2018 Birdathon Big Day

Monday, May 14, 2018

The BenAnnaquits set off for our 3rd year of participation in the Columbus Audubon Birdathon! This year's Birdathon was extra exciting because we were testing out a new route. Our goal was to beat last year's total of 153 species. We started off at 11:00 PM Sunday night to head towards our starting destination in Southern Ohio. An hour later, our timer started and we rolled down the car windows, anxiously awaiting our first bird of the day. Gray Catbird! We continued towards Tranquility Wildlife Area, making several stops along grassy fields listening over the sounds of Cope's Gray Treefrogs and Blanchard's Cricket Frogs. We added Yellow-breasted Chat, Northern Mockingbird, and Henslow's Sparrow before arriving at our starting destination. As we quietly crept down the roads of the wildlife area, our main target began to call... a Chuck-will's-widow! Chuck-wills-widow was even a new state bird for me! (#331 for Ohio) Several Eastern Whip-poor-wills called all around us as we listen for a distant Barred Owl.

Clear Creek Metro Park. Photo by Anna Wittmer

We arrived at Clear Creek Metro Park before the dawn chorus started. An Eastern Whip-poor-will called into the silence of the night. As the birds woke up, we began our hike. A chorus of Wood Thrushes sang through the mist of the morning. Cerulean Warblers and Black-throated Green Warblers buzzed in the tree tops. Before long, we heard a Worm-eating Warbler, not far from the trail. It didn't take long before our team all got to see him as he sang repeatedly! Driving from one end of Clear Creek Metro Park to the other, we saw a beautiful Luna Moth flutter in front of us. Shortly after, Ben spotted a Milk Snake in the road. This has been a nemesis herp of mine for years! I jumped out to see it and help it across the road. I was thrilled to have this gorgeous guy in my hands for the first time!

Me with my lifer Milk Snake! Photo by Julie Wittmer

Milk Snake bellies. Photo by Julie Wittmer

Just seconds down the road, an Eastern Box Turtle crossed. Again I hopped out of the car to assist her crossing. We added several more species, including Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Pileated Woodpecker, Indigo Bunting, and Ruby-throated Hummingbird before continuing our journey north. Along the route, we added Turkey Vultures and Rock Pigeons.

Eastern Box Turtle crossing the road. Photo by Anna Wittmer

Upon arriving at Pickerington Ponds Metro Park at 9:20am, it was alreay getting rather warm. We quickly scoped a Barn Owl nesting site before tallying a White-eyed Vireo in the parking lot!

Our next stop was Bolton Field Airport. We found a patch of shade to scope the grasslands as we heard several Eastern Meadowlarks call. Turkey Vultures, Red-tailed Hawks, and a Cooper's Hawk swirled in the sky above. We heard Savannah Sparrows as we scanned for our main target. After a few minutes, we were preparing to leave when Ben spotted it: an Upland Sandpiper! We all grabbed quick views before jumping back into the Prius.

By the time we arrived at Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park, it was hot! 88 degrees is not ideal for wetland birding in the spring. We managed to add Sora and Virginia Rails, Common Gallinule, Ruddy Duck, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Hooded Merganser, Marsh Wren, and several other species, but missed the bitterns we were hoping for.

Photo by Julie Wittmer

The fields around Battelle Darby yielded Horned Larks, a Vesper Sparrow, and an American Pipit as we continued north. We soon realized we had made a fatal mistake and had left our food bag at home. We opted to stop by to pick it up and take a restroom stop rather than making several other stops for food or snacks throughout the day. We headed back towards home, which thankfully was mostly on the way to our next location anyway. On the way home on Interstate 270, the storms started rolling in. High winds, hail, and torrential downpours followed us home and we waited longer than we should have for the rains to let up before we left again for the 2.5 hour drive to Magee Marsh.

