Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 27, 2020 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 72 1322 1322 Osprey 2 21 21 Bald Eagle 0 25 25 Northern Harrier 4 113 113 Sharp-shinned Hawk 28 1729 1729 Cooper's Hawk 1 8 8 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 2 2 Broad-winged Hawk 0 15629 15629 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 4 121 121 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 10 335 335 Merlin 5 17 17 Peregrine Falcon 6 18 18 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: 132 19341 19341 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Rosemary Brady Visitors: While Lake Erie Metropark is currently open to the public, for the safety of our counter and volunteers we encourage visitors to follow along with the count virtually on HawkCount.org, or our Detroit River Hawk Watch Facebook page. There will be daily updates and photographs. If you do decide to join us in person, please help the counter and volunteers to follow their mandated safety protocols by refraining from approaching them. Please follow the recommended Covid 19 procedures by wearing a mask and maintaining a safe social distance. Thanking you in advance for your cooperation. Stay safe! Weather: The day started with a near solid cloud deck but almost immediately increasing fissures allowed peeks of cerulean blue and the robust SW wind had cleared the skies in short order. The haze that had surrounded us for days seemed to lessen as our view of Canada was much clearer today. This was of no help since the wind pushed the birds in the opposite direction… far in the opposite direction. The barometer was low but steady at 29.75”. The mostly clear sky began to fill in later in the afternoon with high mare’s tails and other oddly shaped cirrus clouds resembling a staving artist’s version of a Jackson Pollack. It looked like real change was imminent as there is a line of bad weather coming through Illinois currently. We will see if this plays out and gives us more promising weather later this week. Raptor Observations: Today would not get a five start rating on Amazon. But having said that, it was a rewarding day in one sense; the early hours had our usual suspects but the later hours had sparse but special birds. We had seventy seven turkey vultures, although no big groups and no assemblies in the usual staging area over Canada. Four harriers were seen in widely spaced appearances. One osprey was noted. Four red-tails made the blog. Sharp-shins, a big performer yesterday, were notably absent today, especially in the afternoon hours. Twenty eight of them, a normal hour’s count lately, were seen. The birds of the day were the falcons. The early hours had kestrels racing by but as the day progressed and the winds took their toll, only the most resolute flyers capable of slicing through the winds made it to our site. It was one of those days where they stayed low behind the trees and popped out very quickly to make the crossing. We ended with 10 kestrels, five merlins and six peregrine falcons on the day. It’s always rewarding to see the peregrines fly as they are the Formula One of birds, fast and furious. Non-raptor Observations: Today would not get a five start rating on Amazon. But having said that, it was a rewarding day in one sense; the early hours had our usual suspects but the later hours had sparse but special birds. We had seventy seven turkey vultures, although no big groups and no assemblies in the usual staging area over Canada. Four harriers were seen in widely spaced appearances. One osprey was noted. Four red-tails made the blog. Sharp-shins, a big performer yesterday, were notably absent today, especially in the afternoon hours. Twenty eight of them, a normal hour’s count lately, were seen. The birds of the day were the falcons. The early hours had kestrels racing by but as the day progressed and the winds took their toll, only the most resolute flyers capable of slicing through the winds made it to our site. It was one of those days where they stayed low behind the trees and popped out very quickly to make the crossing. We ended with 10 kestrels, five merlins and six peregrine falcons on the day. It’s always rewarding to see the peregrines fly as they are the Formula One of birds, fast and furious. Predictions: Tomorrow has winds from all directions implying that we are near the center of a low. The barometer will be low and getting lower as this passes. Rain is forecast for the day although lower chances of it early in the day with a higher chance in the early afternoon hours. Cloud cover should be substantial. Not a day to go out on a limb and predict movement of raptors although some hardy souls may move. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Kevin Georg (kevin.l.georg@gmail.com) Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at: http://www.detroitriverhawkwatch.org More site information at hawkcount.org: http://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=285