TNA posting March 26, 2007
Magee Marsh birds seen in the past week by several birders.
1. Trumpeter Swans - several small groups being very vocal!!!
2. Tundra Swans - the large flocks are getting smaller by the day.
3. Canada Geese - many
4. Mallards
5. N. Shovelers
6. Ring-necked Ducks
7. Gadwall
8. Lesser Scaup
9. Green-winged Teal
10. Blue-winged Teal
11. A. Wigeon
12. Hooded Mergansers
13. Common Mergansers
14. A. Coots - population is growing
15. Pied-billed Grebe - 2
16. Bald Eagles - seen everyday
17. Red-tailed Hawks
18. Red-shouldered Hawks - migrating through
19. Turkey Vulture
20. American Kestrel - 1
21. Killdeer - many now.
22. Tree Swallows - numbers growing everyday
23. Great Egrets - 3
24. Great Blue Herons - 6
25. Eastern Phoebe - 4 on the boardwalk + others!
26. Golden-crowned Kinglets - more each day, boardwalk
27. Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 1
28. Carolina & Winter Wrens - boardwalk
29. American Woodcock - close-up on boardwalk at 18
30. Brown Creeper - on boardwalk
31. B.C. Chickadee - loop trail
32. Downy, Flicker, & Y.B. Sapsucker - boardwalk
33. Hermit Thrush , A. Robins - boardwalk
34. E. Bluebird - tower
35. Y.R. Warbler - 1st warbler of the year for Magee Marsh!!! (boardwalk)
36. E. Towhee, N. Cardinals
37. A. Tree, Song, Field, White-throated, Chipping, and Swamp Sparrows
38. D.E. Juncos
39. Short-eared Owl - causeway in the evening
40. Rusty Blackbirds - boardwalk
41. Red-winged Blackbirds & Grackles- everywhere now
42. Ring-billed & Herring Gulls
43. Wood Ducks - more each day
44. N. Pintails - 1 or 2 still (flyovers now)
Its good to be back working at Magee Marsh for my third year. Chris Knoll
---
listserv March 26
Subject: Magee area Fox Sparrows
From: Kenn Kaufman
Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2007 19:42:46 -0400
The Lake Erie shoreline in northwestern Ohio at the end of March has to be
the best place and time in the world for seeing Fox Sparrows. Today (Monday
March 26th), Rick Nirschl reported seeing or hearing about 70 Fox Sparrows
along the bird trail at Magee Marsh. I only spent a brief time along the
west end of the boardwalk so I only saw about 20 Fox Sparrows there, but I
had another 50-plus in thickets along the Wildlife Beach, about a
quarter-mile east of the east end of the boardwalk. So there are clearly a
lot of individuals around. This kind of concentration would be considered
quite unusual in most places; Fox Sparrow is usually uncommon everywhere,
seen in small numbers, seldom more than a dozen in a day.
The last couple of springs at this time I've been interested to see how the
migrating Fox Sparrows are concentrated along the immediate lake shore.
Even a mile or two to the south, far fewer individuals are seen. These
migrant birds seem quite shy, flushing well away from the boardwalk at
Magee, so it takes some careful attention to even notice that they're
around, but they're beautiful enough to be worth the effort. Today a
number of the Fox Sparrows were doing partial versions of their musical,
haunting song, even in what I could only describe as the heat of the
afternoon.
Kenn Kaufman
Rocky Ridge, Ohio
-----
listserv March 26
Subject: Ottawa County Pectorals and others
From: Kenn Kaufman
Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2007 20:24:03 -0400
In Ottawa County (n.w. Ohio), just east of the entrance to Crane Creek State
Park and Magee Marsh Wildlife Area along Route 2, Benton-Carroll Road takes
off to the south. Just south of Rt 2 on both sides of Benton-Carroll is an
area that floods regularly and is often good for shorebirds and other
waterbirds. Today (Monday March 26), in addition to various ducks (such as
Hooded Merganser, not your typical flooded-field bird), there were five
species of shorebirds: about 10 Killdeer, 2 Wilson's Snipe, 5 Greater
Yellowlegs, 9 Lesser Yellowlegs, and 3 Pectoral Sandpipers. None of these
is unexpected for the date, as all should be here by late March. Eastern
Meadowlarks (at least 2) were calling from the adjacent fields. In a
partially flooded field just to the south I saw at least 300 Rusty
Blackbirds along with Red-wings and others. It seemed like a plausible spot
to look for Brewer's Blackbird, but in a careful study I couldn't pull out
even one Brewer's.
Pectoral Sandpiper merits an additional comment because it's in a different
category from most of our early spring migrants. Across all groups of
birds, most of the species that come north early are those that spend the
winter relatively close to us: most ducks, geese, Killdeers, American
Woodcocks, Eastern Phoebes, Tree Swallows, Red-winged and Rusty Blackbirds,
Yellow-rumped Warblers, Hermit Thrushes, etc., etc., all are common in
winter in the southeastern United States. For that matter, so are Wilson's
Snipes and Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs. Pectoral Sandpiper, on the other
hand, doesn't winter regularly anywhere north of the Equator -- its main
wintering range is in southern South America. It may show up in the same
damp fields as Killdeer and snipe, but chances are it has come ten times as
far to be here. The breeding range of Pectoral Sandpiper is mostly above
the Arctic Circle, so it's hard to understand why it starts north so early.
It's especially interesting to compare its timing to that of White-rumped
Sandpiper, which has similar wintering and breeding ranges but migrates
north much later; peak numbers of White-rumpeds here may occur in the first
week of June! At any rate, among our early migrants, Pectoral Sandpipers
(and the American Golden-Plovers that should follow shortly) deserve special
credit as our first arrivals from truly southern latitudes.
Kenn Kaufman
Rocky Ridge, Ohio
----
TNA posting March 26
A few new arrivals today. Brown Thrasher singing at the entrance to Magee off Rt. 2, and on the bird trail, Hermit Thrush, Yellow-rumped Warblers and Swamp Sparrows.
