Soon, raptors will be heading north, and that means they’ll be passing through Michigan.
The birds of prey migrate north in the spring and south in the fall. Wildlife officials want to get an accurate count of the population, so they send professionals up north to count them at places like the Straits of Mackinac.
Scott Davis with Mackinac Raptor Watch told us why they go through all this effort to track the tens of thousands of birds.
“They are a reflection and their population dynamics are a manifestation, if you will, of what’s happening in the ecosystems that they live in,” Davis said. “So if things are going wrong on the ground, it ultimately turns up in their population dynamics.”
And the sight attracts tourists. The first count will begin with golden eagles on March 14 and 15 up north.