In the time it took us to drive north, the outside temperature had dropped 20 degrees. Birding Magee Marsh was FANTASTIC! We arrived to a rather large crowd all looking for a vagrant Black-throated Gray Warbler. I immediately ran into my bird-sister, Ashli and she informed us that the bird hadn't been very cooperative lately. We decided to give it a try but not spend too much time for one species. We added a few new warblers along the way such as Chestnut-sided Warbler before arriving to the largest group of people. Just as we stopped to wait, someone called out that she spotted it. We were a ways from the epicenter of the group, but we lucked out having this lovely female Black-throated Gray Warbler right out in the open where we could all easily admire her! We weaved our way through the crowd, briefly stopping to greet my bird-dad Kenn Kaufman who generously pledged a donation per species we found on our Big Day! We continued to add the rest of the expected warblers that we needed, including Black-throaed Blue Warbler, Myrtle Warbler, and Wilson's Warbler. We enjoyed incredible close-up views of a Canada Warbler before continuing on to find a Philadelphia Vireo, Olive-sided Flycatcher, and an Eastern Screech-Owl. We were surprised to observe a Sedge Wren foraging on the ground just inches off the edge of the boardwalk. Their intricate patterning was impressive to see that closely. We saw 23 species of warblers at Magee Marsh! There were so many birds everywhere we looked that it made it very difficult to pull ourselves away from the boardwalk to continue our Big Day.

Black-throated Gray Warbler at Magee Marsh. Photo by Rick Nirschl

Our next destination was a quick drive through the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge Auto Tour. Our targets here were Black-necked Stilts, and any other shorebirds or waterfowl we could locate. We were not expecting to add a Rough-legged Hawk during our Big Day since they usually leave Ohio by late March or early April. Some other additions included Green Heron, American Wigeon, Common Tern, and Dunlin.

The Eastern Screech-Owl we saw at Magee Marsh
Photo by Chris Brown

A brief drive through Metzger Marsh yielded Cliff Swallows for the day before we arrived at Howard Marsh. Howard Marsh is an impressive 1000-acre wetland restoration project completed by the Toldeo Metroparks that just opened earlier this month. It has already been hosting a wide variety of migrant shorebirds, waterfowl, and waders, and quickly became the home of a nesting pair of Osprey. Getting late in the day, we were still able to aquire several new species! Dunlin were present in the hundreds and among them were 38 Short-billed Dowitchers and 2 Wilson's Phalaropes. We tallied Bonaparte's Gulls and a single Lesser Scaup before our departure.

The sun was getting low in the sky, but we had just enough time to get to Oak Openings Metropark before last light. As soon as we rolled down the windows, we could hear several American Woodcocks "peenting." A Wild Turkey called from a distance and a single Lark Sparrow sang his last bit of song before nightfall. We missed several species by arriving so late in the day but got lucky with these ones! Eastern Whip-poor-wills called at the third location of the day to start and end our Big Day.

As the night grew darker, we were off to Irwin Prairie State Nature Preserve. Several occasions of recent scouting offered a variety of rails, Wilson's Snipes, and more. Tonight, we accidentally flushed a single Song Sparrow from the edge of the boardwalk. We didn't detect a single species more, besides hundreds of Gray Tree Frogs, and a few Spring Peepers, and Western Chorus Frogs!

Our team was exhausted and opted to head home since we had to work the next morning. We didn't set any state records, but we did set a new record for our team! 158 species in a single day!!

Click HERE to contribute to our donations for Columbus Audubon! THANK YOU!!

Some Stats

Species of Warblers Observed: 30 Species
Species of Sparrows Observed: 12 Species
Total Species of Birds Observed: 158 Species
Number of Reptiles/Amphibians Observed: 16 Species
Number of Mammals Recorded: 9 Species
Miles Driven: 591 Miles
Miles Walked: 4.5 Miles
Counties Birded: 8 Counties
Total Hours Birding: 22.5 hours

Although I drive an eco-friendly Toyota Prius, I was feeling guilty about our carbon footprint during our Ohio Big Day. To help offset the damage, I donated to the Nature Conservancy in support of habitat restoration efforts and research into climate change solutions.

Meet the BenAnnaquits

Anna Wittmer - I formed the BenAnnaquits team with my husband, Ben Warner the first year we moved to Columbus together. I asked my mom, Julie Wittmer to join us and she has every year. We often try to include anyone else who is interested in joing us. This year, we were joined by my friend and newest coworker, Sarah Brown! Sarah has only been birding for a few months and was a great team member during our day! She added 56 lifers!