Other birds on the bird trail: ~ 70 Fox Sparrows, 5 Winter Wrens, 3 Sapsuckers, 10 Brown Creepers, 6 Phoebes, 3 Towhees ( all males ), 1 Woodcock, Rusty Blackbirds, lots of Flickers, Golden-crowned Kinglets, White-throated Sparrow and Chipping Sparrow.
Duck numbers are down considerably but there was a good flight of raptors.
Butterflies today: Mourning Cloak and Eastern Comma.
----
Subject: Kelleys Island Monthly census 3/26/2007
From: Tom Bartlett
Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2007 10:04:26 -0400
Monday, March 26, 2007 Sandy Tkach and I conducted the Kelleys Island
monthly census. This is the first day the ferry to the island has run since
late January, so this is why the census is about a week later than normal.
But the wait was worth it. What a day for birding. Wind was out of the
SW-W at 10-20 mph, partly cloudy and temperature in the high 60's low 70's.
Birds were singing everywhere and raptors were moving. It must have been a
great day on the hawk tower at Crane Creek. We had 44 raptors of 8 species
just on the census route. The March count has averaged 53 species over the
last nine years with a previous high of 62 species (2005). Today we had 74
species which now moves the average to 55 species for a March count. The
only new species added to the March count list was Gadwall. 98 species have
been observed on March counts over the last 10 years.
20 Horned Grebe
38 Double-crested Cormorant
7 Great Blue Heron
97 Canada Goose
3 Wood Duck
2 Gadwall
3 American Black Duck
55 Mallard
1 Mallard X Am. Black Duck
141 Redhead
6 Ring-necked Duck
4 Greater Scaup
119 Lesser Scaup
272 Bufflehead
905 Common Goldeneye
8 Hooded Merganser
11 Common Merganser
626 Red-breasted Merganser
20 Turkey Vulture
4 Bald Eagle
4 Northern Harrier
8 Sharp-shinned Hawk
9 Cooper's Hawk
13 Red-shouldered Hawk
3 Red-tailed Hawk
2 Rough-legged Hawk
1 American Kestrel
2 American Coot
22 Killdeer
1 American Woodcock
3 Bonaparte's Gull
23 Ring-billed Gull
302 Herring Gull
24 Great Black-backed Gull
10 Mourning Dove
1 Eastern Screech-Owl
3 Belted Kingfisher
1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
3 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
17 Downy Woodpecker
32 Northern Flicker
10 Eastern Phoebe
1 Blue Jay
57 American Crow
9 Horned Lark
66 Tree Swallow
44 Black-capped Chickadee
1 White-breasted Nuthatch
17 Brown Creeper
4 Carolina Wren
1 Winter Wren
119 Golden-crowned Kinglet
9 Eastern Bluebird
1 Hermit Thrush
688 American Robin
2 Brown Thrasher
206 European Starling
4 American Pipit
4 Yellow-rumped Warbler
38 Northern Cardinal
3 Eastern Towhee
2 American Tree Sparrow
8 Fox Sparrow
20 Song Sparrow
4 White-throated Sparrow
108 Dark-eyed Junco
45 Lapland Longspur
1133 Red-winged Blackbird
1 Eastern Meadolark
13 Rusty Blackbird
1872 Common Grackle
32 Brown-headed Cowbird
147 House Finch
4 American Goldfinch
63 House Sparrow
7545 Total individuals
74 Species plus one hybrid
Subject: Crane Creek Hawk Tower 3/30/07
From: Tom Bartlett
Date: Sun, 1 Apr 2007 10:41:02 -0400
On Friday, I manned the hawk tower from 0820-1500. Winds were out of the NE
to N all day but light. Evidently, not light enough as almost no raptors
were moving along the lake front. All migrant raptors observed were well
south of the tower except for the Merlin which was right to the north of the
tower. Below is the list of what was observed from the tower during that
time period.
In addition, an adult male Yellow-headed Blackbird was observed singing (if
you can call what comes out of their mouth a song) in the grasses to the
east of the bridge along the causeway around 0800.
17 Canada Goose
2 Trumpeter Swan
18 Wood Duck
123 Gadwall
19 American Wigeon
5 American Black Duck
103 Mallard
9 Blue-winged Teal
11 Northern Shoveler
5 Northern Pintail
29 Green-winged Teal
4 Redhead
2 Lesser Scaup
4 Hooded Merganser
7 Common Merganser
3 Pied-billed Grebe
19 Double-crested Cormorant
8 Great Blue Heron
4 Great Egret
40 Turkey Vulture (all migrants)
5 Bald Eagle (all locals)
3 Red-tailed Hawk (2 migrants)
1 Merlin (one dark migrant)
1 Virginia Rail
1 Sora
13 American Coot
3 Sandhill Crane (2 + 1; all moving east)
14 American Golden Plover
2 Greater Yellowlegs
1 Lesser Yellowlegs
123 Pectoral Sandpiper
2 Bonaparte's Gull
23 Ring-billed Gull
47 Herring Gull
8 Mourning Dove
2 Belted Kingfisher
1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
4 Downy Woodpecker
1 Hairy Woodpecker
20 Northern Flicker
2 Eastern Phoebe
3 Blue Jay
13 American Crow
3 Horned Lark
35 Tree Swallow
3 Black-capped Chickadee
2 Carolina Wren
1 Winter Wren
14 Golden-crowned Kinglet
24 American Robin
12 European Starling
3 Yellow-rumped Warbler
1 Eastern Towhee
9 American Tree Sparrow
23 Fox Sparrow
8 Song Sparrow
4 Swamp Sparrow
7 Dark-eyed Junco
8 Snow Bunting
150+ Red-winged Blackbird
35+ Rusty Blackbird
75+ Common Grackle
45+ Brown-headed Cowbird
7 Northern Cardinal
7 House Finch
13 American Goldfinch
8 House Sparrow
Subject: Magee Marsh Birds
From: "Warren, Mary"
Date: Sat, 31 Mar 2007 16:55:10 -0400
Birds seen by birders at the Marsh today; very cold and windy!!!
1. Trumpeter Swans - 2; yesterday - 17 and calling!! the most ever for
me!!!
