Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 21, 2022 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 0 60 60 Osprey 1 11 11 Bald Eagle 0 21 21 Northern Harrier 1 112 112 Sharp-shinned Hawk 25 1657 1657 Cooper's Hawk 0 6 6 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 0 31507 31507 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 0 97 97 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 15 455 455 Merlin 0 15 15 Peregrine Falcon 0 12 12 Unknown Accipiter 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 0 0 Unknown Falcon 0 0 0 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 0 0 Total: 42 33953 33953 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 6.5 hours Official Counter: Kevin Georg Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Mark Hainen, Sarah deGuise Visitors: We are located by the boat launch in Lake Erie Metropark in a fenced off area at the Hawk Watch site. This does not mean that we do not welcome interaction with any and all visitors. We enjoy talking about what we do and sharing our knowledge with beginners and experts alike. Please feel free to come up and talk to us. We usually have our backs turned to the parking lot as we scan the skies in front of us. This should not be interpreted as a sign of reluctance to engage; this is how we do our job. We have friendly people that do not bite and the welcome mat is always out. Weather: When I said in yesterday’s forecast that today’s weather looked like a mixed bag, little did I know. The day got off to a good start with bright blue skies and SW winds that buffeted the sharpies and kestrels but were not insurmountable. Soon the skies turned much more complex and threatening and with good reason. A line of thunderstorms with lots of red accents on the radar was approaching. As is usual with these storms they tend to peter out and split around our site, so despite the severe weather warning it was the early afternoon before we were temporarily forced to abandon our station due to, at first, lightning, and then heavy rain for some time. Perhaps I only skimmed yesterday’s forecast but I do not remember seeing thunderstorms mentioned. We had a pretty good series of them last night but as it turned out, they were not finished with us. The only consistent thing today was the downward march of the barometer. The day was hot and humid with the sky showing one of each from the cloud catalogue as each level was occupied by a different class of cloud, as befits a turbulent day. Describing them all is beyond the scope of this report. Even as we settled into an afternoon featuring real-feel temps near 90 degrees we saw ever-changing displays of high white clouds with lower, leaden-gray cumulus water balloons laboring by. If indeed, this was summer’s last hurrah, it went out with a memorable bang. Raptor Observations: The first hour was business as usual in some respects. The sharpies continued their run and the kestrels came along too. They were taking the scenic routes as the winds were robust enough to alter their intended flight patterns considerably. Although the winds and the gusts changed directions and strengths it was a bumpy ride for these small birds all day. The weather slowed the flow after the first hour and the later hours were not for those short on commitment. We ended the day with twenty-five sharp-shins and fifteen kestrels, a far cry from yesterday’s count but under markedly different weather conditions. We also tagged one northern harrier that flew by early and a later osprey that seemed in no hurry to fight its way south into the head-winds. Non-raptor Observations: The blue jays were on the move again today but they were staying low behind the trees trying to avoid unnecessary expenditures of energy. We counted approximately 2,400, mostly in the morning hours before the storm interrupted the watch. The cormorants that seemed absent yesterday came streaming out by Celeron Island in very long, low strings headed for Lake Erie. They seem to be gathering into larger flocks. Swallows were up today, accompanied by the occasional chimney swift. Gulls seemed fewer in number but that can change from day to day. A mink ran across the road as I left this afternoon. Predictions: Tomorrow will feel a lot better with temperatures falling into the sixties and the barometer rising. Classic cold front conditions with a NW wind to boot. The fly in the ointment is that the winds will be close to twenty mph hour to start the day and only gradually diminish during the watch, maybe too much of a good thing. Bring a layer or two if you come down to visit us. Friday might be a better day as the barometer continues to rise and the winds will be more moderate and from a similar direction. I hope that we paid our dues today and will be rewarded over the next two days, but time will tell. ======================================================================== 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-2022