Date: 9/22/26 3:03 pm From: <reports...> Subject: [birders] Detroit River Hawk Watch (22 Sep 2026) 2499 Raptors
Detroit River Hawk Watch
Brownstown, Michigan, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 22, 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, Don Sherwood, Mark Hainen, Rebekah Graham ,
Rosemary Brady
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:
�Oh a mighty winds a blowin', it's kickin' up the sand.� Thanks to the
Folkmen for encapsulating our last two days. Another day of double-digit
winds buffeting, not only the birds, but the counters trying to count the
birds. Consistent speeds of eleven to fourteen mph, emanating from the
northeast, give or take a few degrees, kept the birds working hard to make
headway. The cloud formations battled for supremacy, sometimes splitting
the sky with cerulean blue and bright white cirrus clouds on one side,
ominous shades of purple hued assortments of cumulus on the other. In the
end a dreary gray matte finish of low stratus clouds won out. The
temperature reached sixty-three degrees. The barometer, despite the dour
appearance of the sky, topped out at 30.32 inches.
Raptor Observations:
When you shoot a very low round of golf, the following day is usually not
its equal. Such was the case with our totals today compared to yesterday.
Although we did manage to find four digits worth of raptors, it was much
more difficult than yesterday�s five-digit total. Broadwings led the way
with one thousand, nine hundred and ninety-three, starting slowly, and
losing steam from there. Turkey vultures are starting to feel the sap
rising and took the second step on the podium today with two hundred and
eighteen floating by. Sharp-shins were game today in a tough wind, almost
keeping pace with the TUVU�s, two hundred and twelve made the journey.
Twenty-one red-tailed hawks powered through. Kestrels were fluttering by,
thirty-three were counted. Northern harriers were not far behind with
nineteen notches on the bedpost. A single peregrine falcon was noted.
Non-raptor Observations:
The gulls were having their annual picnic in the sky today. They seemingly
populated every point of the matrix today creating confusion as they hawked
insects in front of the hawks. Most of the action took place in the
nose-bleed tiers of the stadium. We did see a handful of pelicans today,
one took to fishing with the cormorants during their daily bacchanalian
feast over the baitfish. Our local kingfisher made an appearance.
Pied-billed grebes are seen daily in the vegetation mat in the slip. Our
local great egret was displaced at the end of the watch by another great
egret, perhaps a shift change. Six super monarchs passed through today. Six
hundred and ninety blue jays passed over early in the watch.
Predictions:
It looks like the clouds will be with us again tomorrow. Temperatures
should be a couple of degrees higher. The winds will continue to howl with
another day of a little more easterly winds, still staying above ten miles
per hour and venturing up to fourteen. Make it stop! My face canna take no
more, as Scotty might say. The barometer will stay high, well above thirty
inches. The winds from this direction at the speeds predicted may push the
birds to the west before they reach our neck of the woods. The sharpies
should show up but broadwings, who I suspect their best days are behind
them, will probably not fill the skies tomorrow.
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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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