Date: 11/2/26 2:15 pm From: <reports...> Subject: [birders] Detroit River Hawk Watch (02 Nov 2026) 88 Raptors
Detroit River Hawk Watch
Brownstown, Michigan, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Nov 02, 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, Bill Peregord, 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:
A muted fall palette greeted us this morning, a yellow carpet of maple
leaves offset by a leaden sky of gray stratus with gun metal blue accents.
The splashes of color in the landscape provided by the trees wearing their
fall best were subdued, falling victim to the absence of sunlight. The
winds were not in our favor today. Starting at nine mph and climbing to
seventeen at one point, it stayed rooted in the southern end of the
compass. Whitecaps were running on the lake and occasional gusts would
create a shower of yellow leaves fluttering down from the maple. The
barometer dropped a tenth of an inch during the watch, ending at thirty
point eighteen. The temperature reached fifty-eight degrees. It was not a
promising day on paper and that forecast held true throughout the day.
Raptor Observations:
A lone harrier started the festivities in the first hour. For a time, it
looked like that may be our only bird. Finally, a few turkey vultures, well
off to the north were spotted in the third hour. We ended with eighty-four
on the day. They had a couple of red-tailed hawks sharing the trail with
them. Later, a solitary sharp-shinned hawk was noted. Although we saw local
eagles and a merlin and a peregrine, they were not deemed migratory.
Non-raptor Observations:
A lone male bufflehead was spotted, winging its way out onto the lake. We
had a potential spotting of a great black-backed gull out by the jetty. It
certainly fit the bill, but was too far away to positively confirm.
Bonaparte�s gulls were seen in small numbers today, out by the jetty, also
in the slip at one time. The gulls were busy up in the sky again today, at
a distance they often looked like raptors in the dark atmosphere. Six great
blue herons were seen flying in formation, something they seem to do at
this time of year. There are still plenty of cormorants around, although
the masses seen to have departed. Ducks could be seen migrating in distant
lines. The local eagles put on a show with one adult chasing a sub-adult
with great enthusiasm. When the younger bird rolled over in the defensive
position, it dropped a small shad that we had not seen, the adult dropped
down and expertly caught the fish on the fly.
Predictions:
The barometer will continue to tumble tomorrow as potential Wednesday rain
approaches. Winds will continue to blow from the south, around ten mph.
Neither of these things are good. The possibly good things are a sky only
partially obscured due to clouds and a warmer temperature borne on the back
of the southern wind. It is forecast to reach seventy-two degrees.
Hopefully, we can see a few birds tomorrow but it may be like today, few
and far between.
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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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