Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 29, 2016 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 347 33847 35167 Osprey 0 5 23 Bald Eagle 4 66 120 Northern Harrier 1 104 327 Sharp-shinned Hawk 8 1808 4314 Cooper's Hawk 0 62 106 Northern Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 205 206 Broad-winged Hawk 0 130 17529 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 35 1308 1442 Rough-legged Hawk 0 4 4 Golden Eagle 3 21 21 American Kestrel 0 68 546 Merlin 0 19 37 Peregrine Falcon 1 24 28 Unknown Accipiter 0 2 5 Unknown Buteo 0 32 41 Unknown Falcon 0 0 2 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 0 1 12 Total: 399 37706 59930 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: Dustin Brewer Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood, Rosemary Brady Visitors: We had a good number of visitors come to the site today, including Jill and her boy named Travis (who got to see his first Golden Eagle!). Weather: Even at the beginning of the day, there was no need to wear anything warmer than a light coat. In fact, it was so warm that most of the raptors thought it was summer and therefore decided not to migrate. Well, that may not be exactly true. The barometric pressure dropped slightly throughout the day, and the wind always came from the west. Raptor Observations: We spotted a couple hundred Turkey Vultures over Canada this morning, and had a slow trickle of these birds throughout the rest of day. Three Golden Eagles migrated over the count site today, as did four Bald Eagles. We spotted notably few Sharp-shinned Hawks (8). Red-tailed Hawks were the most common raptor sighted, with 24 individuals spotted between 11 and 1. Non-raptor Observations: The most unusual sighting of the day was a juvenile Snow Goose, which gained our attention by honking as it flew by. Only five American Crows were spotted today. At least a couple Monarch butterflies are still flying south over Michigan. A House Finch and several Horned Larks were also spotted. Predictions: Rain is predicted to fall all morning. It may stop by the afternoon, at which point the favorable north winds could help to produce raptors over the count site. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Detroit River Hawk Watch (greg_norw...@fws.gov) Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at: http://www.drhawkwatch.org _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to birdalert@ontbirds.ca For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists