The tip of Whitefish Point was enveloped in heavy fog for most of May 17 and 18. The morning of May 17 was bright and sunny, and a large kettle of Broad-winged Hawks began forming west of the deck. Low clouds already obscured a part of it, and then fog rolled in from the [...]
The week of April 23 to 29, we had highs and lows. As many as 1,024 raptors (most of them Broad-winged Hawks) were observed at the Point on April 25, and as few as nine on April 29. Wind direction seems to be the decisive factor on most days. For example, on April 27, [...]
The morning of April 22 looked very promising! Sharp-shinned Hawks flew through the area almost nonstop from 9 to 11 a.m. The Broad-winged Hawks finally arrived in some numbers, and by noon, they formed a kettle of around 100 birds. Soon, the kettle moved away in the northeast direction, and only a handful of [...]
Oh, what a sight to behold! On unseen currents they spin, flashing like silversides in the sun, Broad-winged Hawks numbering in the thousands. Twisting, turning, gliding, and churning, higher and higher, they rise and blossom into a great mushroom cloud at an unimaginable altitude. They fill the sky as they funnel out to find [...]
It’s that time of year again where we waterbird counters set out to the Point prepared to count the fall waterbird migration. As you may have seen in our recent social media posting, I (Mario) will be your guide during this fall adventure. This will be my first time working and living in the [...]
To some people, bird identification can seem like a mystical art. Those who master it have gleaned their knowledge from studying the arcane lore of bird ID, leafing through dusty tomes called field guides far into the wee hours of the morning. These masters have journeyed to distant lands, sought the unseekable, and made [...]
Something truly wonderful happened this past week. For the first time in what seemed like ages, I stepped out my door in the morning, and I heard birds singing. If I wasn't loaded down with a backpack full of hawk watching gear, I would have jumped for joy! It was the moment I had been [...]