2. Great Blue Heron - 1
3. Great Egret - 1
4. D.C. Cormorant - 3
5. Pb Grebe - 3
6. Hooded Merganser - 1 pair
7. Greater Scaup - 4
8. Lesser Scaup - 3
9. Gadwall - many
10. Mallard - 6
11. Wood Duck - 1 pair
12. N. Shoveler - many
13. A. Wigeon - 1 pair
14. Blue-winged Teal - 12
15. Green-winged Teal - 25
16. Canada Geese - many
17. A. Coots - 1,000 +
18. Ring-billed Gulls - many
19. Herring Gull - 2
20. Bonaparte's Gull - 2
21. Killdeer - 1
22. Wilson's Snipe - 1 new for the year !!
26. Northern Flicker
27. Hermit Thrush
28. Winter Wren
29. Gray Catbird - 1 new for the year
31. Golden-crowned Kinglets - everywhere!
32. Fox Sparrows
33. D.E. Juncos - at the feeders
34. Song Sparrows
35. N. Cardinals
36. Red-winged Blackbirds - huge flocks now
37. Rusty Blackbirds - deep in today; heard them only!
38. C. Grackles
39. A. Robin
40. Canvasbacks - yesterday with the Clay High School students.
41. Sandhill Crane - 1 yesterday with the Clay High School students
Birds seen at the Marsh late in the day!!
1. Caspian Terns - 2 first of the year!!
2. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker -1
3. Yellow-rumped Warbler - several !!!
4. Ruby-crowned Kinglet -1
5. Belted Kingfisher -1
6. Brown-headed Cowbirds - feeders
7. House Finch - feeders
8. A. Goldfinch - feeders
9. House Sparrows - feeders
Thank you very much for stopping in and letting us know what you see.
Chris
Subject: Metzger gnatcatchers and Gadwalls
From: Kenn Kaufman
Date: Tue, 3 Apr 2007 00:51:22 -0400
With limited time this evening (Monday April 2) I ran out to the end of the
road at Metzger Marsh (Lucas Co., east of Toledo). Saw a handful of
expected migrants in the small woodlot there, such as 5 Yellow-rumped
Warblers, 2 Brown Creepers, 1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet, 1 Winter Wren.
Surprised to see two Blue-gray Gnatcatchers there, male and female, foraging
more or less together. Matt Anderson et al. in "Birds of the Toledo Area"
give the early record locally as April 3, while the early record listed by
Larry Rosche in "Birds of the Cleveland Region" is March 31, so April 2nd
seems about right for the very first migrants to appear -- possibly early
overshoots, a week or two ahead of the main migration.
On the way out I scanned the open waters of the marsh for ducks. I had
checked Metzger several times this spring in hopes of a Eurasian Wigeon, but
even American Wigeons have seemed to be in low numbers. However, I was
surprised (because I hadn't seen Vic Fazio's post yet) by the prevalence of
Gadwalls. They were by far the most numerous waterfowl there, and when I
did a careful sweep with the scope I came up with a conservative count of
about 1320 Gadwalls, outnumbering all the other ducks combined. (When I
checked the listserve later, I saw that Vic had estimated 850-plus here the
day before, even without the benefit of a scope.) These are far higher
numbers than what have been published in the past and I presume there's
something unusual going on with the species this spring. Peterjohn's "The
Birds of Ohio" mentions that aerial counts in November in the western Lake
Erie marshes have had totals as high as 1700 Gadwalls, but these aerial
surveys cover a lot of area, and to have 1300-plus visible from one spot on
the ground implies that exceptional numbers are present.
Kenn Kaufman
==========Subject: Sandusky Bay region
From: Victor Fazio
Date: Mon, 2 Apr 2007 19:03:00 -0700
On the way back to Shaker Heights, I toured
the Sandusky Bay Region.
Ohms Rd (CR 265) off Rt. 6 just west of
Pickerel Creek W.A. in Sandusky County.
These private wetlands are quickly assessed
and are occasionally interesting in early spring.
at 8:00 am ...
Canada Goose - 11 (one on nest)
Trumpeter Swan - 2 (1A7 & one of the M class)
- the species nests here and chicks may be
photographed close by from the car.
Wood Duck - 3
Gadwall - 34
Mallard - 12
Blue-winged Teal - 18
American Wigeon - 38
Northern Shoveler - 64
Northern Pintail - 4
Green-winged Teal - 57
Ring-necked Duck - 1
Common Merganser - 24
Hooded Merganser - 4
Bonaparte's Gull - 110
Killdeer - 4
Wilson's Snipe - 7
Brown Thrasher - 1
Swamp Sparrow - 9 singing
moving west along CR 265 brings one to
Three Eagles Wetland Mitigation or so it was
once called. I now see a DOW wildlife area
sign present with a now legal pull-off. From the
road, I noted
Canada Goose - 2
Ring-necked Duck - 84
and just beyond is what promises to be one of
the more substantial wetland restorations in
Sandusky County. What I have been calling
Yellow Swale Wildlife Area for lack of an
official designation (correct me if I'm wrong)
currently involves two completed impoundments
holding water. Today I saw a half dozen adjacent
properties with survey markers. Two of these
were in the throws of being dug out with the
earthen mounds that look to be incipient levees.
The two existing wetlands (which form already a much
larger series as they are contiguous with substantial
private wetland acreage to the N) held this morning ...
Canada Goose - 5
Trumpeter Swan - 5
Gadwall - 2
Mallard - 2
American Wigeon - 2
Northern Shoveler - 4
Green-winged Teal - 2
Pied-billed Grebe - 1
Bald Eagle - 4
Wilson's Snipe - 1
Pickerel Creek W.A. - Headquarters Rd. (CR 254)
The marsh here, after going through a much needed
rehabilitation a couple of years ago, looks as good
as new.
