Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 02, 2024 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 775 812 1745 Osprey 0 0 16 Bald Eagle 6 11 44 Northern Harrier 13 21 204 Sharp-shinned Hawk 66 155 2292 Cooper's Hawk 1 2 41 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 12 20 6768 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 34 35 90 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 17 20 299 Merlin 2 2 16 Peregrine Falcon 0 2 10 Unknown Accipiter 1 1 6 Unknown Buteo 0 2 15 Unknown Falcon 1 1 9 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 3 25 Total: 928 1087 11580 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: Michael Patrikeev Observers: Bill Peregord, Jo Patterson, Johannes Postma Visitors: We welcome visitors to our site by the boat launch in Lake Erie Metro Park. We are willing to spread the word with pamphlets and information cards, along with tips on raptors identification. Let us share our enthusiasm for this miracle of nature with you. Weather: Mainly clear skies; light winds at 1-6 miles per hour (2-10 km/hr), northerly in the morning, changing to westerly in the afternoon. It was relatively cool, 55-65F (+12 to 19C). Raptor Observations: A slow start turned into a spectacular flight of Turkey Vultures, with two peaks, between 11 and noon, and from 3 to 4 PM. We counted 785 of them! Sharp-shinned Hawks were seen, but not in high numbers (66), mainly in the afternoon. Red-tailed Hawks, on the other hand, made their greatest appearance since the beginning of 2024 count, 34 birds; some were spotted in kettles of Turkey Vultures. In addition, we counted 17 kestrels, 12 harriers, and same number of Broad-winged Hawks. Bald Eagles are clearly moving through the area, and we logged six. Both Merlins, seen at the count site today, lived up to their reputation. One stooped at a gull, and another harassed a passing male harrier. Non-raptor Observations: We counted fewer Blue Jays today (2,660) than earlier in the week. Predictions: A mix of sun and cloud, and westerly and northerly winds are in weather forecast for tomorrow. We expect to see good numbers of Turkey Vultures, and probably Red-tailed Hawks, kestrels and harriers. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Erika Van Kirk (erika_vankirk@fws.gov) 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