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Introduction
A broad wall of purple black
clouds was bearing down
on us from the north west.
This line of thunderstorms
was the leading edge of
a strong cold front; the
weather forecaster announced.
Mid September seemed late
for powerful thunderstorms.
The summers heat and humidity
was only slightly subdued.
We looked forward to the
fireworks as the clouds
closed in, as well as the
mid teen highs for Saturday
and the single digit temperatures
predicted for Saturday evening
after the hot humid air
was swept away by this arctic
cold front. Granted, it
would be cool for the hawk
festival, but we knew what
the temperatures meant.
Hawks would be moving. My
children could barely sleep
that night. This was their
third trip to see hawks
migrating along Lake Erie,
but the first to Holiday
Beach, and the first with
promising weather. We left
our motel in Amherstberg
at 7:30 am arriving in the
Holiday Beach parking lot
by 8:00. The parking lot
was already nearly full
for Hawk Festival. There
was a buzz in the air .
. . and more. Stepping out
the car, two Sharp-shinned
Hawks screamed past, in
pursuit of a tiny blur.
We were awe-struck. As the
morning drew on, hawk after
hawk glided or blasted past.
Kettles of hundreds of Broad-winged
Hawks spiralled upward,
then shot off singly to
the south west or vanished
into the ether.
At 11:30, Sitelle and Camille
had their chance to release
a hawk from the extremely
knowledgeable and gentle
leader. The parade of hawks
continued throughout the
afternoon with only the
occasional lull. We could
only imagine how they saw
the world from aloft. The
irrepressible migratory
urge steering them south,
across the western tip of
Lake Erie into the United
States and in many cases
beyond.
Finally, at 4:30, we left
the party of hawk watchers
on the tower to return to
Guelph. The 20 000 hawks
that day was far below their
“best” days, but surpassed
our wildest dreams; a day
that my children will never
forget. ¹
The Holiday Beach IBA is
located at the extreme southwestern
tip of Ontario, just east
of where the Detroit River
empties into Lake Erie.
Specifically, the site includes
Holiday Beach Conservation
Area, and adjacent lands
and waters, including Big
Creek Marsh and sections
of Big Creek. While much
of the IBA is in public
ownership, some is owned
privately. This IBA is recognized
for its globally significant
numbers of migrating hawks,
large concentrations of
both land and waterbirds,
and the fact that it has
a breeding population of
the endangered Prothonotary
Warbler.
Over the year 2000, the
IBA steering committee met
several times to discuss
conservation planning and
action for the site. The
core members of the steering
committee are from Essex
Region Conservation Authority,
the Holiday Beach Migration
Observatory and the Essex
Field Naturalists. The Committee
was success in obtaining
a grant in the spring of
2000 to hire a researcher
to monitor and describe
breeding activity of the
Prothonotary Warbler.
The
vision statement for the
Holiday Beach and Big Creek
Marsh IBA is as follows:
Holiday Beach Important
Bird Area will be conserved
and managed to protect its
significance for migratory
and resident birds, and
as a place where birds can
be monitored, studied and
enjoyed for the educational,
ecological and economic
benefits to the people of
the Essex Region and beyond.
*
Edward Chesky
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