Date: 9/8/26 2:35 pm From: <reports...> Subject: [birders] Detroit River Hawk Watch (08 Sep 2026) 205 Raptors
Detroit River Hawk Watch
Brownstown, Michigan, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 08, 2026
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Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 7 hours
Official Counter: Gracie Sangmeister
Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Johannes Postma, Mark Hainen,
Rebekah Graham
Visitors:
We welcome visitors to our site at the Lake Erie Metropark Boat Launch. We
are always willing to discuss the events of the day. Let us share our
enthusiasm with you. There will be busy days that may require our full
attention, but those are not that frequent, and they provide great thrills
for all. We can predict good days to some degree, but the exact hour is up
to the birds, so be prepared to put in some time for the best results. Pack
a lunch😊
Weather:
Weatherwise, a rather benign day at the watch. Although the temperature
reached eighty-two degrees, which is a little north of my personal comfort
level, the moderate winds from the southeast coming off the lake kept us
fairly cool. The barometer was diving down, after peaking over 30.2 inches
at ten o�clock. The threat of stormy weather seems to have diminished,
although showers might be in our future in the morning hours. The cloud
cover was mostly icy cirrus clouds throughout the day. Delicate wisps and
swirls keeping us entertained as they slowly morphed while traveling across
the sky.
Raptor Observations:
A slower day than yesterday, without a late push of broad-wings to save the
day. Sharp-shins were determined to take the top step today. The Chicago
voters of birds, they came early and often. Just failing to crack the
century mark, ninety-nine of them came at us on all sides. Broad-wings were
not too far behind with eighty-six of them coming by in small groups,
usually under double digits. We saw no large kettles today, although the SE
wind may have pushed them to the north where the sky was very hazy and
visibility was limited. A big drop to our next species, the American
kestrel, with only seven representatives. We haven�t yet got the falcon
hat-trick but we have gotten two out of three, including today as three
merlins raced by in their usual menacing way. Five bald eagles pumped their
way through, showing determination to get to the over-wintering grounds.
Two harriers were seen out over the shipping channel. Two-red-tailed hawks
were also noted.
Non-raptor Observations:
Wild turkeys were seen on the way in this morning. The pelicans had a late
lunch out by the Celeron Island jetty today. Approximately thirty-five were
noted in their closed-ranks fishing formation. The swallows were less
evident today as the hatch must have been elsewhere. The gull kettles were
less numerous too. A great egret tried its hand at log rolling, trying
unsuccessfully to perch on a log that was not stable. A killdeer was seen
flying this morning, as well as the resident kingfisher. The Caspian terns
were squawking today, usually a sign of territorial dispute. Forster�s
terns are working the slip relentlessly.
Predictions:
Today was not horrible, tomorrow might be a little more so. Some
precipitation seems to be imminent, how much will be determined by chance.
The barometer is on a steep slope downwards; the winds are on a steep slope
upwards. Winds are predicted to be southwest at a peak of thirteen mph,
which is terrifying news. Temperatures will rise to eighty, with real-feels
of eighty-four due to high humidity. The southwest winds seem to be the
main factor here as we usually don�t do well on that wind, especially when
it is in the teens in mph.
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Report submitted by Andrew Sturgess (<ajyes72...>)
Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at:
http://www.detroitriverhawkwatch.org
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