Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch

05/29/2026

Check out this trio of Red-tailed Hawks our banders worked with this spring! Red-tailed Hawks reach maturity at two years of age, which is when they begin to grow their distinct red tail feathers.

05/29/2026

As spring migration starts to come to a close, what has been your favorite sighting this season? 🦅

05/27/2026

If you love history, birds and art, you will want to head over to Petoskey on June 15-19, when Petoskey Audubon and other local partners will commemorate Petoskey as the last large passenger pigeon nesting site.

Scientists estimate that at one point, passenger pigeons made up 25 to 40 percent of the total bird population of the United States. The migratory birds eventually went extinct in 1914 due to habitat loss and excessive hunting by humans.

For more details about the event, visit https://www.petoskeymuseum.org/passenger-pigeons.html

05/25/2026

Look at this gorgeous Northern Harrier our banders recently worked with!

These "grey ghosts" are a bit of a rarity at our banding location, with this one being the 60th one we've captured since we started our raptor banding program.

If you'd like to spot one, look for them flying low in wide-open grasslands, marshes, or fields during the fall or spring.

05/22/2026

Our waterbird counters recently snapped this picture of two American wigeons roaming the shoreline at Graham Point.

American wigeons are chatty ducks and like to congregate in the fall and winter. Listen for their three-syllable high-pitched whistle that sounds like “fi-ew-whew” to help identify them.

05/18/2026

If you're like these American White Pelicans and you're flocking towards Mackinac Island for the holiday weekend, be sure to stop into Fort Holmes and visit Gracie, our island hawk counter!

05/17/2026

Our owl banders faced multiple weather challenges this spring at Cheboygan State Park between the snow, snow and getting even more snow. Despite the less-than-stellar weather conditions, they persevered and were able to band 94 owls this spring; including this northern saw-whet owl.

Check out their latest blog post, along with updates from the waterbird counters and hawk banders, at https://www.mackinacraptorwatch.org/news/

05/16/2026

How many species have you spotted during spring migration this year? Are there any species you're still hoping to see? 🦅

05/15/2026

Over two million birds flew through our region last night!

If that news makes you want to break out your binoculars, you can find the latest data from our count sites at https://www.mackinacraptorwatch.org/research-data/site-count-data/

If you want to view data for a different region, visit the Cornell University’s BirdCast Migration Dashboard at https://birdcast.org/migration-tools/migration-dashboard/

05/14/2026

ICYMI: Our wonderfully talented red-tailed hawk researcher, Nick Alioto, was recently featured in this article by the folks at Michigan State University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Funding from the Joseph Laurence Maison Fellowship is powering Fisheries and Wildlife graduate student Nick Alioto’s research on the migratory behavior of red-tailed hawks in Michigan.