June Birding in Ohio: Places to Visit

Summer is generally not my favorite season. I prefer cooler weather, and maybe I like summer less because there aren't as many ducks right down the road as there are during the other seasons! Either way, there are definitely some fun things that I enjoy in the summer! (Like swimming in a lake!) There are also some interesting locations in this part of Ohio to explore in the summer.

Here are some short descriptions and bird lists from some of the nearby places I have been birding in June...

Last weekend I combined two fun outdoor activities with good birding friends; the outcome was definitely fun. Sunday I biked and birded the Heart of Ohio Trail, and on Monday I kayaked and birded Clearfork Reservoir. I had never biked the Heart of Ohio Trail, in Knox County. My friend Gary and I rode 21 miles starting in Mt. Vernon. During our ride, we were able to see or hear 70 species of birds! The trail was not crowded, although that could be because of the rain, but it also seemed to have pretty decent habitat for a variety of birds. I definitely recommend checking it out if you are looking for a place to bike/bird in Central Ohio. We had to have heard at least 30 Indigo Buntings along the way! They seem to be holding territories all along the trail. Some other great birds we saw were Baltimore and Orchard Orioles, four species of Vireos, Northern Parulas, Hooded Warblers, Yellow-throated Warblers, Cliff Swallows, a Scarlet Tanager, Northern Mockingbird, Wood Thrush, two Yellow-billed Cuckoos, and maybe my favorite was the Black Vulture that we saw picking at some food along the edge of a road we passed! They were all great birds though, so it is hard to choose which to list without typing out all 70! If you'd like to see our full tip list, check out our eBird list, where you can also see which had young and how many were out singing that day:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18866800

Last Monday, I birded from the water with my friend. We met at the Clearfork Reservoir boat launch and set out to explore the tributary and shores along the west end of the reservoir. We saw some great birds and even saw a few dragonflies, turtles and small mammals. Clearfork is a nice, calm area to kayak and the habitat is great along the edges! I always see lots of interesting critters. If you like to bird by county, you have to be careful on the reservoir and surrounding property because it switches back and forth between Morrow and Richland counties in several spots! A few of the highlight species were young Cliff Swallows in nests under a bridge, an Ovenbird singing, and spectacular views of Prothonotary Warblers! Here are the two lists from out kayaking trip:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18898964
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18899328

While there is a lot of shoreline that can only be accessed from the water, there are some great picnic areas along the reservoir that yield some pretty cool birds too, so don't miss out on birding the reservoir if you don't have a kayak or other small watercraft! My favorite area in the summer is Picnic Area #3, the one closest to the marina and the only one in Morrow County. Just the other day I heard several Yellow-throated Warblers while training dogs with a friend.

The trails at the Ohio Bird Sanctuary are also a great place to look for breeding birds! Earlier this month, I went out with Gary to conduct a breeding bird survey and while it was raining part of the morning we still had a great diversity of birds! Blue-winged Warblers and Louisiana Waterthrush may have been my favorites that day! We had quite a few different woodpeckers, vireos, and flycatchers, 10 species of warblers, Scarlet Tanagers, Swamp Sparrows and more! Before we left, there was even a Broad-winged Hawk showing off near the driveway! Check out what we saw:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18807779

A few weeks ago, I visited Brown's Lake Bog with my mom and her friend Jan. It is a beautiful place to visit, even if you aren't interested in birds. The boardwalk runs from the parking lot through the woods and out into the open bog leading to one of the few kettle lakes remaining in Ohio. In the woods, you may be lucky enough to see a White-eyed Vireo showing off, but you will definitely see lots of Gray Catbirds! Once you make it out into the bog, look closely at the incredible plants growing out there. My favorites are the carnivorous Sundew and Pitcher Plants! I recommend bringing your bug spray and a camera if you choose to stop by Brown's Lake Bog this summer! Here's my list of birds from the bog:
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S18722602

Drosera (Sundew) is one of my favorite carnivorous plants!

If you are in Ohio and looking for something to do next June, be sure to check out the Time & Optics birding event in early June, where this year, I saw my lifer Blue Grosbeak! Also, don't miss Greater Mohican Audubon Society's Bobolinks and Butterflies event at Byers Woods in late June! This year, Gary Cowell, Tim Leslie and I guided two hour-and-a-half long bird walks around Byers Woods. We were able to spot Bobolinks for nearly everyone on both walks to see and we also saw some other fun birds! I know on the second walk, several people had some good views of an Indigo Bunting singing away! Here are the birds seen during the event: