Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 18, 2021 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 7242 18444 22570 Osprey 0 3 22 Bald Eagle 5 24 58 Northern Harrier 6 105 300 Sharp-shinned Hawk 112 2491 5404 Cooper's Hawk 3 14 26 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 34 44 49 Broad-winged Hawk 3 15 22237 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 133 267 328 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 1 American Kestrel 7 377 1026 Merlin 0 22 45 Peregrine Falcon 0 21 47 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 7545 21827 52114 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:30:00 Total observation time: 7.5 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Alex Gilford, Andrew Sturgess, Shourjya Majumder Weather: The clear blue skies did finally greet us and stayed all day making our job, especially at the end of the day when the birds went higher on us a little more difficult. The predicted western winds were there to gently start the day but we were under an isobar line on the surface conditions map and the direction changed erratically in direction and strength. They ended up from the south despite the weather apps both insisting they were NW…not! The winds were lighter today but we noticed that there was a benefit to the heavier winds as when we departed, we were once again adorned with the gossamer threads of a thousand unseen parachute spiders. The barometer peaked near midday before falling slightly. Raptor Observations: The day got off to a fairly slow start with little wind to encourage movement. Things improved considerably once the turkey vultures got the itch to move and they did so in big numbers. The flight tapered off towards the end of the day as the winds shifted to the south. Although there was still movement, some of it may have been too far to the north to see. We counted seven thousand, two hundred and forty-two, at times serenely floating over us in large convoy-like formations. The early moving buteos accompanied the vultures with one hundred and thirty-three red-tailed hawks, thirty-four red-shouldered hawks and three late broadwings, who must have missed the “We leave in September” memo. The falcons took the day off with only seven kestrels flying our way. Perhaps they stayed to the south today. Sharp-shinned hawks were a later arrival in the day but added up to one hundred and twelve when all was said and done. Three Cooper’s hawks were also noted. Non-raptor Observations: Forster’s terns paid an early visit to our neck of the woods but I did not notice the Caspian terns today. There was plenty of insect hawking activity as gulls, swallows and even eagles were seen making those jerky moves to catch the prey. A trio of female hooded mergansers flew by in the morning. Blue jays are still coming but the crow season may be getting closer as we saw a few flights today of larger numbers of birds. Occasionally, we can see huge shape-shifting murmurations of starlings over Canada. We only have small starling balls in our neighborhood helping us to find sharpies. Predictions: Tomorrow looks very similar to the last four days with westerlies predicted and a mostly sunny day. Winds should start moderately but grow in the final hours. The temperature should be in the high sixties near the end of the watch. We are in a very large high-pressure system and it should take a couple more days to clear. If the winds can be kept in check and stay westerly, we should have some good movement. On Wednesday, the winds will be more SW and stronger, possibly affecting our ability to see the birds if they are pushed north. ======================================================================== 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-2021