Me, Julie, and Ben

Sarah

Our Bird List

1. Canada Goose
2. Trumpeter Swan
3. Blue-winged Teal
4. Northern Shoveler
5. Gadwall
6. American Wigeon
7. Mallard
8. Lesser Scaup
9. Hooded Merganser
10. Ruddy Duck
11. Ring-necked Pheasant
12. Wild Turkey
13. Pied-billed Grebe
14. Double-crested Cormorant
15. Great Blue Heron
16. Great Egret
17. Snowy Egret
18. Green Heron
19. Turkey Vulture
20. Osprey
21. Cooper's Hawk
22. Bald Eagle
23. Red-tailed Hawk
24. Rough-legged Hawk
25. Virginia Rail
26. Sora
27. Common Gallinule
28. American Coot
29. Sandhill Crane
30. Black-necked Stilt
31. Killdeer
32. Upland Sandpiper
33. Dunlin
34. Short-billed Dowitcher
35. American Woodcock
36. Wilson's Phalarope
37. Spotted Sandpiper
38. Solitary Sandpiper
39. Greater Yellowlegs
40. Lesser Yellowlegs
41. Bonaparte's Gull
42. Ring-billed Gull
43. Herring Gull
44. Caspian Tern
45. Common Tern
46. Rock Pigeon
47. Mourning Dove
48. Yellow-billed Cuckoo
49. Barn Owl
50. Eastern Screech-Owl
51. Barred Owl
52. Chuck-will's-widow
53. Eastern Whip-poor-will
54. Chimney Swift
55. Ruby-throated Hummingbird
56. Belted Kingfisher
57. Red-bellied Woodpecker
58. Northern Flicker
59. Pileated Woodpecker
60. American Kestrel
61. Olive-sided Flycatcher
62. Eastern Wood-Pewee
63. Acadian Flycatcher
64. Willow Flycatcher
65. Least Flycatcher
66. Eastern Phoebe
67. Great Crested Flycatcher
68. Eastern Kingbird
69. White-eyed Vireo
70. Yellow-throated Vireo
71. Blue-headed Vireo
72. Philadelphia Vireo
73. Warbling Vireo
74. Red-eyed Vireo
75. Blue Jay
76. American Crow
77. Horned Lark
78. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
79. Purple Martin
80. Tree Swallow
81. Barn Swallow
82. Cliff Swallow
83. Carolina Chickadee
84. Black-capped Chickadee
85. Tufted Titmouse
86. White-breasted Nuthatch
87. House Wren
88. Sedge Wren
89. Marsh Wren
90. Carolina Wren
91. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
92. Eastern Bluebird
93. Veery
94. Gray-cheeked Thrush
95. Swainson's Thrush
96. Wood Thrush
97. American Robin
98. Gray Catbird
99. Brown Thrasher
100. Northern Mockingbird
101. European Starling
102. American Pipit
103. Cedar Waxwing
104. Ovenbird
105. Worm-eating Warbler
106. Louisiana Waterthrush
107. Northern Waterthrush
108. Blue-winged Warbler
109. Black-and-white Warbler
110. Prothonotary Warbler
111. Tennessee Warbler
112. Nashville Warbler
113. Kentucky Warbler
114. Common Yellowthroat
115. Hooded Warbler
116. American Redstart
117. Cape May Warbler
118. Cerulean Warbler
119. Northern Parula
120. Magnolia Warbler
121. Bay-breasted Warbler
122. Blackburnian Warbler
123. Yellow Warbler
124. Chestnut-sided Warbler
125. Blackpoll Warbler
126. Black-throated Blue Warbler
127. Palm Warbler
128. Yellow-rumped Warbler
129. Yellow-throated Warbler
130. Black-throated Gray Warbler
131. Black-throated Green Warbler
132. Canada Warbler 
133. Wilson's Warbler
134. Grasshopper Sparrow
135. Henslow's Sparrow
136. Chipping Sparrow
137. Field Sparrow
138. Lark Sparrow
139. White-crowned Sparrow
140. Vesper Sparrow
141. Savannah Sparrow
142. Song Sparrow
143. Lincoln's Sparrow
144. Swamp Sparrow
145. Eastern Towhee
146. Yellow-breasted Chat
147. Scarlet Tanager
148. Northern Cardinal
149. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
150. Indigo Bunting
151. Eastern Meadowlark
152. Baltimore Oriole
153. Red-winged Blackbird
154. Brown-headed Cowbird
155. Common Grackle
156. House Finch
157. American Goldfinch
158. House Sparrow

