DRHW- Lake Erie Metropark Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 13, 2011 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 25 14281 14798 Osprey 0 7 76 Bald Eagle 0 55 152 Northern Harrier 0 75 177 Sharp-shinned Hawk 8 1461 3872 Cooper's Hawk 9 333 432 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 23 25 Broad-winged Hawk 0 641 195857 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 5 Red-tailed Hawk 3 246 324 Rough-legged Hawk 0 1 1 Golden Eagle 0 5 5 American Kestrel 1 191 595 Merlin 0 0 11 Peregrine Falcon 1 2 15 Unknown Accipiter 0 16 30 Unknown Buteo 0 10 10 Unknown Falcon 0 0 2 Unknown Eagle 0 1 1 Unknown Raptor 2 7 11 Total: 49 17355 216399 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 07:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 8 hours Official Counter: Jonathan Stein Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Raburn Howland, Rodney Laura Visitors: Not a one besides our usual crew. Weather: It was foggy and overcast with intermittent drizzle throughout the morning hours. After 11 am, some clearing occurred and the drizzling came to a halt. But by 3 pm, the gray clouds had moved back in to snuff out any hint of blue skies. The wind was out of the east and southeast and grew progressively stronger as the day went on. Raptor Observations: There was minimal activity for a second consecutive day. Our first raptor was again a juvenile sharp-shinned hawk spotted around 1130 am. Unlike yesterday, though, that wasn't the only bird we saw. We were able to stick around and find a few more, the last being an adult peregrine falcon, which was a nice way to end the day. Non-raptor Observations: The Monarchs apparently didn't receive the no-fly memo. During the afternoon, there were few times when a cursory scan of the sky didn't reveal at least four or five Monarchs. Easily more than 500 floated by today. Predictions: It looks like there's a good chance the overnight rain is going to leak into the morning hours. After 11 am, though, the chance of rain drops to 50 percent. The temperature should drop, too, from a high in the upper 60s today to a high in the upper 50s tomorrow. The wind is going to be strong (15-20 mph) and should shift from the southeast to the southwest and then finally the west. If the rain holds off in the afternoon, the colder temperatures and westward wind shift could turn tomorrow into one of our better days in a while. ======================================================================== 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/