Canada Goose - 26
Gadwall - 34
Mallard - 8
Northern Shoveler - 4
Blue-winged Teal - 11
American Wigeon - 1
Green-winged Teal - 36
Bald Eagle - 2
Killdeer - 1
Wilson's Snipe - 10
Great Blue Heron - 26
Belted Kingfisher - 1
Pickerel Creek from the Obs. Tower along Rt. 6
Canada Goose - 22
Mallard - 3
Northern Shoveler - 12
Blue-winged Teal - 16
Green-winged Teal - 6
Ring-necked Duck - 3
Common Merganser - 6
Hooded Merganser - 7
Bald Eagle - 4
Bonaparte's Gul - 170
Killdeer - 4
Greater Yellowlegs - 9
Lesser Yellowlegs - 1
already suitable water depth for yellowlegs ...
worth checking ... by 1 May this could be
suitable for peeps ... but I suspect a full
walkaround will be in order to asses the
shorebird presence given the height of the
vegetation. Also looks good for ibis.
Medusa Marsh
Mute Swan - 12
Gadwall - 57
Blue-winged Teal - 14
American Wigeon - 12
Green-winged Teal - 20
Bufflehead - 8
Red-breasted Merganser - 8
Great Blue Heron - 4
Great Egret - 14
Black-crowned Night-Heron - 1
American Coot - 240
Bonaparte's Gull - 170
Pectoral Sandpiper - 140 (winging overhead to the ENE)
Rt 269 N exit (off Rt. 2 - NW end of Sandusky bay bridge)
roughly ...
Redhead - 6
Lesser Scaup - 1350
Greater Scaup - 50
Double-creasted Cormorant - 50
Bonaparte's Gull - 600
Ring-billed Gull - 1400
Herring Gull - 100
East Harbor State Park .... held more scaup within
its harbors than I have previously seen in 25 years
of visiting this time of the year.
Mute Swan - 8
Canada Goose - 114
Wood Duck - 22
(hanging around a set of nest boxes that
appeared newly placed)
Mallard - 2
Red-breasted Merganser - 180
Merganser spp. - 200 (fairly distant in the sun)
Scaup spp. - 9800 (95% Lesser. 5% Greater)
this ratio has been more typical of a month earlier
in recent years ... but I spent some time
watching the many birds skittering out of the
way of newcomers vying for an open patch of
water. Of the total,
7000 occupied Middle Harbor, 1800 were off
the beach on Lake Erie, and the remainder were
on East Harbor. Scoping through the mass on
Middle Harbor, I picked out 210 Redhead.
Such a concentration out on Sandusky Bay in
early April would be trivial, but close inshore,
gleaming in the sun ... quite impressive.
Over the park, and Catawba Island, kettles of
Turkey Vultures numbered not less than 100
birds at one time.
cheers
Vic Fazio
Shaker Heights, OH
Subject: Metzger Marsh yesterday 1 April
From: Victor Fazio
Date: Mon, 2 Apr 2007 18:06:43 -0700
Nothing special to report ... just some notes
from the afternoon spent looking about for
shorebird habitat.
a brief survey of Metzger from the causeway
only under wind conditions precluding the use of
a scope, I had ...
Mute Swan - 4
Trumpeter Swan - 18
Mallard - 150+
Gadwall - 850+
Northern Pintail - 25
Northern Shoveler - 75
Green-winged Teal - 180+
Horned Grebe - 9
Pied-billed Grebe - 3
American Coot - 1850+
Great Egret - 2
Tree Swallow - 120
Ottawa and adjacent Lucas County fields
are mostly dry.
Park Colony Rd (just west of Reno on the Beach)
may be remembered by some for the good spring
shorebirding there in the 90's. Tiling in 2002
reduced flooding of the fields substantially. There
was enough standing water yesterday to attract ...
Wood Duck - 12
Gadwall - 9
Mallard - 90
American Black - 12
Blue-wiged Teal - 2
American Wigeon - 135
Northern Pintail - 4
Bonaparte's Gull - 4
Ring-billed Gull - 150
Killdeer - 4
perhaps worth a look over the next
week or two.
Benton-Carroll (just off Rt. 2) is not nearly
as waterlogged as has been the case the past
10 years. And the vegetation is as thick as
I have seen this early in the season. There were
only 8 Greater and 1 Lesser Yellowlegs present
yesterday.
When passing Turtle Creek (from the east)
or approaching (from the west) on Rt. 2, it may be
worth a moment of your time to turn off on Bodi
... the moist exposed soil there may attract some
plovers in the near future.
Otherwise, I have nothing else to recommend in the
immediate vicinity of the Ottawa/Magee complex.
This suggests, barred new flooding, that the planned
draw-down of a unit at Ottawa NWR and the executed
draw-down at Magee will be crucial for both shorebird
and birder alike this spring.
cheers
Vic Fazio
Shaker Heights, OH
PS> Lake Erie water levels in the Western Basin
are as high as I have seen since 1995-96.
Subject: Magee Marsh Birds today
From: "Warren, Mary"
Date: Mon, 2 Apr 2007 17:40:38 -0400
Birds seen at Magee Marsh by birders today
1. Great Egrets - 3
2. Great Blue Heron - 3
3. P.b. Grebe - several
4. A. Coots - too many to count
5. N. Shoveler
6. Lesser Scaup
7. Gadwall
8. Mallard
9. Green-winged Teal
10. Blue-winged Teal
11. Hooded Merganser
12. Wood Duck
13. Ring-necked Duck
14. Red-tailed Hawk - hawk watch group on tower
15. Red-shouldered Hawk - hawk watch group
16. N. Harrier - on the causeway
17. Sharp-shinned Hawk - hawk watch group
18. Bald Eagle - hawk watch group
19. Red-bellied Woodpecker
20. N. Flicker
21. Downy Woodpecker
22. Eastern Phoebe
23. Eastern Kingbird - 3 late in day on causeway!! first of the year
here!!
24. Blue jay
25. American Crow
26. Tree Swallow
27. Hermit Thrush
28. American Robin
29. G.C. & R.C. Kinglet
30. Brown Thrasher - heard
31. E. Palm Warbler - 2 early in day - boardwalk, 2nd warbler species
for the marsh this year!
32. Yellow-rumped Warbler - several now
33. Eastern Towhee - male and female
34. INDIGO BUNTING - 1 male on boardwalk late in the day!!! First of the
year; early?
