This week has been the most exciting of the season thus far! One of the greatest tests of spring hawkwatching is the long wait for the explosion of raptor flight in late April. This year did not disappoint! We started the week off strong with a beautiful sunny day with light winds, which created excellent thermals for Broad-winged Hawks and the seasons first Swainson’s Hawk! This dark adult spent most of the afternoon around the point, and we would end up seeing it on two more days later in the week. The 21st also delivered our first Osprey of the year, and a sure sign that spring is here.
Swainson’s Hawk. Photo by Sean McLaughlin
April 22nd was a great flight, not huge in numbers, but unique in that we counted 15 species of raptors! There was also a fantastic flight of Northern Flickers throughout the morning, 298 being the final tally. An approaching cold front is usually a recipe for good spring raptor flights, as cyclonic counter-clockwise winds create southerlies ahead of the front. The 23rd and 24th ended up both being excellent flights under these conditions. Noteworthy totals were 1,088 Sharp-shinned Hawks and 161 American Kestrels on the 23rd and 7 Osprey and 29 Northern Harriers on the 24th.
Northern Harrier. Photo by Sean McLaughlin
The weekend started off damp and foggy after the cold front passed on Friday night, but greatly improved Sunday morning. Our best sharpie day of the year, with swarms of the tiny accipiters swirling past the first large kettles of the season. There was a perfect sky of mixed blue and wispy cirrus, and there were several whoops of joy on the platform that day! Monday was a perfect second course, with a massive liftoff of Sharp-shinned Hawks (600+ before 9AM!) and a steady flight of low birds pinned to the dunes by gusty SE winds. There were a number of low Broad-winged Hawks, some of the lowest I have ever seen in active migration! A huge thank you to all who came out this weekend to enjoy the spectacle of bird migration. It brings me a lot of joy to share the insanity of big hawk flights at the point with like-minded individuals. There is still plenty of time and plenty more sharpies to come, so I hope to see you at the point.
Sharp-shinned Hawk, Photo by Sean McLaughlin
Sean McLaughlin, Raptor Counter
Featured Photo: Merlin by S. McLaughlin
You can now see the raptor count data on Trektellen! Check it out at trektellen.nl/count/view/4562.
You can keep up with the 2026 Raptor Count by reading Sean’s weekly blog posts and following WPBO’s social media (Facebook, Instagram, and X). The raptor count runs March 15 through May 31.
Sean is a hawk watcher from Pennsylvania who has enjoyed watching birds migrate for over 15 years. A lifelong birder and naturalist, Sean has counted raptors at Stone Mountain and Tussey Mountain hawk watches in PA, before moving to the shore of Lake Superior. He has led the count team for four seasons at Hawk Ridge and three at the West Skyline Hawk Count in Duluth, Minnesota, instilling a deep love for the Great Lakes. In Duluth, Sean also conducts morning flight counts of passerines and other migrants. Outside of the world of watching migration, Sean has studied American Goshawks in the mountains of Oregon, breeding birds in northern Minnesota, and instructed courses at Hog Island Audubon Camp. He is excited to return to eastern Lake Superior for a second spring at Whitefish Point, particularly for the epic Sharp-shinned Hawk and Common Loon flights.
