Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 23, 2021 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 20 4101 59904 Osprey 0 2 26 Bald Eagle 0 13 80 Northern Harrier 3 23 376 Sharp-shinned Hawk 6 162 6566 Cooper's Hawk 0 11 50 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 3 171 489 Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 21973 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 77 1980 3595 Rough-legged Hawk 0 3 4 Golden Eagle 1 46 61 American Kestrel 0 0 1068 Merlin 0 17 66 Peregrine Falcon 0 14 70 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 1 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 110 6543 94329 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 09:00:00 Observation end time: 15:30:00 Total observation time: 6.5 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Erika Van Kirk, Rosemary Brady Visitors: We are still dealing with the residue of the Covid 19 situation. The workers at the site will be in an enclosed area that is designed for four people only. We still love to interact and share our love of hawk watching with visitors. Feel free to ask questions and look over our shoulders to help you follow the birds. Watch the weather for favorable forecasts as the birds are predictable to some degree based on weather situations. One other thing of note this year; the boat-launch bathroom building has been shut down for the foreseeable future due to plumbing issues. There are Porta-Johns in the parking lot should you require them. Weather: Another cold day at the watch, but with diminished winds and plentiful sunshine we did not suffer. Winds were mostly WNW and well mannered in the six to seven mph range until midafternoon when the winds dropped suddenly and then resumed from WSW at about the same strength. We watched the wind turbines chase the wind around the compass. These are a more reliable indicator of local winds than the weather apps sometimes. The barometer peaked around noon at nearly 30.3” and then started to fall a little as another low-pressure system with rain approaches. Clouds were non-existent and sorely missed as a high blue sky is the toughest to find high flying raptors in. Raptor Observations: It was a strange day in some respects. Just about the time you thought the flight had stopped, a mass gathering of red-tails would prove you wrong. The mild winds caused the birds to seek a little more lift up higher where it blows harder. Not the easiest day to track birds with a shiny blue dome as the backdrop. Nevertheless, we did what we could, that’s why they pay us the big bucks. Red-tails led the way with seventy-seven specimens counted. Red-shoulders accounted for three in today’s count. Sharp-shinned hawks put a six on the ledger. Three northern harriers flew by. It was a little surprising to see twenty vultures, most in one kettle today. That’s the most we have seen together for some time. We did count one golden eagle today, a young bird that looked like he might come close for the waiting photographers before he took the elevator to the very top floor. Non-raptor Observations: The gulls were having another orgy today, gathering in huge numbers in the sky in a large kettle. Our local Bonaparte’s continue to fly around the slip. Plenty of ducks can be seen migrating but the large numbers we were seeing out on the lake may have moved on. A kingfisher flew by today; it’s been some time since we have seen that bird. A small flight of tundra swans was noted. A flock of cedar waxwings made the passage. Flights of cormorants can still be seen migrating although our local birds left some time ago. Predictions: It will warm up a little tomorrow into the forties. That’s the good news. The bad news is that strong winds from the SW will be the vehicle that delivers that warmth. Wind strength will be around fifteen mph and that is too strong for our site. Cloud cover will be increasing and the barometer will be dropping as a wet Thanksgiving is forecast. Friday looks to be a better day with a rebounding barometer and NW winds, but those may be too strong for us, put your money on Holiday Beach that day. ======================================================================== 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-2021