Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 24, 2025 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 37 206 206 Osprey 0 22 22 Bald Eagle 1 70 70 Northern Harrier 8 275 275 Sharp-shinned Hawk 9 2299 2299 Cooper's Hawk 0 8 8 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 4 50763 50763 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 8 107 107 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 3 735 735 Merlin 1 25 25 Peregrine Falcon 0 21 21 Unknown Accipitrine 0 0 0 Unknown Buteo 0 2 2 Unknown Falcon 0 1 1 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 1 1 Total: 71 54535 54535 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 4 hours Official Counter: Jo Patterson Observers: Visitors: We welcome visitors to our site as we are eager to share the joys of hawk watching with one and all. Although there may be times in which we are all very busy and need alone-time to concentrate, those are the times that are most enjoyable for visitors as the skies are filled with migrating raptors. Weather: A strong storm moved through early this morning and lasted until noon. Although the forecast had called for rain all day, the thunder stopped, and the dark gray clouds gave way to less intimidating white stratus. While blue skies were still several hours off, the northeast winds and break in precipitation were enough to get the raptors moving. Raptor Observations: A kettle of twenty-six Turkey Vultures kicked off the movement today. Their dark forms swirled in sharp contrast against the bright clouds before streaming over the parking lot. Another eleven vultures followed, bringing the dayâs total to thirty-seven. October is their month, so we expect to see many more soon. Other large raptors included eight red-tails, four broad-wings, and one Bald Eagle, all taking a similar path to the vultures. A Merlin accompanied one of the red-tails, living up to its reputation as it stooped and harassed the Buteo. The species less adept at soaring followed a slightly different lineânine Sharp-shinned Hawks, eight Northern Harriers, and three American Kestrels appeared over Celeron and crossed toward the southern end of the metropark. Non-raptor Observations: The local birds were the first to appear after the rain subsided. A Cooperâs Hawk chased Starlings, two adult Bald Eagles soared together over the water, and five unmotivated Turkey Vultures floated around the antennas. Blue Jays had an impressive afternoon flightânearly twelve thousand were counted. They passed by the hundreds overhead, flying low and visible even without binoculars. The Caspian Terns were noisy, and a Herring Gull took up residence on a buoy usually reserved for ring-bills. Predictions: Tomorrow should bring northwest winds at 3â6 mph. Although northwest winds usually favor Holiday Beach, we still expect a good flight. The rain has temporarily cooled temperatures by a few degrees, and with an overcast sky, we may need our sweatshirts. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Erika Van Kirk ([email protected]) 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 -- Ontbirds and Birdnews are moderated email Listservs provided by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) as a service to all birders in Ontario. Birdnews is reserved for announcements, location summaries, first of year reports, etc. To post a message on Birdnews, send an email to: [email protected]. If you have any questions or concerns, contact the Birdnews Moderators by email at [email protected]. Please review posting rules and guidelines at http://ofo.ca/site/content/listserv-guidelines To find out more about OFO, please visit our website at ofo.ca or Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists.