Our Herp List

1. Cope's Gray Tree Frog
2. Gray Tree Frog
3. Leopard Frog
4. Blanchard's Cricket Frog
5. Green Frog
6. Bull Frog
7. Spring Peeper
8. Western Chorus Frog
9. Fowler's Toad
10. American Toad
11. Red Eft (Red-spotted Newt)
12. Milk Snake
13. Box Turtle
14. Midland Painted Turtle
15. Blanding's Turtle
16. Map Turtle

Our Mammal List

1. Virginia OPossum
2. Eastern Cottontail
3. Eastern White-tailed Deer
4. Raccoon
5. Gray Squirrel
6. Fox Squirrel
7. Red Squirrel
8. Eastern Chipmunk
9. Muskrat

2017 Ohio Big Day

Bay-breasted Warbler - Photo by Dylan Vasapolli

02:00 16 May 2017: We grabbed our binoculars and headed to our already packed vehicle. Our team, the Benannaquits, was off to beat last year's Columbus Audubon Big Day of 144 species on nearly the same date. Our route was similar but slightly revised, and our team gained an additional member. This year in addition to my mom, Julie, and my husband, Ben, we also had Dylan, our friend and a Birding Ecotours guide from South Africa, along for the day. A great advantage that we had this year was the opportunity for myself, Ben and Dylan to spend a good amount of time scouting many of our Big Day stops, during the Biggest Week in American Birding!

Our first bird of the day, en route to our first official stop was an American Robin.

05:02 We arrived in the Oak Openings region just in time for a full dawn chorus. As we sifted through the sounds of Grasshopper Sparrows, Common Yellowthroats, and American Woodcocks, we heard three distant calls that we were not expecting! The first was the low hoot of a Great Horned Owl! Next was an Eastern Whip-poor-will, and finally, and probably the most unexpected was a King Rail calling from a wet corner of the grassland!

We continued through several other hotspots within Oak Openings Preserve Metropark. We added our likely targets, such as Lark Sparrow, Henslow's Sparrow, Summer Tanager, and Red-headed Woodpecker. Among our highlights of Oak Openings were a singing Brown Creeper and Prairie Warbler! We ended our time at Oak Openings with all of the woodpecker species we would have for the day and a total of 77 species!

Brown Creeper - Photo by D. Vasapolli

We continued north, stopping at several of Toledo's fantastic parks, including Irwin Prairie State Nature Preserve, Secor Metropark, and Pearson Metropark. We were able to add a staked-out Louisiana Waterthrush and Hooded Warbler to our total!

While driving through Irwin Prairie, Julie spotted a bird perched atop a dead snag over the marsh. The lighting was poor as it had just started to rain, but there was no mistaking a Wilson's Snipe high above the wetland and calling Sora!

Wilson's Snipe at Irwin Prairie - Photo by D. Vasapolli

Julie, Dylan, and Ben enjoying an Eastern Screech-Owl

11:22 We made it to the Lake Erie coast! Our first stop along the lake was Maumee Bay State Park. We visited several locations within the park, quickly increasing our list with several species of gulls, terns, and swallows, a Ruddy Turnstone, Eastern Screech-Owl, and more! While we were in the lodge parking lot, we looked up to see a kettle of raptors migrating! 12 Broad-winged Hawks, 8 Turkey Vultures and a Bald Eagle swirled high in the sky above us!

Continuing our journey east along the coast, we stopped at a flooded field to find good numbers of Dunlin and Semipalmated Plovers, but not the species diversity we were hoping for.

By now, it was already starting to warm up beyond what we were hoping for. We arrived at Metzger Marsh. Several of our target birds were more difficult to find than we had anticipated, or worse, we couldn't find them at all. We finally managed a distant view of a Common Gallinule, and a single Pied-billed Grebe. The Least Bittern we had hoped for, and had previously heard and seen remained silently hidden in the cattails.

