Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 09, 2022 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 2804 18252 25536 Osprey 0 1 15 Bald Eagle 0 8 39 Northern Harrier 4 32 264 Sharp-shinned Hawk 55 552 3428 Cooper's Hawk 2 14 38 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 38 41 Broad-winged Hawk 0 28 67320 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 12 325 506 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 4 4 American Kestrel 7 48 803 Merlin 2 11 36 Peregrine Falcon 0 12 33 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: 2886 19325 98063 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 0 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood, Patrick Mulawa Visitors: We are located by the boat launch in Lake Erie Metropark in a fenced off area at the Hawk Watch site. This does not mean that we do not welcome interaction with any and all visitors. We enjoy talking about what we do and sharing our knowledge with beginners and experts alike. Please feel free to come up and talk to us. We usually have our backs turned to the parking lot as we scan the skies in front of us. This should not be interpreted as a sign of reluctance to engage; this is how we do our job. We have friendly people that do not bite and the welcome mat is always out. Weather: Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy means that it should be a day of rest from your normal activities. Unfortunately, Sunday, which is the Christian Sabbath, is also the day the Detroit Lions play and they appear to be devout in their observance of the “day of rest”. The wind was blowing again today, mostly WSW, and increasing during the day from nine to thirteen mph. Again, we were mostly sheltered but the tree tops were rustling behind us indicating appreciable wind. Temperatures climbed up to sixty-seven degrees and with plenty of sun it was a pleasant looking autumn day. The barometer was slowly declining during the day but remained above thirty inches at day’s end. Clouds were high icy cirrus at first and gradually the sky took on more substantial tenants but the theme of the day was sunshine and the clouds did not impede in any significant way. Raptor Observations: Another day in which the turkey vultures rocked. They seem to have figured out how to work their way into the wind and stay in our neighborhood so we can see them. They made up ninety-seven per cent of our count today with 2,804 birds taking various lines throughout the day. Some were flying at the limits of our optical equipment, a few came directly overhead. Sharp-shinned hawks were once again second on the list with 55 birds. The hardest working birds in showbiz can usually be counted on to keep us from getting skunked, if nothing else. They tapered off drastically during the day with little action in the afternoon hours and none in the last hour. Red-tailed hawks numbered 12 but they were probably more numerous on a flight line that we could not see. Falcons were represented by 7 American kestrels and 2 merlins. A couple of Cooper’s hawks were counted. Non-raptor Observations: Another day in which thousands of swallows were working feverishly out on the lake just above the water level. The pelicans were up and about today making multiple appearances during the day. The blue jays were not too obvious today but they may have been blown off course with the buteos. The Forster’s terns have not completely deserted us and the petite Bonaparte’s gulls that are often mistaken for terns have been making early morning appearances. Unfortunately, they are both staying out of camera range. Warblers have been more obvious the last few days with yellow-rumped being the most common. Predictions: The wind turbines will be busy chasing what wind there is tomorrow. Starting from the west early in the morning, it will turn northwest before completing its trip around the compass and ending from the southern quarter later in the day. We should see light winds during the watch and some of them may be from favorable directions but two to three mph may not be to the raptor’s liking. The day is predicted to be sunny. The barometer will be rising again. Temperatures will be above the sixty-degree mark again. It should be a pleasant day and we will see what the winds will actually do since they look light and variable right now. ======================================================================== 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-2022