Detroit River Hawk Watch
Brownstown, Michigan, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 18, 2023
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
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Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 2693 66418 68551
Osprey 0 2 53
Bald Eagle 0 18 90
Northern Harrier 5 87 442
Sharp-shinned Hawk 116 2019 5776
Cooper's Hawk 1 29 40
American Goshawk 0 0 0
Red-shouldered Hawk 2 101 101
Broad-winged Hawk 0 99 107681
Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0
Red-tailed Hawk 11 325 411
Rough-legged Hawk 1 2 2
Golden Eagle 0 0 0
American Kestrel 8 269 1254
Merlin 1 6 37
Peregrine Falcon 0 17 37
Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0
Unknown Buteo 0 0 1
Unknown Falcon 0 0 1
Unknown Eagle 0 0 0
Unknown Raptor 0 0 0
Total: 2838 69392 184477
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Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 7 hours
Official Counter: Kevin Georg
Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Bill Peregord, Jackie Quinones,
Jessica Fletcher, Rosemary Brady
Visitors:
We welcome visitors to our site and are very willing to share migration
information, photography and ID tips with them. We have cards and
pamphlets, so come and talk to us. However, during times of high traffic,
requiring extra focus and concentration, we would respectfully ask that
everyone use their indoor voices and allow us to fulfill our mission to the
best of our abilities. Thank you.
Weather:
A pleasant looking day at the start, with enough blue sky to allow the
beneficial rays of the sun to provide warmth enough to shed a layer or two.
As the day progressed, icy cirrus clouds came skating in, foretelling the
rain to come. By days end, the ensuing cumulus clouds had accumulated
enough mass to cover the sky and look slightly menacing. Winds from the
south grew in intensity during the day, dropping in the final hours, but
the damage had been done. Whitecaps were evident on Lake Erie at the peak
of the windâs effort, which was officially thirteen mph, but the fetch
across the lake allowed higher speeds to act on the birds. Temperatures did
reach the sixty-degree mark. The barometer started a small decline, which
will accelerate as the rain arrives.
Raptor Observations:
Today was kinda-sorta similar to yesterday, but only if you divide by ten.
We had a slow start to the day with one busy hour in the middle. Turkey
vultures were taking the great circle route today, heading off to the east
and then reappearing in the north after a long wait. Similar to yesterday,
most came in one hour with 1,960 passing through. Their sightings dwindled
as the wind speed grew and the atmosphere became hazier on their chosen
route. By days end, we had counted 2,693, but the last two hours were
single digit counts. Sharpies, bless their little hearts, did cross the
slip today. But they were front-loaded too. Totals fell as the wind
strengthened and we had zero in the last hour. The final sum was 116.
Red-tailed hawks were seen but not in the same numbers as yesterday. What a
difference a wind makes, only eleven made the clicker today. Kestrels were
next in line with eight winging their way through. Harriers were just
enough to count on one hand, with five showing up. We had two
hard-flapping red-shouldered hawks pass through. One Cooperâs hawk was
noted. One merlin was following its instincts and chasing other birds. We
had our second rough-legged hawk today, another light morph. Congrats to
our colleagues at Holiday Beach for the first golden eagle of the season. I
believe that we also saw that bird, but so far out over the lake that we
could not comfortably confirm it. Iâve put in an order for some more, but
Amazon couldnât guarantee two-day delivery, even though I am a prime
member.
Non-raptor Observations:
Blue jays, crows and red-winged blackbirds were seen in migration today,
but not in great numbers. One monarch butterfly was also noted. A
yellow-rumped warbler made a brief appearance in the maple tree next to the
site. All the terns were present and accounted for: Caspian, common and
Forsterâs. No little gull today but I think it is probably roosting with
some Bonaparteâs gulls in another location. I know that tiny houses are a
thing now, but today, we seemed to see a number of tiny boats. We see boats
with over 1,000 hp pushing on the transom but there are twelve footers with
twenty-five or forty horse motors out there looking like miniatures of the
big boys, the operatorâs heads sticking up well over the windshields.
Predictions:
Tomorrow does not look promising. Rain is in the forecast along with a
southern wind in the ten-mph range. Although the rain may be light and
intermittent, the wind will push most migrants well to the north, or cause
them to turn before they reach our site. The barometer will be dropping
about three tenths tomorrow, which is significant. Cloud cover should be
extensive, temperatures should be in the fifties again. The cornucopia may
be pointing the wrong way tomorrow, providing little bounty.
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Report submitted by Andrew Sturgess ([email protected])
Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at:
http://www.detroitriverhawkwatch.org
More site information at hawkcount.org:
https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=285
Count data submitted via Dunkadoo - Project info at:
https://dunkadoo.org/explore/detroit-river-international-wildlife-refuge/detroit-river-hawk-watch-fall-2023
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