September 27 [Day 8] (Cliff Hansen, assisted by Chris Hunt and Jill and Roderick Bhara) The temperature at 0730 was 4C, but under cloudless skies by 0900 it had dropped to -1.5C and was still -1C at 1000: the first sub-zero temperatures (but doubtless not the last!) recorded this season. As a result the grass and telescopes were rapidly covered in rime frost. Once the sun rose above the Fisher Range, however, the temperature rapidly rose and reached 21.5C at 1700 and was 19C at 1900, before rapidly falling to 11.5C at 1915 after the sun fell behind the mountains to the west. Ground winds were variable all day, less than 5 km/h to 1400 after which they were 5-10 km/h, and the ridge winds were probably also light. It was completely cloudless, with a light smoke haze, all day. Finding raptors in the clear skies was challenging to the observers, although the calm conditions resulted in relatively slow soaring flight and lift appeared to be poor for much of the day. Despite the conditions the day produced the highest count so far this season with a total of 92 raptors of 6 species that moved between 1049 and 1832. The flight comprised the season's first Osprey, 2 adult Bald Eagles, 2 Sharp-shinned Hawks (1a,1u), 1 unaged Cooper's Hawk, 1 dark morph red-tailed Hawk of unknown race and age and a season high 85 Golden Eagles (35a,10sa,30j,10u). Movement was initially slow with only 8 birds having been seen by 1400, but then thermal lift appeared to improve and the next 5 hours produced 18, 12, 7,15 and 17 Golden Eagles respectively with all movement ceasing immediately the sun disappeared behind the western ridges. Cliff photographed a Great Horned Owl on the path to the site in the early morning, but other birds were rather scarce and included 1 female or juvenile Harlequin Duck flying to the north overhead, 1 Red-naped Sapsucker, 1 American Dipper, 1 Yellow-rumped Warbler and 30 Red Crossbills.

12.5 hours(90.83) OSPR 1 (1), BAEA 2 (7), SSHA 2 (13), COHA 1 (3), RTHA 1 (7), GOEA 85 (132) TOTAL 92 (171)

A note from Beaver Mines. While driving back to Beaver Mines from Calgary on HW 507 at 1125 I observed 4 adult Ferruginous Hawks (3 light and 1 dark morph) soaring over the road, about 8 km east of Beaver Mines. This is the highest number of migrating Ferruginous Hawks I have seen in the area at one time. On a non-raptor note, at 1323 I observed at my house an adult male Broad-billed Hummingbird at close range. The bird was unmistakable: the size of an Anna's Hummingbird, overall dark green with the back iridescing to a brilliant metallic emerald green, the underparts darker, the tail broad and dark, the head with a small white spot behind the eye; but the really striking feature was the bird's bill which was fairly long and thick near its base, down-curved throughout its length and of a striking red colour with a black tip, the colour being reminiscent of that of an adult Caspian Tern. The bird was around for about a minute, probably attracted by a bright scarlet Begonia on my deck, and for about 20-30 seconds it perched on an aspen branch about 4-5 meters away and allowed close observation. I believe this is a first record for Alberta and may be only the second for Canada. I immediately filled and hung a couple of feeders but I didn't see the bird again after it had flown away towards the south. The bird's breeding range is essentially the Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains of Mexico with the northern part of the range just creeping into southernmost Arizona and SW New Mexico, and occasionally SW Texas. This is the 7^th hummingbird species I have recorded at my house in the last couple of months, the others being Ruby-throated, Black-chinned, Anna's, Costa's (a female: probably a second record for the province), Rufous and Calliope.