Eastern Screech-Owl - Photo by Ben Warner

13:43 The Warbler Capital of the World! We arrived at the Magee Marsh boardwalk, and it was rather hot. On top of the heat, we were all feeling a bit sleepy, so perhaps we spent too much time at this stop. As we birded, we picked up several new warblers for the day, such as Wilson's Warbler and Black-throated Blue Warbler. The boardwalk was crowded with birders still on their post-Biggest Week buzz. Along the way, we bumped into Jen Brumfield, leading a group of Cleveland-area birders. Ben asked if she had seen a few of our target species and she directed us to where she had seen an Olive-sided Flycatcher. Sure enough, we finished the first loop and Ben looked up to see not one, but TWO Olive-sided Flycatchers perched high! Thanks Jen!

A bit further down our walk, we came across this Protonotary Warbler enjoying a nice snack!

Prothonotary Warbler at Magee Marsh - Photo by D. Vasapolli

Just moments later, we came across a Common Nighthawk resting on a limb, then a Black-crowned Night-Heron foraging along the back side of the boardwalk! As we continued along, Dylan heard a bird calling that we had missed earlier in the morning: Sandhill Crane! We had tallied 11 species of warblers when we left he boardwalk. We checked the beach and as we were leaving, Dylan and I noticed a Lesser Black-backed Gull!

Napping Common Nighthawk - Photo by D. Vasapolli

After leaving Magee Marsh, we continued east along the lake. Our next new bird flew across Route 2 in front of the vehicle... Snowy Egret!

16:48 Pipe Creek was our next stop, and we successfully added two staked out waterfowl species: Greater Scaup and a Ring-necked Duck! We quickly walked the loop hoping to hear rails or bitterns (and also hoping to find a Fox Snake!) We didn't have much luck, but we did see several Northern Water Snakes and as we neared the start of the middle dike, we heard and briefly saw a Virginia Rail!!

Continuing east, we made a brief stop to Huron Pier, where a Black-headed Gull had been seen throughout the previous week. It would have been a life bird for me, but not today. The stop wasn't a total dip though, because we added Mute Swans to our list for the day.

We jumped back into the van for the long drive to our next stop. We needed to head south to pick up some other species such as Cerulean Warbler, Carolina Chickadee, Worm-eating Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, Veery and Winter Wren.

20:22 It was getting close to dark when we arrived at Mohican State Park. As we drove in, the evening chorus was in full swing! We were certain we would be able to easily add at least 6-8 new birds. A Wild Turkey darted across the road and a chorus of Veerys greeted us! Then we were unpleasantly greeted by a "Road Closed" sign! In order to get to the area we wanted, we would have to double back, then take a longer route around the Pleasant Hill Dam and back into the park from the other side. We were quickly losing light but we continued along. By the time we reached our destination, many of the birds had stopped singing for the night. No signs of the summer resident Cerulean Warblers or Worm-eaters. Not even a chickadee. We hiked along the river listening for a late Winter Wren, and still nothing. As we headed back to the car, Dylan stopped behind us. He heard a noise and as he shined his flashlight up, a Barred Owl peered back down at us!

21:30 We finished our official birding for the day and just had a few remaining stops, to drop off Julie in Lexington, Ohio, and then continue the trek back to Columbus. By the time we got back home, we had been on the road for a total of 22 hours and we tallied an exciting 153 species for he day! Now starts the planning for our 2018 Columbus Audubon Big Day with a goal of 150+ (hopefully beating our current record!)

Black-thoated Green Warbler - Photo by D. Vasapolli

If you enjoyed our story, please consider supporting our efforts by donating to Columbus Audubon. Bird-a-thon monies raised will go to local conservation and conservation education efforts, as well as supporting the Central Ohio chapter of the Ohio Young Birders Club! Click Here to Support the Benannaquits!

Thank you!