35. D.E. Junco - feeders
36. Song, Swamp, Fox, A. Tree Sparrows
37. RWBB, C. Grackles, Rusty Blackbirds.
38. Winter & Carolina Wrens
39. Gray Catbird - seen late in the day.
Friday 3/30/07 A YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD - was seen from the Tower
Just put it on our board. Sorry, we didn't find-out until today about
the bird !!!!
Please let us know at the center when you find new birds for the year so
we can
put them on the board right way. Thank you very much. Chris Knoll
Mary L. Warren
ODNR-Division of Wildlife
Naturalist
Magee Marsh Wildlife Area
13229 W. SR 2 Oak Harbor, OH 43449
419-898-0960 #31
419-898-4017 Fax
Subject: Eurasian Wigeon and Lake Erie Marshes 4/8
Date: Mon, 9 Apr 2007 08:42:16 -0400
Sorry for the delay in posting, I got back late last night. There was a male
Eurasian wigeon at Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge Sunday morning. It was in
the impoundment directly west of the parking area. It was with a mixed flock of
dabblers. An eagle flew over and the waterfowl flushed. Some of the birds
returned to the original spot some went to the impoundment to the north, the
wigeon went to the impoundment to the northwest. Other birds of note were two
Brewer's blackbirds in a field on Reiman Road about a half mile north of Rte
579. There is a farm with some cattle on Reiman Road. The blackbirds were a
little north of the farm. There were small groups of blackbirds feeding in
fields elsewhere, but I was unable to find anything else of note.
On Rte 579, about a half mile west of Rte 2, there is a large meadow on the
south side of the woods. I saw a short-eared owl feeding over the field early
in the morning. Later in the day there were a pair of harriers engaging in
courtship. This field should be watched.
In general there were still decent numbers of waterfowl around. I was able to
find all of the common species, although pintail and green-winged teal were
scarce. There were a lot of lesser scaup on the lake and ring-necked ducks,
bufflehead, and hooded mergansers. Lots of ice, so birds were concentrated.
Subject: Weather and birds, SORA
From: Bill Whan
Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2007 09:48:16 -0400
Our crazy weather recently has spurred an interest in its effect on
birds. One Ohio ornithologist who took a special interest in weather
was Edwin Moseley. Moseley studied patterns discernible in growth rings
of trees, Ohio river floods, sunspots, etc., and was bold enough to
predict weather events into the 1970s, long past his own death in 1948.
Many of his predictions have been confirmed. Two years ago Ronald L.
Stuckey, a botanist and emeritus professor at OSU, published "Predicting
Droughts and Floods: Edwin L. Moseley's Essays on Long-range Weather
Forecasts," in which describes this work, and uses Moseley's methods to
predict weather further into the future. He forecasts, for example, more
precipitation than normal starting this year through 2013, then less
than normal into 2031.
There is a very readable and informative essay by Moseley in The Auk
(available on-line by searching "Edwin Moseley" and "1947" at
http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/search.php . In it he discusses changes in
the bird life of northwestern Ohio (he lived in Sandusky and Bowling
Green) that appeared to have been influenced by climate changes, and
also to human practices.
By the way, if you haven't visited the SORA site recently there are
nifty new additions. You can now search and read all articles in eight
ornithological journals (newly including Western Birds), as well as the
AOU's "Ornithological Monographs." In the latter, you can read Mengel's
598-page "The Birds of Kentucky," for example. We owe a great debt to
everyone who has made these resources available, especially the
librarians at the University of New Mexico.
Bill Whan
Columbus
Subject: ALERT: Help Stop the Deaths of Millions of Migratory Birds at Communications Towers
From: Steve Holmer
Date: Thu, 19 Apr 2007 13:24:10 -0400
ALERT: Help Stop the Deaths of Millions of Migratory Birds at Communications
Towers
Every year, as many as 50 million birds die after colliding with tall towers
that relay signals for our TVs, radios, and cell phone networks. These
deaths, that include many species of declining songbirds such as the
Black-throated Blue Warbler and Dickcissel, are needless and preventable. We
now have our first opportunity to take action.
Ask the FCC to change the lighting
scheme on towers to reduce bird kills.
There are more than 90,000 lighted communication towers across the country.
Most of these use steady burning or slow pulsing lights to warn aircraft of
their presence. These lights attract birds, particularly during bad weather
during peak nighttime migration periods. The birds become disorientated by
the lights and crash into the towers, their guy wires, and each other, or
plummet to the ground in exhaustion.
Strobe lights are just as visible to aircraft, and science has repeatedly
shown they are far less attractive to birds. By mandating the use of these
strobe lights instead of slow pulsing or steady-burning lights, we can
prevent these deaths.
Now the FCC, the agency that licenses towers, is considering a rule that
will mandate strobes on all towers. They are seeking public comment on this
proposal. This is your opportunity to let them know how important it is that
they approve it.
Click Here to send in your comment
today.
Deadline for comments is Monday, April 23!
A copy of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking is available from the FCC
here.
Subject: Migrant predictions
From: Kenn Kaufman
Date: Thu, 19 Apr 2007 00:41:30 -0400
Trying to predict the timing of bird migration "waves" is at least as uncertain
as trying to predict the weather. But if those who attempt the latter are
correct, this coming weekend (April 21-22) should see a major push of migrants,
at least in northwestern Ohio. According to the latest predictions, skies
should be clear from Friday through Sunday, temperatures will finally be
warming up again, and the wind will finally swing around to the south on
Saturday. With clear skies and a favorable wind, migrants should arrive in
numbers, especially overnight Saturday night, and I expect that Sunday should
be an excellent day to be out hitting any kind of migrant traps. It's still too
early for the full diversity of neotropical migrants but there should be some
slight relief for those of us in the warbler-starved northern counties. As
several people have noted, there are undoubtedly large numbers of migrants
dammed up to the south of us somewhere, so when conditions for migration
improve, our local birding is likely to change in a dramatic way.
