Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 23, 2014 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 2201 69758 Osprey 0 0 56 Bald Eagle 0 86 331 Northern Harrier 7 88 392 Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 132 4603 Cooper's Hawk 2 54 456 Northern Goshawk 0 6 9 Red-shouldered Hawk 1 176 742 Broad-winged Hawk 0 1 184860 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 4 Red-tailed Hawk 11 1482 4283 Rough-legged Hawk 1 16 26 Golden Eagle 4 73 124 American Kestrel 0 2 563 Merlin 0 3 46 Peregrine Falcon 0 4 51 Unknown Accipiter 0 4 31 Unknown Buteo 0 8 33 Unknown Falcon 0 0 4 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 9 41 Total: 26 4345 266413 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 11:00:00 Observation end time: 15:30:00 Total observation time: 4.5 hours Official Counter: Jonathan Stein Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood Visitors: 1 Weather: Morning showers led to a late start. Fog lingered late into the day, limiting visibility considerably. For a short time during the early afternoon it appeared as if we might get some clearing, but gray clouds soon rolled in again to darken the sky. The wind was light and out of the south. Raptor Observations: Not much hesitation from migrants today. Dealing with south wind and overcast skies, raptors stayed low and pumped hard, pushing through the viewing area without delay. A light morph Rough-legged Hawk kicked things off, shooting into the tree to our right a little after 1130. Harriers, Redtails and Goldens picked up the slack after that, with all three species treating us to pleasing looks. Non-raptor Observations: Snow Bunting (60+), Lapland Longspur (4), Horned Lark (45+), Pine Siskin (75+), Tree Swallow (1), American Black Duck (3), Red-breasted Merganser (3), Horned Grebe (8), Tundra Swan (20+), Canvasback (15+) Predictions: Mostly cloudy skies with mild temps, strong south wind and an 80 percent chance of rain. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Jonathan Stein (steinjj19@gmail.com) Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at: http://www.drhawkwatch.org Site Description: The Detroit River Hawk Watch (a joint venture of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge and its Friends group, the International Wildlife Refuge Alliance) is the Boat Launch at Lake Erie Metropark located approximately 20 miles south of Detroit, Michigan. The location is at the mouth of the Detroit River as it enters Lake Erie. Directions to site: Lake Erie Metropark: >From I-75, exit at Huron River Drive (exit 27). Continue east on Huron River Drive. Turn left on West Jefferson and proceed a few hundred yards to the entrance of Lake Erie Metropark. After paying the entrance fee, follow the signs to the Boat Launch.