Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 03, 2023 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 180 1166 3339 Osprey 0 2 53 Bald Eagle 0 5 77 Northern Harrier 5 25 380 Sharp-shinned Hawk 55 342 4099 Cooper's Hawk 0 4 15 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 2 2 Broad-winged Hawk 0 26 107610 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 0 15 101 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 3 84 1069 Merlin 0 3 34 Peregrine Falcon 0 4 24 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 1 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 243 1678 116805 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: Andrew Sturgess, Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Bill Peregord, Don Sherwood, Jackie Quinones, Mark Hainen, Rosemary Brady, Sabrina Salome Visitors: We welcome visitors to our site and are very willing to share migration information, photography and ID tips with them. We have cards and pamphlets, so come and talk to us. However, during times of high traffic, requiring extra focus and concentration, we would respectfully ask that everyone use their indoor voices and allow us to fulfill our mission to the best of our abilities. Thank you. Weather: We have dropped below the dew point the last few days. As we drive into the park, the low sun angle serves to illustrate that the spider population is thriving as hundreds of their dew-bejeweled webs sparkle in the early morning light. The high humidity has also brought us foggy starts to the recent days and so it was again this morning. Canada and the “stacks” were hidden from view as we commenced the watch. The atmosphere never entirely cleared during the day, making distant observations a difficult task. Morning winds were light, and following the pattern of the last few days, grew in strength coming from a generally SSE direction. Temperatures reached the high seventies but the breeze coming off the lake kept us comfortable. The barometer was slowly declining off its highs. Raptor Observations: I think we need a change of weather. We have milked this high-pressure system for nearly all its worth. Turkey vultures led the charge again today but most were difficult to see in a hazy sky. Coupled with an adverse wind pushing them elsewhere, we only managed to snag 180 of them today. Sharp-shinned hawks, the perpetual runners-up, added fifty-five to our daily total. Five northern harriers, at least one was a gray ghost, came through today. Our last species, the American kestrel, waited until the final hour to make an appearance with three showing up. It was hard work staring into a bright blue dome for little reward today. Non-raptor Observations: Five pied-billed grebes were seen near the lotus plants in the channel. A pair of shovelers were keeping the usual mallards company. We had some sightings of flying killdeers today, always giving the pulse a bump as they resemble falcons at first glance. We are only seeing one Caspian tern in front of us now so some of them may have left. The Forster’s terns were more evident this morning. Some swallows are still being seen pretty high in the sky. The temporary “resident” ospreys were noted again today; not yet willing to continue their migration. The big flock of cormorants have not been seen close by for a couple of days. A small raft of about fifty coots continue to commune on the lake side of the site. We only managed to see 700 blue jays and sixty-one monarch butterflies today. Predictions: We should see some change tomorrow. Cloud cover should increase dramatically from the bare blue cupboard we have been peering into. The temperatures will be unseasonably warm again with a second day of high seventy-degree weather. Winds will be stronger from the get-go, but still coming from an unfavorable direction starting with S. The barometer will continue to fall as rain is predicted for Thursday. We will know on Thursday whether that prediction holds, as it didn’t materialize when the last system passed through. Signs point to another day of birds being pushed away by a stronger wind than today. ======================================================================== 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-2023