Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 07, 2023 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 0 0 Osprey 0 0 0 Bald Eagle 1 1 1 Northern Harrier 0 4 4 Sharp-shinned Hawk 4 15 15 Cooper's Hawk 0 0 0 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 17 17 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 0 0 0 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 3 12 12 Merlin 0 4 4 Peregrine Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 8 53 53 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood, Mark Hainen 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: We had our own revival of Beckett’s Waiting for Godot today. The Playbill listed the broad-wings as Godot, I played Lucky, and Kevin, of course, was Pozzo; the man with a rope around my neck. Our lovely interns, Jackie and Sabrina, played Vladimir and Estragon. As you may have gathered from this intro, there wasn’t much activity today but given the fact that the wind was still blowing its last gasp from the SW and the barometer was at its lowest point, it wasn’t a surprise. Most of the day was spent under a layer of solid, leaden stratus that finally broke in the afternoon hours revealing blue in a fraction of the sky. A robust cumulus cloudbank, off to the west, was brightly illuminated by the sun’s rays. Temperatures were more moderate today with a high of seventy-five degrees, which was pleasant relief from the recent heat wave, despite the fact that the humidity tenaciously stayed above the ninety percent mark all day. Winds were under five mph from the SW, even going calm for a brief while. This in preparation for a shift to the north which will take place tonight. Raptor Observations: Our two resident ospreys are still sitting on their respective nests by the park entrance. I haven’t seen any young birds fishing in front of us so perhaps they have left already. We counted an adult bald eagle today as it flew across the lake in a determined manner, perhaps just in a rush to get to Pte. Mouille, but he made the tally. Four sharp-shins were the advance guard for a much larger group to come in the following days. A trio of kestrels also made the effort to migrate. Non-raptor Observations: Another relatively quiet day for non-raptors. The number of great egrets in the marsh on the way into the park continues to increase and impress. A Carolina wren made its presence known with frequent and varied songs. A warbling vireo joined in the chorus from time to time. Not many warblers were seen near the site but on the trails more were reported. We only saw one butter-butt, but an Eastern phoebe made an appearance today. The kingfishers continue to bicker. Cormorants have returned from their secret roost and populated the rock jetty again, gathering by the hundreds over a school of fish later in the afternoon. A great blue heron acts as a sentinel on the lake side of us, staying on station for hours. Swallows and swifts are still very active but usually at a distance. Predictions: The barometer will rebound tomorrow in dramatic fashion jumping three tenths over the course of the day. Winds will be NNE and moderate in strength. Our site would prefer a little more east in the wind but after this last week we will gladly accept what we are given. Temperatures will drop with the northerly wind; they are not predicted to reach seventy degrees. Cloud cover is also higher than we would like to see, staying well above eighty percent during our working hours but promising to clear more on Saturday and Sunday. The winds should be NE on those days too, so that bodes well. I don’t have the birds ETA of course, but I suspect we will see many more in the next few days than the last few. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Andrew Sturgess (ajyes72@gmail.com) 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