DRHW- Lake Erie Metropark Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 08, 2011 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 199 13158 13675 Osprey 0 6 75 Bald Eagle 0 49 146 Northern Harrier 3 70 172 Sharp-shinned Hawk 37 1357 3768 Cooper's Hawk 44 299 398 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 15 17 Broad-winged Hawk 0 637 195853 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 5 Red-tailed Hawk 0 204 282 Rough-legged Hawk 0 1 1 Golden Eagle 0 2 2 American Kestrel 1 188 592 Merlin 0 0 11 Peregrine Falcon 0 1 14 Unknown Accipiter 2 14 28 Unknown Buteo 0 9 9 Unknown Falcon 0 0 2 Unknown Eagle 0 1 1 Unknown Raptor 0 4 8 Total: 286 16015 215059 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 07:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 8 hours Official Counter: Jonathan Stein Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood, Rodney Laura Visitors: Quite a few. A partial list: Don and Robyn Henise, Cody Porter, Denise Ward, Larry Vandenberg, Jim Bull, Gail Bugosh, Pat Brandon, Janet Hug, Lara and Chris Currie and Karen Caloia. Weather: It was another gorgeous day at the park. Temperatures were in the 70s. There was a light breeze mainly out of the south, shifting southeast late. Most birds were again high but a few more clouds made locating them a little easier at times. The lake fog was still present but was thinner today and not as much of a drag on visibility. Raptor Observations: The wonderful weather did not yield a big flight. When there were birds to be seen, they were either very high or well to our north. Our cooper's hawk numbers remained steady but sharp-shinned hawks continued their downward trend. Not a buteo to be seen all day. Non-raptor Observations: There was a distinct fall flavor to the songbird activity overhead and along the trail nearest the watch site in the early morning. Along the trail, I found a winter wren, a couple white-crowned sparrows, some dark-eyed juncos and a fairly large flock of white-throated sparrows as well as both ruby-crowned and golden-crowned kinglets. Overhead were several boisterous flocks of blackbirds of the rusty and red-winged variety. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 200 rusty blackbirds and 300 red-winged blackbirds streamed on by. More northern flickers could be seen today as well. Blue jay migration continued unabated. A few pine siskins were around. Just a lot going on, songbird-wise at least. Predictions: Clear. Temperatures in the 70s. Winds out of the south. A lot like today. Pleasant conditions but it will probably be slow again raptor-wise. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Jonathan Stein ([email protected]) SMRR- Lake Erie Metropark information may be found at: http://www.drhawkwatch.org Site Description: The primary site used by the Detroit River Hawk Watch (a joint venture of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge and it's Friends group, the International Wildlife Refuge Alliance) is the Boat Launch at Lake Erie Metropark located approximately 20 miles south of Detroit, Michigan. A secondary site, the Headquarters of Pointe Mouillee State Game Area is used during certain wind conditions. When staffing is available, both sites can be used at the same time. The season begins on the first day of September and concludes on the final day of November. For details and directions, log on to www.drhawkwatch.org Directions to site: Lake Erie Metropark: >From I-75, exit at Huron River Drive (exit 27). Continue east on Huron River Drive. Turn left on West Jefferson and proceed a few hundred yards to the entrance of Lake Erie Metropark. After paying the entrance fee, follow the signs to the Boat Launch. _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
