Welcome to the new Detroit River Hawk Watch website hosted by the International Wildlife Refuge Alliance in partnership with the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge
Count Protocol
The naked eye, binoculars and spotting scopes are used to scan the sky for migrants. Spotters are often used to help the official counter locate birds. When a raptor is observed, a series of decisions is made.
In what direction is the bird heading?
Only birds moving to the south or southwest are defined as migrating. Any bird not moving into this quadrant is not counted.
What is next?
Once it has been determined that the bird is migrating, it is then identified to species using the standard field identification techniques (shape, color, pattern, wing beat cadence, behavior, etc.). If it is not possible to identify the bird, it is recorded as "unidentified." If possible, age and sex are also noted.
Official Tally
The bird is officially tallied only after it passes south of the observer. Any bird that does not pass that point is not counted. Each migrant species that is observed is recorded on a tabletop clicker with one button for each of 16 species. At the end of the hour, the species totals are documented and the clicker is cleared.
Broad-winged Hawks
Broad-wings save energy by riding thermals for lift. At times, hundreds or thousands of birds are using the same thermal. The birds are far too difficult to count while in these "kettles" which can look like a tornado swirling with birds.
Conveniently for counters, however, when the birds reach the top of the thermal, they glide out singly or in smaller numbers (often referred to as "streaming out"). As they stream out, the birds can be counted one at a time on our hand-held clickers. If necessary, they are counted 10 at a time (one click represents 10 birds). If there are too many birds for this, a block count method can be used on the stream (e.g., if 40 birds are in one field of view in the binoculars and 25 fields of view are required to scan a given group, 1,000 birds birds are tallied).
Bald Eagles and Osprey
Before a Bald Eagle or Osprey is officially tallied, it must demonstrate a migratory pattern as opposed to a behavior indicative of a transient or local bird. Birds are not counted as migrants if they are:
Eagles and osprey are counted if they are:
- in view for extended periods of time ("hanging out"),
- actively hunting, or flying "the wrong way".
Identifying individual birds by sex or age assists with the migrant/transient documentation. This procedure allows for a more conservative Bald Eagle and Osprey survey.
- using thermals,
- flying a straight course in the correct direction or
- at a very high altitude
Count Sites
It is important to note that two sites -- the Boat Launch at Lake Erie Metropark (LEMP) plus the headquarters of Pointe Mouillee State Game Area (PMSGA) about 2 miles to the south -- can and will be used simultaneously under certain conditions. This does not mean that birds are "double-counted". The positions of the north and south observation sites relative to the east-to-west migration path over the shoreline prevent it. (See map)
For example, raptors recorded at PMSGA, the southern site, will never be seen LEMP. Coming ashore at PMSGA, they disappear into the skies of Monroe County west or south of the count site. and will never be seen again by DRWH during this migration. However a raptor, if observed at the northern LEMP site, will do one of two things:
1. continue further inland before adjusting to a more southerly course orIf it swings to the southwest, the geography of the shoreline brings the bird over land behind PMGSA count site. As stated above, the birds are counted only when they cross the counter's line, but not if they appear behind the observers.
2. swing immediately to the southwest.
Simultaneous use of the sites is irregular at best and depends on wind direction (see weather section). The majority of the season's hours come from the LEMP site. Also, all numbers are recorded separately and can be analyzed separately.
History
The Lake Erie Metropark Hawk Watch was established in 1983 under the leadership of Tim Smart. Smart had counted hawks for several seasons at Holiday Beach Conservation Area in Malden Center, Ontario, Canada. He knew that birds moving past Holiday Beach had to cross into Michigan near the Detroit region. Smart scouted the area, trying to find the best and most consistent concentration of hawks. His efforts were soon rewarded with two sites, the LEMP Boat Launch (the main site) and Pointe Mouille State Game Area Headquarters parking lot (a secondary site), located just south of the Metropark. Both are located just 20 miles south of Detroit in Wayne County, and just eight miles (as the hawk flies) across the Detroit River from Holiday Beach Migaration Observatory
Smart and a handful of dedicated volunteers began counting, mainly on weekends. Even with this limited amount of coverage, Smart knew he had stumbled onto something big.This was fully realized during the fall of 1990 when the counters logged in their first full season of coverage, producing an astounding 106,235 birds.
Smart served as coordinator of the watch for 16 years. His efforts established the Lake Erie Metropark Hawk Watch as one of the premier fall hawk sites in North America, with some of the most spectacular hawk flights ever recorded. In 1998, Lake Erie Metropark Hawk Watch became Southeastern Michigan Raptor Research (SMRR) and was granted nonprofit status. Smart retired soon afterwards, handing the leadership of SMRR to veteran counter Jeff Schultz.
In April of 2001, Schultz stepped down from the Presidency and became a member-at-large. Paul Cypher, an interpreter at Lake Erie Metropark, was voted in as president. The 2001 season marked a new chapter in SMRR's efforts to monitor the hawk migration over southeast Michigan. DTE Energy demonstrated its continued environmental support by generously providing SMRR a stipend to fund a full-time hawk counter. Their generous support continued for seven seasons. During these years of paid help, SMRR has been fortunate enough to hire two of the best counters in the business: Craig Fosdick and Calvin Brennan.
The 2007 count season saw the addition of two new co-sponsors. The International Wildlife Refuge Alliance and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service contributed funding for a counter. In addition, the USFWS granted funding to help facilitate data entry from all SMRR seasons into a national database.
The 2008 count season was a transition year. SMRR turned over the count to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge, and the International Wildlife Refuge Alliance.
For 2009, the counter is Seth Cutright and formal data analysis and compilation of the historical data is being conducted by Drew Panko. The priority of the U.S.FWS and IWRA is continuation of systematic monitoring and data collection, its compliation, and communication, however, education regarding this incredible natural feature of Southeast Michigan continues to be an important component of the endeavor.
