Date: 10/22/25 3:28 pm From: <reports...> Subject: [birders] Detroit River Hawk Watch (22 Oct 2025) 433 Raptors
Detroit River Hawk Watch
Brownstown, Michigan, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 22, 2025
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Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 4.5 hours
Official Counter: Jo Patterson
Observers:
Visitors:
We welcome visitors to our site as we are eager to share the joys of hawk
watching with one and all. Although there may be times in which we are all
very busy and need alone-time to concentrate, those are the times that are
most enjoyable for visitors as the skies are filled with migrating raptors.
Weather:
A light drizzle lingered through most of the day, occasionally thickening
into brief, heavier showers. By the final two hours, the rain had settled
in for good, steady enough to force an early end to the watch. A moderate
southwest breeze sent droplets slanting past us in thin, wind-driven
sheets, and leaves spiraled through the air like confetti. More foliage
came down today than in the past three weeks combined. All other weather
variables held remarkably steady, leaving the data sheet looking as
monotonous as the sky itself.
Raptor Observations:
In the second hour, a loose group of Turkey Vultures that had roosted
overnight on Gibraltar lifted into view, gliding low overhead. The treetops
acted like a magician’s hat—one bird after another rising from the
crowns until the sky was strung with silhouettes. Battling the headwind,
many appeared frozen in place, suspended like dark ornaments against the
gray. By the end of the watch, we tallied four hundred thirty-one. A lone
Sharp-shinned Hawk darted past on a gust, buffeted so hard it seemed to
have lost all control of its flight path. A Red-tailed Hawk followed,
moving with only a touch more composure than the sharpie, its wide wings
steady but still at the mercy of the wind.
Non-raptor Observations:
Gulls and swallows cut through the drizzle, their silhouettes vanishing and
reappearing in the haze, while most other species wisely hunkered down. The
resident Cooper’s Hawk made a brief, low pass, and a young Bald Eagle
cruised through once before vanishing into the mist.
Predictions:
Tomorrow should bring scattered showers, mainly after 2 p.m., under mostly
cloudy skies. Highs will hover near 52°F. A west-northwest wind around 11
mph could usher in some migrants, though we’re not expecting a major
push.
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Report submitted by Jo Patterson (<jopatterson06...>)
Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at:
http://www.detroitriverhawkwatch.org
