Fall Hawkwatch Guide: Best Times & Places to See Raptor Migration
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Time to read 6 min
Witnessing a raptor in flight is one of the most exciting moments in birding. The grace, the beauty, the power, the danger - there’s a visceral excitement in seeing raptors that few other birds can match. This season, fall, is the best time to see them.
Fall is the best time of year in North America to see migrating hawks, eagles, falcons, and other birds of prey. Millions of individuals of more than a dozen species wing their way each autumn from breeding grounds in the north to wintering grounds down south. With some planning, and a little luck, you can take part in this amazing natural spectacle.
Table of Contents
Why Fall is Peak Raptor Migration
A variety of seasonal changes are responsible for triggering fall migration in birds, including a drop in average temperatures and reduced daylight. Plus, it’s harder for many raptor species to find food in the winter. Insects are scarce, rodents are either hibernating or hidden under the snow, and fish swim beneath frozen lakes. Raptors need to move south to find food.
Many other species of birds, everything from warblers to shorebirds to ducks, also migrate in the fall, but there’s a key difference that makes raptor migration such a spectacle: raptors migrate during the day while most other birds migrate at night. Smaller birds move under cover of darkness so that predators can’t see them, and so they can use the stars to navigate. Raptors, on the other hand, migrate during the day and usually over land. They utilize “thermals” – rising currents of air that occur when land is heated by the sun – to help them gain lift without having to spend energy flapping. Then they glide south from thermal to thermal. For us birders, the major benefit of hawks migrating during the day is that we can see them!
Another benefit of fall migration is the sheer number of birds on the move. Like most North American migrant birds, raptors lay eggs and raise young over the summer. All those babies mean that bird populations are a lot higher in the fall than in the spring, and then there are more birds on the move for birders to see.
A kettle of Broad-winged Hawks circles on rising thermals, a classic and spectacular sight during peak fall raptor migration.“Broad-winged Hawk kettle photos” by Wildreturn is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
How Does Fall Raptor Migration Work?
A lot of birding is done early in the morning, but not hawkwatching. It takes a few daylight hours for the sun to warm the land enough to create the thermals that many migrating raptors rely on, so mid-morning and early afternoon are often the best times to bird. You can sleep in, have a nice breakfast, then go find some hawks.
If you know where and when to look, that is. The best hawkwatch sites usually involve some elevation over the surrounding landscape. Mountains, cliffs, and hills create updrafts that raptors can use to gain elevation, and help them scan the landscape for thermals to ride and prey to eat. Similarly, coastlines and valleys may concentrate raptors for easier and more impressive viewing.
When it comes to timing, not every day is created equal. While raptors as a group migrate across a wide swath of the fall – from as early as July to as late as December for some species – very few birds move in foul weather. The best hawkwatching generally occurs a day or two after a cold front has pushed some precipitation away, on a sunny day with a southerly wind. Those ideal conditions may change for different hawkwatches, especially the wind, but plenty of birds may also move in less-than-ideal conditions.
Best Places for Fall Hawkwatch
Every state has a good hawkwatch somewhere. Sites like eBird.org and HawkCount.org may be able to help you find a site near you, and you can never go wrong with just asking a local birder for help.
There are some really famous hawkwatches, too.
Northeast
● Hawk Mountain Sanctuary - Located just west of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary might be the most famous hawkwatch in America. An average of more than 20,000 raptors migrate by Hawk Mountain each fall.
● Cape May - The Cape May peninsula in southern New Jersey acts as a funnel for migratory hawks and many other bird species, and the Cape May Hawkwatch hosts tens of thousands of raptors annually.
Birders gather at the North Lookout at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, one of the most iconic fall hawkwatch sites in North America, where tens of thousands of migrating raptors pass each season.“Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, PA – North Lookout” by Zeete is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
South
● Corpus Christi Hawkwatch - The further south you go, the more migrants there are to see. Staggering numbers of raptors may be seen from the Corpus Christi Hawkwatch on the Texas coast, which is run by our friends at HawkWatch International. The hawkwatch’s website keeps a running tally of the birds they’ve recorded, which averages a yearly total of nearly 700,000 individuals.
Midwest
● Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory - Many migrating raptors head southwest along the north side of Lake Superior in fall until they collect near Duluth, Minnesota, where birders can spot them from the Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory.
● Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch - In Michigan, the Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch conducts fall monitoring along the southernmost tip of the Upper Peninsula.
● Detroit River Hawk Watch - This is another great site where monitors keep eyes out for migrant raptors just south of Detroit.
West
● Goshute Mountains HawkWatch - At least 17 raptor species are regularly recorded at the Goshute Mountains HawkWatch in northeastern Nevada, one of the oldest continually-running hawk watch sites in the west.
● Hawk Hill - Unsurprisingly, California boasts a number of excellent hawk watch sites. Hawk Hill, just north of the Golden Gate Bridge, operates an excellent fall hawkwatch.
● Borrego Valley - Another California gem, Borrego Valley in San Diego County is a renowned spot to watch beautiful Swainson’s Hawks on their way south.
How to Participate in a Hawkwatch
It’s really easy to participate in a hawkwatch. Both beginner birders and experts are welcome, and can bird on their own or, with some planning, volunteer to be an official counter for the site.
Tips for Beginners
Most official hawk watches will have at least one dedicated volunteer on site counting as many raptors as they can find. These people often also serve as ambassadors, helping others find and identify birds as they go by and answering questions. Don’t hesitate to approach them with questions — they’re there to help. Just keep in mind that on very busy days they may need to focus on counting rather than chatting. In all cases, make sure to respect official counters and other birders, but they always appreciate the company. Other tips are simple ones: dress appropriately in layers, and bring a field guide, camera, or notebook to help you learn birds and improve your ID skills.
Tips for Experts
If you’re an advanced birder you could consider becoming an official counter. Check the website for your local hawk watch to see what kind of opportunities they may offer, and go join them. The data coming from hawk watches is invaluable to larger conservation efforts, helping understand migration timing, population health, and other data.
Many hawkwatches run on donations, of course, and so that’s another way that birders of all levels can help. Bird Collective has been collaborating with HawkWatch International since 2021 on collections highlighting their work, and you read more about our contribution to them and other groups.
Go Birding!
There are few natural spectacles like a fall hawkwatch. Witnessing hundreds or even thousands of huge birds fly past you is awe-inspiring and unforgettable. Make some time to get out to a local hawkwatch this fall, and support conservation through Bird Collective’s HawkWatch International collection.
