Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 20, 2021 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 60 60 Osprey 0 16 16 Bald Eagle 0 24 24 Northern Harrier 0 97 97 Sharp-shinned Hawk 311 1217 1217 Cooper's Hawk 0 5 5 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 17028 17028 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 0 34 34 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 6 421 421 Merlin 0 6 6 Peregrine Falcon 0 11 11 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 1 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 317 18920 18920 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 14:00:00 Total observation time: 6 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Mark Hainen Visitors: We are still dealing with the residue of the Covid 19 situation. The workers at the site will be in an enclosed area that is designed for four people only. We still love to interact and share our love of hawk watching with visitors. Feel free to ask questions and look over our shoulders to help you follow the birds. Watch the weather for favorable forecasts as the birds are predictable to some degree based on weather situations. One other thing of note this year; the boat-launch bathroom building has been shut down for the foreseeable future due to plumbing issues. There are Porta-Johns in the parking lot should you require them. Weather: A different colored mantle greeted us today as the blue dome of yesterday was completely papered over with scraps of clouds of various hues and densities. Light rain greeted us, and also ushered us out a little early at the end of the day. The winds had an eastern element to them and once again that may have saved the day. Winds grew gradually from the SSE reaching eight mph, although the way the birds were racing though, crabbing on the wind, it seemed stronger. The barometer took a subtle drop as it begins a two-day downward trend. Temperatures reached the mid-seventies as the southern winds were warm and humid. Raptor Observations: We decided to employ the Henry Ford business model today in that you could have any color raptor you wanted…….as long as it was a sharpie. The first hour was slow but they picked up the pace hour by hour, peaking at an even one hundred during the first afternoon hour; dropping the next hour to eighty-four before the flight abruptly dried up, and the weather became wetter. We totaled three hundred and eleven sharp-shinned hawks on the day with only six kestrels as a counter point. Another slightly odd day to add to this year’s odd happenings. Non-raptor Observations: The side-show attraction today was the attack of the cormorants of a school of bait fish out in the lake. They poured out by the hundreds; flying low over the water in a single file formation from behind Horse Island. They settled in a tight group with just their heads and necks above water, resembling a field of black stalks emerging from the ground. The gulls, intent on thievery, circled over them providing a sound track of cries and screams which surely is what the fish would have done if they were capable. Predictions: Tomorrow looks iffy. Showers and scattered thunderstorms are predicted for nearly all day. The barometer will stay fairly steady until the evening hours when it should drop a little more. Winds will be robust from the S, reaching a possible 16 mph at midday. It looks to be a somewhat turbulent day and this will be a prelude to another much cooler day of rain to follow on Wednesday. A fitting day for the first day of fall. It’s possible that a few more sharpies may move but I think most birds will sit the dance out until this wet weather clears ======================================================================== 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