Report from the Ohio listserv ...
Subject: Ottawa NWR waterfowl
Date: Sun, 7 Jan 2007 23:30:51 -0500
On Saturday I visited Ottawa NWR and walked the various trails. It was
unseasonably warm for Ottawa so I wasn't sure if the refuge would be
bird-plentiful. The trails closest to the Lake Erie shoreline were very
productive for waterfowl. This included 44 Snow Geese of which about half were
white phase and the rest blue. There were well over 100 individuals of Tundra
Swan, 4 Mute Swans and several banded Trumpeter Swans. Over 20 Northern
Pintails mixed in with Mallards, American Black Ducks, and Common Mergansers.
There were Great Black-backed Gulls mixed with the more common Ring-billed and
Herring. And of course Bald Eagles were plentiful with one tree having five
perched eagles and numerous others flying about. The wet woods near the visitor
center had many common songbirds as well. For the waterfowl, a long walk with
spotting scopes will probably be necessary for the best chance of observation.