Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area (18 Mar 2026) 58 Raptors
31 views
Skip to first unread message
rep...@hawkcount.org
Mar 18, 2026, 8:29:22 PMMar 18
to hamilt...@googlegroups.com
Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area
Grimsby, Ontario, Canada
OVER 50 YEARS Of ANNUAL SPRING COUNTS
Visitors:
Morco spent the whole day helping spot birds, Tim brought David Creelman from Toronto to help count for a few hours, unfortunately coinciding with the worst of the clouds and flurries. Relatively few dog walkers or hikers due to the cold, one mom brought her teenage boys up the the tower for a short minute.
Weather:
Chilly day on the tower, -2C and significant wind chill from the south wind. Partly cloudy to start but 100% overcast by 11am and light snow flurries started soon after and persisted off and on for several hours.
Raptor Observations:
58 raptors for the day, 39 of which went through in the first 2 hours of the count, mostly Turkey Vultures. 2 Bald eagles passed through, one 3rd year and one adult.
Non-raptor Observations:
1 Golden-crowned Kinglet buzzed the tower at the start of the day, and 8 cedar waxwings passed soon after. 2 sandhill cranes were seen in the distance. The presumed local merlin went by at 2:30 pm west to east over the field. Spencer thought he saw a Fox Sparrow in the last hour of the count in the bushes south of the tower, and sure enough when we went to pack up at the end of the day it was out in the open feeding on the seed by the parking area.
Predictions:
The weather for tomorrow looks very similar to today.
Report submitted by John Blanchard (John.Bl...@treehousefoods.com)
Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area information may be found at: http://nphawkwatch.ca/
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
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!!!
Grimsby, Ontario, Canada
OVER 50 YEARS Of ANNUAL SPRING COUNTS
| Daily Raptor Counts: Mar 18, 2026 | |||
| Species | Day's Count | Month Total | Season Total |
| Black Vulture | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turkey Vulture | 43 | 665 | 673 |
| Osprey | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bald Eagle | 2 | 20 | 20 |
| Northern Harrier | 0 | 5 | 6 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk | 2 | 14 | 14 |
| Cooper's Hawk | 0 | 26 | 26 |
| American Goshawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-shouldered Hawk | 7 | 152 | 152 |
| Broad-winged Hawk | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red-tailed Hawk | 4 | 75 | 75 |
| Rough-legged Hawk | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Golden Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| American Kestrel | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Merlin | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Peregrine Falcon | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Accipitrine | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Unknown Buteo | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Unknown Falcon | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Eagle | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown Raptor | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Total: | 58 | 977 | 986 |
| Observation start time: | 08:00:00 |
| Observation end time: | 14:00:00 |
| Total observation time: | 6 hours |
| Official Counter | John Blanchard |
| Observers: | Spencer Steenburgh, Tim Foran |
Visitors:
Morco spent the whole day helping spot birds, Tim brought David Creelman from Toronto to help count for a few hours, unfortunately coinciding with the worst of the clouds and flurries. Relatively few dog walkers or hikers due to the cold, one mom brought her teenage boys up the the tower for a short minute.
Weather:
Chilly day on the tower, -2C and significant wind chill from the south wind. Partly cloudy to start but 100% overcast by 11am and light snow flurries started soon after and persisted off and on for several hours.
Raptor Observations:
58 raptors for the day, 39 of which went through in the first 2 hours of the count, mostly Turkey Vultures. 2 Bald eagles passed through, one 3rd year and one adult.
Non-raptor Observations:
1 Golden-crowned Kinglet buzzed the tower at the start of the day, and 8 cedar waxwings passed soon after. 2 sandhill cranes were seen in the distance. The presumed local merlin went by at 2:30 pm west to east over the field. Spencer thought he saw a Fox Sparrow in the last hour of the count in the bushes south of the tower, and sure enough when we went to pack up at the end of the day it was out in the open feeding on the seed by the parking area.
Predictions:
The weather for tomorrow looks very similar to today.
Report submitted by John Blanchard (John.Bl...@treehousefoods.com)
Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch - Beamer Conservation Area information may be found at: http://nphawkwatch.ca/
More information at hawkcount.org: [Site Profile] [Day Summary] [Month Summary]
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!!!
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages