Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 13, 2022 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 19 939 65604 Osprey 0 0 16 Bald Eagle 1 6 71 Northern Harrier 2 10 385 Sharp-shinned Hawk 2 29 5866 Cooper's Hawk 2 12 79 Northern Goshawk 0 0 1 Red-shouldered Hawk 9 94 427 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 67350 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 93 585 3594 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 1 8 25 American Kestrel 0 0 981 Merlin 0 7 75 Peregrine Falcon 0 2 62 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: 129 1692 144536 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:00:00 Observation end time: 16:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood, Michelle Peregord 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: As is often the case with the transition from low to high pressure systems, the skies can be unstable and variable. We ranged from majestic to mundane today. The early morning sky, when we had some blue sky above and a bright sun to illuminate the surrounding clouds, was spectacular. Multicolored collages of randomly stacked clouds in close proximity to each other ranging from bright white to deep steel blue with various shades of gray thrown in for good measure were pleasing to the eye and mind. As the day progressed, the high blue sky began to lose some luster as icy cirrus clouds took up their stations. This view was eventually completely obscured by lower and much thicker stratus clouds of a dull gray hue that eventually darkened our world and dropped occasional snow flurries on us. This had the effect of slowing the flight of raptors and eventually it was nonexistent. The temperatures stayed above freezing by a few degrees but without the sun’s warmth some of the snow left over from yesterday was still there at day’s end. The barometer continued a slow climb, above 30 inches all day, but the sky certainly did not look like a classic high-pressure sky. The wind was basically a NW force that bounced around a little in strength but stayed above ten mph all day. Raptor Observations: We had a fairly nice flow of birds today considering the wind direction and the gray skies. Red-tailed hawks led the way with 93 streaming by. Turkey vultures mustered enough volunteers to manage second tier on the totem pole with 19 birds. Red-shouldered hawks were next on the list with 9 of them showing their wing crescents. We had a pair each of northern harriers, sharp-shinned hawks and Cooper’s hawks. The eagles, bald and golden, had one of each species tallied. Non-raptor Observations: We saw a couple of flights of tundra swans today. It was good to hear their familiar “whoop” call. Great blue herons were still cruising by on occasion. The gulls, especially the larger dark juveniles, gave us some heartburn today as they resemble soaring raptors at times; the dark sky aiding their subterfuge. The Bonaparte’s continue to entertain as they attempt to control the minnow population. Lots of ducks were seen on the wing in the far distance today, heading for more comfortable climes. Predictions: Winds will continue from the northern quarter tomorrow, although a drop in speed is predicted with an eventual change to a more nor-easterly direction. The barometer will still be climbing before a plunge on Tuesday as more rain and snow is possible. The temperature should reach the upper thirties. There should be a mix of sun and cloud. The winds look good tomorrow although an earlier switch to NE might be better for our site. We are still looking for our first rough-legged hawk and the weather is right for them. ======================================================================== 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