Michigan Audubon Office: (517) 580-7364|birds@michiganaudubon.org

Migration Counts

Seasonal staff at WPBO conduct waterbird counts in the spring and fall and a spring raptor count. During the seasons, counts are conducted daily. Raptor counts run March 15-May 31 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Waterbird counts run April 15-May 31 and August 15-November 15, 8 hours starting at dawn daily during each season. The Hawk Deck and Waterbird Shack are accessible to the public, and you can follow this blog to get regular updates during the counting seasons!

Spring Raptor Count 4/15-4/21–Highs and Lows

The third week of April at Whitefish Point was filled with some great days and unusual birds, as well as some pretty slow days. April 15 was a blustery, snowy day as a cold front rolled past. Few birds moving, but it was a treat to spot a Great Black-backed Gull. Following the cold [...]

2025-04-24T21:36:16-04:00April 22nd, 2025|Migration Counts, Raptor Count|Comments Off on Spring Raptor Count 4/15-4/21–Highs and Lows
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Spring Raptor Count 4/8-4/14–The Unstopping of the Cork

I am happy to announce that spring has arrived to Whitefish Point, in earnest! The tipping point has been coming for a while, and the combination of some warmer days and southerly winds really opened the floodgates of April migration. April 8th was nothing to write home about, except for a lone adult American [...]

2025-04-16T17:07:28-04:00April 15th, 2025|Migration Counts, Raptor Count|Comments Off on Spring Raptor Count 4/8-4/14–The Unstopping of the Cork
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WPBO Raptor Count 4/1-4/7 – Building Steam

The first week of April is a time of great anticipation. If the weather cooperates, massive early raptor flights can occur; if the weather does not cooperate, it can be reminiscent of March. This year, we were somewhere right in the middle, with a couple of days of decent flight and a few early [...]

2025-04-09T22:28:47-04:00April 8th, 2025|Migration Counts, Raptor Count|Comments Off on WPBO Raptor Count 4/1-4/7 – Building Steam
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WPBO 3/25-3/31 – March Recap

The first month of hawk watching at Whitefish Point this season has drawn to a close. Let's take a look back to see how the numbers from the last two weeks stack up! Turkey Vulture (1): The first vulture of the year was spotted on March 27, and vulture dances immediately commenced. It is [...]

2025-04-02T08:51:17-04:00April 1st, 2025|Migration Counts, Raptor Count|Comments Off on WPBO 3/25-3/31 – March Recap
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WPBO Raptor Count 3/18–3/24: Snow Days

The second week of the Raptor Count was a fairly chilly one, but productive! The largest flight of the week occurred on March 18, with a total of 40 raptors! Eagles led the charge; 15 Bald Eagles powered by, and 14 Golden Eagles spent quite a bit of time wandering up and down the [...]

2025-03-25T09:21:47-04:00March 25th, 2025|Migration Counts, Raptor Count|Comments Off on WPBO Raptor Count 3/18–3/24: Snow Days
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WPBO Raptor Count 3/15-17 – New Beginnings!

New Beginnings: Happy Spring! My name is Sean McLaughlin, and I will serve as the 2025 Raptor Counter at Whitefish Point Bird Observatory (WPBO). Like previous counters, I will provide a weekly blog with updates and news regarding hawk migration along eastern Lake Superior! The count began on March 15 with somewhat favorable ESE [...]

2025-03-18T11:07:48-04:00March 18th, 2025|Migration Counts, Raptor Count|Comments Off on WPBO Raptor Count 3/15-17 – New Beginnings!
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Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 13 (11/7-11/13)

Week 13 was the final week of the fall waterbird count, with two days to spare. This will be my last blog post (unless we see something phenomenal in the last two days). With our total numbers for the week (4,278 birds) compared to early September, we are beginning to see migration tapering off. [...]

2025-04-30T06:31:59-04:00November 14th, 2024|Migration Counts, Waterbird Count|Comments Off on Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 13 (11/7-11/13)
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Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 12 (10/31-11/6)

This week, we had some unfavorable weather both for the birds and the birders, with our first truly cold days, a few days with strong southerly winds, and lots of rain. We experienced quite a drop in numbers with three particularly slow days mid-week, and it was pretty uneventful overall. We added one new [...]

2024-11-07T09:15:07-05:00November 7th, 2024|Migration Counts, Waterbird Count|Comments Off on Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 12 (10/31-11/6)
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Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 11 (10/24-10/30)

Week 11 was a productive week for the waterbird count. We added some exciting new species and had some remarkable numbers! On 10/24, we experienced a large push of over 2,000 Aythya ducks, this time with Redhead outnumbering the scaup. Our biggest day yet was 10/27, with over 6,000 waterbirds counted; Long-tailed Ducks were [...]

2024-10-31T09:52:58-04:00October 31st, 2024|Migration Counts, Waterbird Count|Comments Off on Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 11 (10/24-10/30)
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Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 10 (10/17-10/23)

Another week of above-average temperatures has made birding at the Point very enjoyable. We had many new high counts for the fall this week, as well as a few new exciting birds around. Our first new high count was 244 Mallards on 10/18; they were the most plentiful bird that day, which seemed a [...]

2024-10-24T09:42:16-04:00October 24th, 2024|Migration Counts, Waterbird Count|Comments Off on Fall Waterbird Count Update – Week 10 (10/17-10/23)
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