Next to spring, my other eagerly anticipated season is the fall, highlighted by raptor migration. September 1 is when raptor lovers congregate around Toronto’s viewing hotspots. We check the weather forecasts for north-element winds, which bring the birds down to us from the boreal forests of Ontario and Quebec. Northwest winds are the best, which is when most of us raptor lovers head out. We start out the raptor-watching season in our shorts and T-shirts, sitting on lawn chairs, waiting for the show to begin. By the end of November, the diehards are wearing every piece of warm clothing they own, hoping to see the last few good birds, before the season ends.
Red-shouldered Hawk
As I mentioned in a previous column, Toronto, Canada, is on the north shore of Lake Ontario. The raptors follow the shoreline west, before heading south. There are many places to view this migration. Some people congregate along the Scarborough Bluffs. These are geological formations, cut out of the high parts of the shoreline. Being so high up, viewers have eye-level views of Osprey, Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned Hawk (pictured at start of article) and Peregrine Falcon. High Park contains an inland viewing spot called “Hawk Hill”, where my bird club holds the annual raptor watch. This location is a prime spot to watch migrating Broad-winged Hawks. They move through en masse over a few days in the early part of September. It’s a thrilling sight, watching kettles of raptors overhead. (My husband, a non-birder, comments that we are watching “pepper spots” in the sky.)
Turkey Vulture
There are park visitors who stop by and ask what we are seeing. They are amazed to hear that we have 15 raptor species that migrate over Toronto. In addition to the already mentioned raptors, there are Cooper’s Hawk, Northern Goshawk, Bald Eagle, Merlin, American Kestrel, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk, Turkey Vulture, and Golden Eagle. There are guest star appearances such as Swainson’s Hawk, Black Vulture, and (one time) there was an immature Gyrfalcon over the bluffs.
Raptors aren’t the only ones on the move. We see Snow Geese and Tundra Swans fly over. Smaller birds such as Cedar Waxwings, Eastern Bluebird and American Pipit also move through. There might be Sandhill Cranes or a Short-eared Owl. The bug brigade is represented by Monarch Butterflies and Green Darner and Black Saddle-bag dragonflies. Many the time, someone sees a highflyer, but it is only a butterfly.
Cedar Waxwing
Of all the spots to watch raptors, my 18th-floor condo is one of the best. My corner unit offers views of the east and south. I have a chair, the refrigerator and a bathroom nearby. It’s warm and I don’t have to drive anywhere. With the right winds, I’ve observed Bald Eagle, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon and Broad-winged Hawk. One September day, I recorded 560 Blue Jays, noisy migrants that scream all the way. On an October day, 700 Turkey Vultures flew over and around our condo. It was a magnificent sight.
Blue Jay
Come the fall, you’ll find me out with my fellow raptor fans, staring at the pepper spots in the sky.
Note: All photos from Pexels.com, an online source of copyright-free photos, except for the cover photo (Steve Berardi, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
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