Date: 10/11/24 5:00 pm From: <reports...> Subject: [birders] Detroit River Hawk Watch (11 Oct 2024) 2024 Raptors
Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 11, 2024 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours
Official Counter: Michael Patrikeev
Observers: Jo Patterson, Rosemary Brady
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: Light winds, mainly from the south. Temperature rose to the comfortable +24C (75F) in the afternoon, a reminder that calm balmy days will not last much longer.
Raptor Observations: Today, our raptor count equaled ... 2024! Was it a numerological message sent to us? Remains to be decoded) Although 2024 is a decent number, it did not come even close to yesterday's total of 5959.
Turkey Vultures accounted for 1890 of today's count. We checked Wikipedia, looking for some hidden meaning, and found out that "In 1890, Benjamin Harry Warren, an ornithologist from Pennsylvania, published a colored lithograph of a turkey vulture and a Cooper's hawk"!
The majority of vultures were streamed though over "The Stacks" between 11 AM and 2 PM, in large and small groups.
We also counted a 110 Sharp-shinned Hawks, but the number of all other species were in single digits.
Non-raptor Observations: A very slow day for Blue Jays; only 205 were counted. Forster's Terns were sighted again, though they remained downstream from the count site.
Predictions: We expect cooler temperatures and easterly winds tomorrow, i.e, conditions favorable for migrating hawks and vultures at this site. Perhaps, there is another aerial spectacle in store for us! ======================================================================== Report submitted by Erika Van Kirk (<erika_vankirk...>) Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at: http://www.detroitriverhawkwatch.org
