested in attending, please email: Catherine Manschot at [email protected]. Thank you! We look forward to seeing you at our workshop! Photo Matthew Mills.

Wednesday is shaping up to be an excellent weather day and there could be a strong flight. Thursday looks rainy, but east winds and sunshine on Friday could also be very good. We are in peak time for Red-tailed Hawk migration, just past Red-shouldered Hawk peak and approaching Turkey Vulture time. Come out to the Hawkwatch for a potentially busy day!

*Update* A day earlier than promised but the birds have arrived. 3 Golden Eagles, a Black Vulture and 28 Red-shouldered Hawks were among 168 migrants today. Looking ahead to sunny days and excellent flight conditions this week. Monday looks promising while Tuesday looks decent and Wednesday potentially good as well. See you at the Hawkwatch!

Once the current trend of northerly winds begins to shift we should see numbers of Red-shouldered Hawks. Tuesday & Wednesday of the coming week may shape up as the first decent flight days. Stay tuned here and we will update on Monday evening.

Other Raptor-related Facebook Groups: Facebook is a community-minded platform which boasts 2 excellent North American based groups for hawk enthusiasts. Whether you are looking to improve your ID skills (who isn't?) or view jaw dropping raptor photographs be sure to check them out. ... 1) RIFF RAFF Hawkwatch Group is an excellent place to view and share stunning raptor photographs. Be sure to carefully read and adhere to group guidelines. https://m.facebook.com/profile.php 2) Raptor ID is for viewing/submitting photos with a serious identification request. It is an excellent resource for learning the identification of perched and flying raptors. Be sure to check out the extra tabs on the site for articles and information on Hawk ID. Please remember to post a date, general location and reasons behind your chosen ID or question. Remember to adhere to the ethical guidelines of the group as it is not a laissez faire photo-sharing site. https://m.facebook.com/profile.php Enjoy!

Planning your visit. We all want to improve your chances of hitting a busy migration day at the Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch. Let's be honest, driving a long distance to only see a few birds can be disappointing. While we can't always predict when the birds will come, years of experience have offered a few tips:... 1) Recent Trends: Visit http://hawkcount.org/month_summary.php?rsite=389 to check the recent count data for our site. Has there been a period of slow or busy days? Often a big flight will follow an extended period of very slow days. While successive modest flights may indicate birds will be moving on any good weather day. 2) Historic peak times: Click on Site Profile followed by Migration Timing to see typical peak flight times for each species. Looking for Broad-winged Hawk? Skip March entirely. After Red-shouldered Hawk? Mid-to-late March is your window. 3) Previous day: Read the written next-day predictions for guidance. It is uncommon to have two very big flight days back to back, but a good afternoon flight is often followed by a morning 'upflight' of nearby roosting birds. 4) Nearby Hawkwatch sites: While on Hawkcount.org take the opportunity to follow nearby sites. Ripley and Hamburg are nearby New York sites on the south Shore of Lake Erie while Presque Isle is a bit further west in Pennsylvania. These sites see birds from several hours to up to several days before we do and act as a good barometer for approaching flights. Braddock Bay and Derby Hill count birds further east along the Lake Ontario shoreline. While we miss all of these birds they still provide context for flight magnitude and timing. 5) Weather - past and forecast: Last but not least weather is king of migration forecasting. Pay close attention to the weather leading up to and for your chosen days. Sustained periods of bad weather to our south block migration even if we have ideal weather in Grimsby. Days with approaching warm fronts are best for big flights but abundant sunshine regardless of other conditions is often good. Improving weather following cold fronts can also bring birds. Heavy rain, fog or snow limit thermals (rising warm air) which birds use for migration. Best wind directions are any southerly (especially Southeast) and east/northeast. These often occur in conjunction with warmer weather. A northeast lake breeze provides lift off the escarpment face. A northwest wind, if not too strong, can also be good. Strong winds discourage flights as do very calm conditions. Ideal sustained wind speeds are 15-25 km/hr. 6) Spring rush: Never forget that the birds are eager to get north. They often surprise and at times will make a push in less than ideal conditions. Sometimes it simply pays to take a chance. See you at the Hawkwatch!