Detroit River Hawk Watch
Brownstown, Michigan, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 15, 2024
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Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total
------------------ ----------- -------------- --------------
Black Vulture 0 0 0
Turkey Vulture 0 2960 64534
Osprey 0 0 18
Bald Eagle 2 64 202
Northern Harrier 0 20 340
Sharp-shinned Hawk 0 81 3472
Cooper's Hawk 0 33 108
American Goshawk 0 2 2
Red-shouldered Hawk 0 150 316
Broad-winged Hawk 0 0 6785
Swainson's Hawk 0 0 1
Red-tailed Hawk 5 1005 1934
Rough-legged Hawk 0 4 18
Golden Eagle 0 73 117
American Kestrel 0 1 410
Merlin 0 2 25
Peregrine Falcon 0 3 31
Unknown Accipiter 0 3 18
Unknown Buteo 0 15 46
Unknown Falcon 0 0 13
Unknown Eagle 0 3 6
Unknown Raptor 0 2 30
Total: 7 4421 78426
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Observation start time: 09:00:00
Observation end time: 16:00:00
Total observation time: 7 hours
Official Counter: Michael Patrikeev
Observers: Bill Peregord, Don Sherwood, Jo Patterson,
Michelle Peregord
Visitors:
We welcome visitors to our site by the boat launch in Lake Erie Metropark.
We have brochures and educational information we are happy to share. Let us
share our enthusiasm for migration and raptors with you! While we welcome
your questions and company, please know that our professional counter,
apprentices, and volunteers must communicate with each other frequently to
successfully conduct the count, and they also must maintain an unobstructed
view of the horizon.
Weather:
Overcast and high humidity all day long. Light winds, under 16 km/hour (10
mi/hr), turning gradually from West to north-west. Temperature steady
between +9 and +11C (48-52F).
Raptor Observations:
Uneventful. It rained all day yesterday, and birds were likely drenched and
reluctant to fly. We counted only five Red-tailed Hawks and two juvenile
Bald Eagles, outscoring Holiday Beach 7 to 4... We'd rather have it the
other way around, but with the numbers multiplied by a hundred.
Non-raptor Observations:
Fifty-nine (59) American Crows were seen today. However, most of them flew
in the opposite direction, i.e., from this side of the river towards
Gibraltar.
One male Northern Pintail, befriended by three local Mallards, visited the
site in the morning, and almost 100 mergansers (of undetermined species)
traveled upriver.
Bonaparte's Gulls, as always, were present on the scene, feeding. However,
two of them went after a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk. The hawk fled across the
river, with the loudly protesting gulls on its heels! One of the gulls
likely scored a hit (or, at least, it looked that way from the ground). The
hawk, shaken by such impudence, had to perch in a tree to collect itself.
Two Carolina Wrens inspected tires of all vehicles parked by the count
site, likely assessing preparedness for the coming winter.
Other birds of interest included American Trees Sparrow and Junco.
Predictions:
Honestly, we do not know what tomorrow has in store for us. It seems that
wind forecast changes hourly. In the morning, they promised northerly winds
all day long, but modified that prediction later in the day, now calling
for southerly after 10 AM.
Will that affect hawk count results? Definitely.
Is raptor migration already over for 2024? We'll find out in the two
remaining weeks of the count.
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Report submitted by Erika Van Kirk (erika_vank...@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
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