Date: 10/27/25 3:13 pm From: <reports...> Subject: [birders] Detroit River Hawk Watch (27 Oct 2025) 1869 Raptors
Detroit River Hawk Watch
Brownstown, Michigan, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Oct 27, 2025
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Observation start time: 08:00:00
Observation end time: 15:00:00
Total observation time: 7 hours
Official Counter: Jo Patterson
Observers: Andrew Sturgess, Don Sherwood, Johannes Postma
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:
What might have been. The day started well, with northeast winds, albeit
strong ones, pushing buteos to our site. They were popping out of the trees
like a ruptured Jiffy-pop spewing popcorn hither and yon. By noon, we had
easily surpassed our best red-tail day by nearly fifty birds. Then the
dreaded beast from the east awoke from its slumber. The wind shift, along
with an increase in strength, cleansed the sky as if by magic. We spent the
rest of the day searching for remnants of what had been a mighty stream of
raptors. The wind started around nine mph and rose to fourteen as a
promising day turned to what might have been. The temperature was
fifty-seven but the wind chill was significant. The barometer has started
to decline, as more cloud and rain are on the way later in the week.
Raptor Observations:
We have had days of multiple hundreds of red-tails before and this day
started off in that manner. It seemed to be a normal day at first with
crows and turkey vultures jockeying for position over Canada. The last
couple of days, with crow migration in full song, they have at times been
crossing paths with the turkey vultures, making counting a more interesting
procedure. We did manage to separate sixteen hundred and fifty turkey
vultures, giving them the top podium step, but a with a big decline from
recent day’s numbers. Red-tailed hawks were on the move today with one
hundred and sixty-one, zipping by early on a fast wind much to their
liking. Forty-five red-shouldered hawks accompanied them in the first few
morning hours. Four was the number shared by both harriers and golden
eagles. Three of the goldens seemed to be traveling together as they came
in quick succession. Two was shared by sharp-shins and bald eagles. We had
a single Cooper’s hawk pass by.
Non-raptor Observations:
Although the pelicans made a late appearance, the skies and choppy waters
in front of us were nearly empty. The exception being some migrating lines
of cormorants, and some local ones up soaring in a near imitation of the
pelican style of wheeling in the sky. It’s always a little odd to see
those birds up soaring when you think of them as a bird that spends half
its life underwater. The crows started strong but did not last in the wind
switch. They still managed to accumulate six thousand, one hundred and
eighty-two, so for the second day in a row, they beat out the turkey
vultures. The monarchs aren't dead yet, two showed up today.
Predictions:
Tomorrow does not look good on paper. The winds will start in the east and
stay there, growing in strength as the day progresses. Starting at ten and
rising to sixteen mph means we may have sore eyes and wind-burned skin at
the end of the day. The barometer will continue to decline a little but
stay well above 30 inches. Temperatures should drop a couple of degrees
from today, and reside in the mid-fifties range. Given our recent
experiences with this wind, I would not expect good results tomorrow. The
following day does not look much better at this time.
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Report submitted by Andrew Sturgess (<ajyes72...>)
Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at:
http://www.detroitriverhawkwatch.org
