Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 27, 2023 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 854 80039 82172 Osprey 0 2 53 Bald Eagle 0 25 97 Northern Harrier 0 104 459 Sharp-shinned Hawk 64 2905 6658 Cooper's Hawk 1 40 51 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 169 169 Broad-winged Hawk 0 108 107690 Swainson's Hawk 0 1 1 Red-tailed Hawk 21 765 851 Rough-legged Hawk 1 10 10 Golden Eagle 0 5 5 American Kestrel 3 295 1280 Merlin 0 11 42 Peregrine Falcon 2 25 45 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 1 2 Unknown Falcon 0 0 1 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 946 84505 199586 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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, Mark Hainen, Patrick Mulawa, Sam Heilman 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: Another day of change, as heavy rain fell before the start of the watch and frequent revisions of the cloud structures kept the comfort level changing. It was a very warm day in the end, with temperatures reaching the seventy-six degree mark. Winds were mostly SSW, but ventured up to fifteen mph from WSW, before receding in the final hours. Cloud cover varied, but the most prevalent conditions allowed plenty of sunlight in the afternoon hours, enhancing the heat. The thermal haze was not in the north today, but the wind turbines in Canada had an eerie look to them. Raptor Observations: The flight lines were not hidden by haze today, as we had feared. It was mostly sharpies to start the day, but eventually, turkey vultures appeared and actually flew more or less directly over us, a pleasant surprise. This still being October, turkey vulture month, they lead the way with 854 floating by. It took them some time to get moving and it never seemed to be heavy traffic, but like your grocery bill that adds up when you buy small items, at the end of the day you have a fairly decent sized number. Sharp-shins began the count, flying sine wave patterns as they tried to dodge the worst of the wind, but they were a little hard to find in the final hours. We managed to locate sixty-four of them. We had a run of red-tailed hawks in the afternoon, but it was short-lived and we ended with twenty-one on the day. Three kestrels made it through. Two peregrine falcons were noted, the second was not seen until the first one made a dive at it. One Cooper’s hawk went through with the vultures. Also tagging along was a light-morph rough-legged hawk. This morph has been camera shy this year, only the dark-morph gave us good looks a few days ago. Non-raptor Observations: The high winds kept most of the birds away from our area again. Only a few blue jays were seen and even fewer crows were noted. Plenty of starlings rushed through in moderate sized groups in the morning hours. Our local ducks stayed put for the most part with few of them taking to the air. One lonely monarch was seen. Another day of all quiet on the windy front. Predictions: The temperatures will drop about twenty degrees tomorrow and even more in the following days. The winds turn to the west overnight and then more northerly as the day progresses. They will be perhaps a little stronger than we might prefer, but better than southerly winds, to be sure. The barometer will rapidly rise about three tenths of an inch, peaking at midday before falling again, as Sunday may bring showers. Skies should be partly cloudy. This appears to be the best day of a mixed lot but with a lot of change on the menu, the forecast may vary from day to day. The winds should be more favorable over the next few days but the rain showers may interfere and confuse matters. ======================================================================== 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