Ottawa County Hawk Migration

[Jamie Krupka]

I was hawk watching with a homeschool group at Ferrysburg's Kitchel-Linquist Dune Preserve and viewed the following birds between 10 am and noon.  We were perched on top of a dune near the shelter house/outdoor classroom.  I'm sure there are birds that we missed since the group ranged from 6-12 year olds.  On a side note, the kids didn't want to eat lunch because they were having so much fun!  Almost all of the birds were at a medium height (couple hundred feet off of the ground).  There were several high kettles closer to noon and several individuals cruising very close to the dune throughout.

Sharp-shinned Hawk- 71
Cooper's Hawk - 18
American Kestrel - 4
Broad Winged Hawk- 44
Turkey Vulture - 4
Red-tail Hawk- 9 
Northern Harrier - 1
Osprey - 1

Conditions:  72-78 Degrees F, 5 - 10 mph E wind


Naturally,

Jamie Krupka
Program Director

Outdoor Discovery Center of Wildlife Unlimited
A-4214 56th Street
Holland, MI  49423
Phone:  616.393.WILD
Fax:  616.395.0952

www.outdoordiscoverycenter.org

Experience the Outdoor Discovery Center...Discover Nature
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"When you have seen one ant, one bird, one tree, you have not seen them all." 
E. O. Wilson