If you decide to come up to Magee Marsh / Crane Creek on Sunday, stop by the
Black Swamp Bird Observatory nature center between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Sunday
afternoon to meet the renowned wildlife artist Adam Grimm. Famous for his
conservation work (perhaps you've birded the Adam Grimm Prairie on Krause Rd
just west of Ottawa NWR) and for his artwork (among other things, he won the
Federal Duck Stamp competition in 2000), Grimm is leaving Ohio to move to South
Dakota, so you shouldn't miss this chance to meet him and see some of his
original artwork. The BSBO nature center is just north of Route 2 on the road
in to Crane Creek and Magee Marsh, so if you're a birder, it's right on your
way. See http://www.bsbobird.org or call (419) 898 4070 for more information.
Kenn Kaufman
Rocky Ridge, Ohio
Subject: Yesterday's Hawk Totals @ Conneaut
From: Gabe Hostetler
Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 18:29:04 -0700
I just got off the phone with Levi Hochstetler who asked that I post the totals
of the hawk count that he and a group of friends had at Conneaut yesterday
(Monday, April 23). The group included Ed Schlabach, who is certainly one of
Ohio's premier hawk watchers. They had an incredible day, in addition to the 2
Swainson's reported to the listserv yesterday. Some of these totals are likely
single day state records:
22 osprey
1 bald eagle
27 northern harrier
2 Swainson's hawk
2,323 broad-winged hawk
578 sharp-shinned hawk
19 Cooper's hawk
53 red-tailed hawk
7 red-shouldered hawk
27 American kestrel
3 merlin
The majority of the broad-wings were sighted before 11:00 a.m., and the first
was seen around 7:20 a.m. while they were still on the road.
Gabe Hostetler
Wooster
Subject: Magee area overview 4/23
From: Kenn Kaufman
Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 00:17:14 -0400
Mary Warren has already posted very useful and thorough lists of the bird
species seen today at the Magee Marsh boardwalk, but some readers might be
interested in an overview of today's migration in the general area. We have
notes today from several hours at the boardwalk (Kenn K.); from the Black
Swamp Bird Observatory's main banding site at the Navarre Unit of Ottawa
National Wildlife Refuge, about five miles east of the turnoff to Crane
Creek / Magee Marsh (Kim K., Julie Shieldcastle, and a team of wonderful
volunteers); from the BSBO hawk watch, conducted from the tower next to the
Sportsman's Migratory Bird Center at Magee Marsh, about halfway between
Route 2 and the boardwalk (Dana Bollin and Lee Garling); and from the
vicinity of the BSBO office, just north of Route 2 at the entrance to Crane
Creek / Magee (Kim K. and others).
The numbers of migrants present today marked a dramatic increase from the
end of last week. Yellow-rumped Warblers, White-throated Sparrows, and
Hermit Thrushes were the three most numerous migrants at the boardwalk and
at Navarre. Warbler variety was excellent, with at least 16 species seen at
the boardwalk and a few others elsewhere. To give a sense of relative
numbers, here are Kenn's counts from a total of five hours at the boardwalk:
Orange-crowned 1, Nashville 4, Yellow 3, Yellow-rumped 500 (mostly adult
males), Black-throated Green 12, Pine 5, Palm 45, Black-and-white 3,
Worm-eating at least 1, Ovenbird 2, Northern Waterthrush 1, Louisiana
Waterthrush 1. Seen by others here (presumably single birds) were
Blue-winged, Yellow-throated, Hooded, and Common Yellowthroat. At the
banding site at Navarre the overall species composition of warblers was
similar, with the addition of a Chestnut-sided but with no Pine Warblers.
Notable were two Worm-eating Warblers, at least two Hooded Warblers, and
Louisiana Waterthrush (a record total of three were banded here the previous
day). Additional warblers reported in the woodlot at the end of the road at
Metzger Marsh were another Hooded, Northern Parula (John Sawvel), and a very
early Blackpoll (Rick Nirschl).
In terms of non-warbler migrants, the abundance of Hermit Thrushes was
notable, but the boardwalk also had at least 1 Wood Thrush and at least 2
Swainson's Thrushes (the Navarre site had Wood and Swainson's also).
White-eyed, Red-eyed, and Warbling Vireos were all present in small numbers.
The first Eastern Kingbird and first Bank Swallows (4) that we've had were
along the beach at Magee, and at least three Lincoln's Sparrows were banded
at Navarre. There were still a few Golden-crowned Kinglets but they were
far outnumbered by Ruby-crowned Kinglets at both sites. Winter Wrens were
still fairly numerous but we saw only one Rusty Blackbird today at the
boardwalk, where there were still 30-plus last week. At Navarre, multiple
Whip-poor-wills were calling pre-dawn.
There was a pronounced migration of Broad-winged Hawks but it was not
evident out at the boardwalk or beach. Most of the birds were moving
parallel to the lake shore but well inland, some passing south of the hawk
watch tower and directly over the BSBO office, others seen south of Route 2.
Ospreys and subadult Bald Eagles seemed to be moving on a broad front.
Eventually the numbers from the Navarre banding site and the hawk watch will
be available on the BSBO web site ( www.bsbobird.org ). At this season,
understandably, it's a challenge for us to keep up with the data! But we
hope that this summary will be helpful to people who are learning about the
sequence of migration through this amazing region.
Kenn and Kim Kaufman
Black Swamp Bird Observatory
Subject: Magee Marsh 5/5 morning
From: Kenn Kaufman
Date: Sat, 5 May 2007 15:26:20 -0400
The winds haven't seemed to favor migration the last few days, but even so,
there was obvious turnover in the migrants present today (Saturday May 5) at
the Magee Marsh boardwalk (Lucas Co., n.w. Ohio). I was leading a group
that was focused on warbler I.D. so we moved pretty slowly, concentrating on
looking closely at individuals rather than trying to rack up a big list,
and we spent most of our time near the west end of the boardwalk and inside
the woods, out of the strong east-northeast winds. Warblers that hadn't
been evident earlier in the week included Black-throated Blue (at least 4
males), Am. Redstart (at least 1 male), and Magnolia (at least 2 males,
although I know one was reported a couple of days ago). There were at least
6 to 8 Ovenbirds around, suggesting that a wave of them had arrived (or
maybe a micro-wave). Black-and-white Warblers seemed scarce compared to
earlier in the week. Cape May Warblers are still present in good numbers
(we saw at least 6), there are still a few Pine Warblers including a singing
male, and male Black-throated Greens are still foraging near the boardwalk.
