Lighthouse Point is one of the best hawk-watching sites in New England, where every autumn birds of prey from northern New England and Canada migrate south and, avoiding large open water, turn west at Long Island Sound toward New York City and concentrate along the coast at the south-protruding peninsula of Lighthouse Point. More than 12,000 raptors pass through each fall, and during peak migration in September and October thousands can pass in a single day. These raptors include hawks, eagles, ospreys, kites, falcons, and owls, all predators that use keen eyesight, sharp talons, and curved beaks to find and catch prey such as birds, small mammals, fish, invertebrates, amphibians, reptiles, and carrion. Some, such as the American kestrel, eat a wide variety of animals, while others specialize, including ospreys, which eat mostly fish and are adapted for catching them with sealable nostrils and rough pads on their feet. Hawks migrate because winter reduces available food, as some prey hibernate, amphibians and reptiles become dormant, and many lakes freeze over, so the birds move to warmer climates where prey remains abundant. Birds can travel thousands of miles between summer and winter homes, probably navigating by the sun and stars, Earth’s magnetic fields, and local landmarks. Some hawks passing through Lighthouse Point Park head for the southeastern United States, while others continue to Central or South America. Frequently observed species include sharp-shinned hawks, Cooper’s hawks, ospreys, northern harriers, red-tailed hawks, and American kestrels, with bald eagles appearing regularly and a few golden eagles passing each year. One of the most striking sights is a flock, or kettle, of broad-winged hawks overhead; though smaller here, these groups grow as the birds travel south and others join them. Broad-winged hawks nest in Connecticut forests, hunt rodents, insects, reptiles, and other birds, and can travel as far as South America, more than 4,000 miles away, using rising coastal air currents called thermals to save energy on the journey.