This past week has been quite interesting. Visitors to the Point, including Michigan Audubon's September tour participants, were treated to incredibly good weather for the last week of September. While the weather and temperatures have been unseasonably pleasant, this prolonged stretch of east-southeasterly breeze has essentially stalled much of the major pushes of waterbird [...]
This past week featured the most exciting and dynamic migration activity so far this season at Whitefish Point! Pileated Woodpecker in active migration passing by the Waterbird Shack. Photo by Mike McBrien. The dabbling duck diversity is coming into full swing, with some nice flights of wigeon and pintails. This past week [...]
The week started with one of the largest pushes of waterbirds so far this fall. A strong northeasterly breeze blowing down from the southern Hudson Bay brought an enormous flight of Canada Geese on Sept. 7. A few flocks were evident in the early morning. However, once 10 o'clock came around, migrant groups began [...]
This past week has been highlighted by an early fall heat wave that stretched across much of the Midwest, bringing balmy temperatures reaching almost 80 degrees on at least four days. On multiple days, the strong southerly breeze accompanying this heat wave had thwarted southbound migration, with waterbirds reluctant to spend excess energy fighting [...]
Over the past week, the waterbird count has experienced a couple slower days of migration but has also been highlighted by the arrival of several new species and a few interesting sightings. Red-necked Grebes continue moving in good numbers and have been the most prevalent species on flight days. August 25 showcased a large [...]
This past week was bookended by two strong weather fronts, each bringing an interesting array of waterbirds to the area. A powerful cold front passed across the region on the morning of Aug. 17. Down-pouring rain and a strong southerly breeze met me upon arrival at the waterbird shack. After three hours of pelting [...]
The fall 2023 waterbird count got off to a strong start with some excellent weather and pleasantly warm temperatures for the first two days of the season. Many visitors to the Point this week (including myself) could be seen in short-sleeved shirts and shorts, enjoying the pleasant conditions. Waterbird migration so far has been [...]
As November rolls in, that means we have almost reached the end of the fall waterbird count. Even though there has yet to be snow that has stayed on the ground, the water and woods at the Point are dominated by winter species, including Long-tailed Duck, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, and Common Merganser. Winter finch [...]
Greater Scaup. Photo by Alec Olivier The recent week has continued to prove that October is the month for migrating waterbirds. Long-tailed Ducks continue to migrate in notable numbers, with several days over 1,000 recently. Slow days comprise around 200–300 Long-tailed Ducks, which for any other species is a great day. Common [...]
This week was much slower than the previous week, but there have still been some decent flights of waterbirds. As of the writing of this blog, the season total for Long-tailed Ducks is 36,438! This is the highest season total for the fall waterbird count, and this is likely due to the major windstorm [...]