The four most common warbler species today were Nashville, Yellow,
Yellow-rumped, and Palm.
Numbers of Ruby-crowned Kinglets had dropped dramatically from earlier in
the week (we saw dozens, but not hundreds), numbers of White-throated
Sparrows were reduced, and thrushes were virtually absent. Rose-breasted
Grosbeak and Baltimore Oriole are around in numbers (at least 10 of each).
Stragglers well past the peak of their migration for here included a Brown
Creeper and a few Rusty Blackbirds.
Kenn Kaufman
Rocky Ridge, Ohio
Subject: Metzger Marsh shorebirds
From: Bill Whan
Date: Fri, 4 May 2007 11:24:22 -0400
It seems Metzger Marsh's waters have been drawn down again, creating
for the second time this century some substantial foraging for
northbound shorebirds there. The last time Metzger water was lowered
enough was the spring of 2004 (apparently to enable burning off of
invasive plants), when 25+ species used the mudflats, including
red-necked phalarope, stilt sandpiper, western sandpiper, and red knot,
all relatively scarce in Ohio in spring. I remember watching a swirling
mass of 9000+ dunlins that May, reminiscent of the days before this area
was diked off.
I hope the hordes of warbler-watchers at Magee Marsh will find time to
come by Metzger to see some shorebird habitat this spring: unlike that
for songbirds, this is not a yearly affair. A site guide is at
http://www.ohiobirds.org/birdingsites/showsite.php?Site_ID=13 . Spurred
by the draw-down, a perennial discussion of this area has emerged on the
Toledo-area bird list
http://www.rarebird.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2010 .
I will refrain from repeating my opinions on the matter here. Suffice
it to say we have more shorebirds on the Ohio species list than
warblers, or waterfowl. An essay on Ohio shorebirds is at
http://www.ohiobirds.org/news.php?News_ID=114 . Statements on the
Metzger issue (from 2004, ironically) are on the list archives at
http://lists.envirolink.org/pipermail/ohio-birds/2004-January/001920.html
and at
http://lists.envirolink.org/pipermail/ohio-birds/2004-February/002169.html
I hope they'll be of interest to those who care about Metzger WA
and about shorebirds. Enjoy all the northbound birds, and wish them the
best in their efforts to reproduce their kind.
Bill Whan
Columbus
Subject: Magee area migrant fallout 5/8
From: Kenn Kaufman
Date: Tue, 8 May 2007 14:42:42 -0400
This is a mid-day progress report from migrant traps on the lake shore in
n.w. Ohio: Magee Marsh boardwalk (Lucas Co.) and the main banding station of
the Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO), located about 5 miles east of Magee
on the Navarre Unit of Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, Ottawa County. As
predicted, the south winds last night brought in a huge influx of migrants
today, making this the biggest day of the spring so far. Small numbers and
moderate variety had been on the boardwalk at Magee on Monday evening, May
7, but this morning there were great numbers and excellent variety. I was
able to confirm 27 warbler species present on the boardwalk, and heard
possible reports of three others; highlights included large numbers of
Blackburnians, Magnolias, and Chestnut-sideds, an influx of Tennessees and
Northern Parulas, a few of the classic late-spring migrants such as
Blackpoll, Canada, and Wilson's Warblers, and some "southern" warblers such
as small numbers of Hooded, Worm-eating, and Prothonotary. I just heard
from Kim that the BSBO banding station at Navarre also banded 27 species of
warblers today, with large numbers of Blackburnians, Magnolias, and
Black-and-whites; notable warblers there included Orange-crowned,
Prothonotary, Worm-eating, Mourning, Hooded, Wilson's, and Canada.
On the non-warbler front, the boardwalk had its first big influx of Red-eyed
Vireos today, and in fact all six of our regularly occurring vireos were
there, although I only heard of one Philadelphia and didn't see it myself
(yet! -- I'm headed back out there). The banding station at Navarre also
had one Philadelphia Vireo. Baltimore Orioles were very numerous at both
sites, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and Scarlet Tanagers were conspicuous at
both, and Cedar Waxwings arrived at both sites also. Empidonax flycatchers
had a major arrival, with BSBO banding lots of Leasts plus a few
Willow/Alders and Acadians. All five brown thrushes were seen at both the
boardwalk and the banding station, with Swainson's especially numerous.
At this time of year, obviously, the people who work on the BSBO banding
operation are extremely busy, but eventually all the daily totals will be
available on the BSBO website at www.bsbobird.org . This research project
has been going on seven days a week, spring and fall, for the last 15 years,
with a very consistent degree of effort, so it gives a very accurate reading
of what is really happening with the migration. Kim tells me that the
station banded over 800 birds today, making it one of their larger days ever
and attesting to the magnitude of today's fallout.
The south winds are supposed to continue tonight. I don't know if
tomorrow's numbers will be smaller (because so many birds will leave on the
south winds) or bigger (because even more will arrive), but I suspect that
diversity will be excellent at all the migrant traps in n.w. Ohio at least
through Thursday.
Kenn Kaufman
Rocky Ridge, Ohio
Subject: tonight's radar
From: Richard Cressman
Date: Mon, 7 May 2007 23:48:17 -0400
Tonight's radar (11:45 pm) shows extremely heavy reflection across the
Ohio Valley area and southwestward and the map shows clear skies in the
region. The velocity radar for Wilmington shows the movement is
northeastward.
Should be a flood!!
Richard Cressman
Columbus OH
Subject: Ohio Young Birders Conference
From: KimmerDukous AT AOL.COM
Date: Mon, 7 May 2007 22:18:16 EDT
Hello everyone,
On Saturday, May 26th, the Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) and our
partners at the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge (ONWR) will host the first
annual
Ohio Young Birders Conference. The event will take place at the spectacular
new refuge visitor's center located at 14000 West State Route 2, Oak Harbor,
Ohio.
Pre-event field trips will be held on Friday evening and Saturday morning,
and event registration will begin at ONWR at 9:30 AM on Saturday.
