Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 28, 2012 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 1210 35069 38817 Osprey 0 18 70 Bald Eagle 0 67 188 Northern Harrier 3 86 218 Sharp-shinned Hawk 15 1862 3492 Cooper's Hawk 11 218 355 Northern Goshawk 2 9 10 Red-shouldered Hawk 7 206 224 Broad-winged Hawk 0 4 40923 Swainson's Hawk 1 1 4 Red-tailed Hawk 110 852 1038 Rough-legged Hawk 4 6 6 Golden Eagle 1 4 4 American Kestrel 1 155 527 Merlin 1 16 37 Peregrine Falcon 0 14 30 Unknown Accipiter 2 27 47 Unknown Buteo 1 21 35 Unknown Falcon 0 1 2 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 1 41 77 Total: 1370 38677 86104 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 07:30:00 Observation end time: 15:30:00 Total observation time: 8 hours Official Counter: Jonathan Stein Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood Visitors: Darlene Friedman, Rosemary Brady, Rodney Laura, Jim Lynch, Tex Wells, Gail Bugosh, Phil Bugosh, Todd Palgut, Stevie Kuroda and Bruce Watson. Weather: Mostly overcast, the sun tried to peek through a few times but the thick gray clouds were having none of it. Temperatures were mostly in the mid 40s. The wind was strong and out of the north with gusts of more than 20 mph on occasion. Raptor Observations: Four Rough-legged Hawks, two Northern Goshawks, one Golden Eagle and a late October Swainson's Hawk made for a highly enjoyable flight today. With the north wind blustering and the clouds hanging low and thick, many raptors were shooting through fast and low. One of the goshawks came in so low we could hear the wing beats! The Swainson's Hawk, which was first sighted just above Celeron Island, didn't come as close but was nice enough to circle a few times out over the lake before making a bee line for the trees to our right. Non-raptor Observations: Dark-eyed Junco (2), Tree Swallow (30+), Cedar Waxwing (6), Brown Creeper (2), Northern Flicker (5), Pine Siskin (3), American Goldfinch (15+) and Bonaparte's Gull (10+) were seen at various points throughout the day. But the big story was the American Crows (75000+). During the late morning, a seemingly never ending stream of crows wound their way past the stacks and there were still plenty more to be seen in the afternoon. Predictions: Very much like today, it's going to be cloudy with strong wind out of the north. There is a 50 percent chance of precipitation. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Jonathan Stein (jonathanjst...@gmail.com) SMRR- Lake Erie Metropark information may be found at: http://www.drhawkwatch.org Site Description: The primary site used by the Detroit River Hawk Watch (a joint venture of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge and it's Friends group, the International Wildlife Refuge Alliance) is the Boat Launch at Lake Erie Metropark located approximately 20 miles south of Detroit, Michigan. A secondary site, the Headquarters of Pointe Mouillee State Game Area is used during certain wind conditions. When staffing is available, both sites can be used at the same time. The season begins on the first day of September and concludes on the final day of November. For details and directions, log on to www.drhawkwatch.org Directions to site: Lake Erie Metropark: >From I-75, exit at Huron River Drive (exit 27). Continue east on Huron River Drive. Turn left on West Jefferson and proceed a few hundred yards to the entrance of Lake Erie Metropark. After paying the entrance fee, follow the signs to the Boat Launch. _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca For information about ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/