While there are many organizations in this country providing opportunities
for young birders, there has never been an event quite like this one! All of
the presentations are being given by young birders and will feature topics
such as:
Ohio's Rails - An in-depth look at Ohio's mysterious marsh birds
Presented by Auriel Van Der Laar, age 16. Auriel has been assisting
primary investigator, Tom Kashmer, with BSBO's rail migration research on the
Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge for the last four years. Miss Van Der Laar's
presentation, illustrated with spectacular images, will share detailed
information on the migrational timing and habitat usage of these birds, gleaned
from
BSBO's banding research.
Night Flight Calls of Migratory Songbirds -
Presented by Ethan Kistler, age 16.
Ethan's interest in this subject took him to Ithaca, New York to visit the
master of night flight calls, Bill Evans. Bill helped Ethan construct a
powerful microphone that works with a dedicated computer to record the night
flight calls of migratory birds, and Ethan's presentation will include some of
the
data he has been recording at his home in northeast Ohio this spring.
Taking Field Notes & Sketching Birds -
Presented by Phil Chaon, age 17.
Phil's ability to notice fine details of birds in the field and quickly
capture those fine points on paper is simply amazing. His notes and sketches
became the basis for a regular column for Golden-Wings, the newsletter of the
Ohio Young Birders Club. Phil's presentation will include an outdoor session to
out our new skills into practice.
Our keynote speaker is Andy Bankert. Andy is 18 years old and one of
Florida's top birders. He has developed quite a reputation for his "Florida Big
Days" and this year he's taking on the challenge of doing a "Florida Big
Year." Andy will share his thoughts on the challenges of being a gifted young
birder in a community made up almost entirely of adults, as well as showing off
some of Florida's specialty birds and where to find them!
The Master of Ceremonies for the event is Brad Wilkinson. Brad is 16 years
old and is a very accomplished birder. He developed the very popular online
young birders forum, "Buckeye Birders," and serves on the Youth Advisory
Panel of the Ohio Young Birders Club.
Registration is open to Ohio Young Birders Club members (youth membership,
ages 12-18, is just $5.00 per year, and adults 19 and over may join as
supporting members for $10.00 per year). Youth registrations will be given
priority, but we will have space for adult members as well.
Registration for the conference is $10.00 per youth member and $15.00 per
adult member. Deadline for registration is May 19th, and after that date we
will
accept registrations, if there are spaces available, at the rate of $15.00
per youth and $20.00 per adult.
More information is available by visiting www.ohioyoungbirders.org
(http://www.ohioyoungbirders.org)
Please e-mail me privately if you have additional questions.
Thank you!
Kim Kaufman
Ohio Young Birders Club Coordinator
http://www.rarebird.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2056
Topic: Metzger Fallout -- Merlin, Clay-colored, Willets
Posted: Today at 3:45pm
I arrived at Metzger at 6:00am this morning, and the birds didn't disappoint. Among the first birds noted were a Common Nighthawk, and Worm-eating and Hooded Warblers which each provided super views. For the first couple of hours the movement of birds overhead was very impressive. Blue Jays were in bigger groups than I have ever seen locally -- by mid-morning I estimated more than 3500 with most striking out directly over the lake. Baltimore orioles were on the move in a big way too generally not even pausing in the trees for the first few hours. For the six hours I was at Metzger, I tallied more than 140 with 15 or so Orchard Orioles interspersed. Bobolinks (+/-75), Eastern Kingbirds (40), American Pipits (+/-125), Cedar Waxwings (125) and Indigo Buntings (55) were among the most numerous early-morning movers, mostly flying overhead along the lakeshore. Early in the morning a Merlin scattered everything that was in the air, but it continued directly north.
By 8:30 or so, warblers were settling into the small woodlot. At least 25 species were accounted for with many species in very good numbers. Along with the Worm-eating and Hooded were a couple of Golden-winged Warblers and lots of Tennessee (20), Nashville (60), Chestnut-sided (20), Magnolia (35), Cape May (30), Black-throated green (25), Blackburnian (20), and Bay-breasted (25) Warblers. I also saw single Canada and Wilson Warblers. A Clay-colored sparrow was singing in the small strip of trees at the point. Lincoln's sparrows (15) were very easy to find as were Rose-breasted grosbeaks (25). Other notable finds included Yellow-billed cuckoo, Alder and Willow flycatchers (both calling), Eastern Wood Pewee, and Philadelphia Vireo.
The best species in the marshes were a single Snowy Egret, 7 Willets, and a couple of Ruddy Turnstones. Three late Buffleheads were fly-bys over the lake and an Osprey and two Northern Harriers passed overhead.
My outings to the lake have been very limited in recent years, but this was certainly one of the better movements I have seen in some time.
Matt Anderson
Subject: Magee Marsh 5-8-07
From: Douglas Fisher
Date: Tue, 8 May 2007 18:53:45 -0700
I made my annual visit to Magee Marsh today and was
very lucky to be there on just the right day. At 10AM
standing just inside the west entrance to the
boardwalk, I easily found 10 warbler species within
the first 15 minutes! Within 3 hours, I had 75
species total including 20 warblers. Highlights were
close naked-eye views of blackpoll, canada, and
prothonotary warblers, several cuckoos (yellow and
black billed), woodcock nest, screech owl, and large
numbers of the more common warblers spread all over
the boardwalk. This was easily the best visit I've
had here in many years!
Doug Fisher
Worthington, Ohio
Subject: Magee Marsh Boardwalk--2:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
From: NEUBAUERB3 AT AOL.COM
Date: Tue, 8 May 2007 22:24:58 EDT
"The best known phrase in birding "YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN HERE".
WOW!
80+
Good birding to everyone,
Ed and Bev Neubauer
Subject: Metzger Marsh
From: Sally/Dave Isacco
Date: Tue, 8 May 2007 22:26:57 -0400
Can't add anything to Doug and Kenn's report; it certainly was a great day at
Craine Creek! My highlight at Metzger Marsh was the 140+ American
Golden-Plovers!
Sally Isacco
Chardon
To my mind the book reports are very interesting and impressive
posted by melinas on Jun 05, 2011 at 08:25:06 am #