Here's our complete Big Day list:

1. Canada Goose
2. Mute Swan
3. Trumpeter Swan
4. Wood Duck
5. Mallard
6. Ring-necked Duck
7. Greater Scaup
8. Hooded Merganser
9. Wild Turkey
10. Pied-billed Grebe
11. Double-crested Cormorant
12. Great Blue Heron
13. Great Egret
14. Snowy Egret
15. Green Heron
16. Black-crowned Night-Heron
17. Turkey Vulture
18. Osprey
19. Bald Eagle
20. Cooper's Hawk
21. Broad-winged Hawk
22. Red-tailed Hawk
23. King Rail
24. Virginia Rail
25. Sora
26. Common Gallinule
27. American Coot
28. Sandhill Crane
29. Semipalmated Plover
30. Killdeer
31. Spotted Sandpiper
32. Solitary Sandpiper
33. Ruddy Turnstone
34. Dunlin
35. Least Sandpiper
36. Wilson's Snipe
37. American Woodcock
38. Ring-billed Gull
39. Herring Gull
40. Lesser Black-backed Gull
41. Caspian Tern
42. Common Tern
43. Forster's Tern
44. Rock Pigeon
45. Mourning Dove
46. Yellow-billed Cuckoo
47. Eastern Screech-Owl
48. Great Horned Owl
49. Barred Owl
50. Common Nighthawk
51. Eastern Whip-poor-will
52. Chimney Swift
53. Ruby-throated Hummingbird
54. Red-headed Woodpecker
55. Red-bellied Woodpecker
56. Downy Woodpecker
57. Hairy Woodpecker
58. Yellow-shafted Flicker
59. Pileated Woodpecker
60. American Kestrel
61. Olive-sided Flycatcher
62. Eastern Wood-Pewee
63. Acadian Flycatcher
64. Alder Flycatcher
65. Willow Flycatcher
66. Least Flycatcher
67. Eastern Phoebe
68. Great Crested Flycatcher
69. Eastern Kingbird
70. White-eyed Vireo
71. Yellow-throated Vireo
72. Warbling Vireo
73. Philadelphia Vireo
74. Red-eyed Vireo
75. Blue Jay
76. American Crow
77. Horned Lark
78. Purple Martin
79. Tree Swallow
80. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
81. Bank Swallow
82. Cliff Swallow
83. Barn Swallow
84. Black-capped Chickadee
85. Tufted Titmouse
86. White-breasted Nuthatch
87. Red-breasted Nuthatch
88. Brown Creeper
89. House Wren
90. Marsh Wren
91. Carolina Wren
92. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
93. Eastern Bluebird
94. Veery
95. Swainson's Thrush
96. Wood Thrush
97. American Robin
98. Gray Catbird
99. Brown Thrasher
100. European Starling
101. Cedar Waxwing
102. Ovenbird
103. Louisiana Waterthrush
104. Blue-winged Warbler
105. Black-and-white Warbler
106. Prothonotary Warbler
107. Tennessee Warbler
108. Nashville Warbler
109. Common Yellowthroat
110. Hooded Warbler
111. American Redstart
112. Cape May Warbler
113. Northern Parula
114. Magnolia Warbler
115. Bay-breasted Warbler
116. Blackburnian Warbler
117. Yellow Warbler
118. Chestnut-sided Warbler
119. Blackpoll Warbler
120. Black-throated Blue Warbler
121. Pine Warbler
122. Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler
123. Yellow-throated Warbler
124. Prairie Warbler
125. Black-throated Green Warbler
126. Canada Warbler
127. Wilson's Warbler
128. Yellow-breasted Chat
129. Eastern Towhee
130. Chipping Sparrow
131. Field Sparrow
132. Lark Sparrow
133. Savannah Sparrow
134. Grasshopper Sparrow
135. Henslow's Sparrow
136. Song Sparrow
137. Lincoln's Sparrow
138. Swamp Sparrow
139. White-throated Sparrow
140. White-crowned Sparrow
141. Summer Tanager
142. Scarlet Tanager
143. Northern Cardinal
144. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
145. Indigo Bunting
146. Red-winged Blackbird
147. Eastern Meadowlark
148. Common Grackle
149. Brown-headed Cowbird
150. Orchard Oriole
151. Baltimore Oriole
152. American Goldfinch
153. House Sparrow

Bird with Us!

Red River Gorge

Wildcat Creek

This weekend, Ben and I decided to head south for a quick adventure of early spring migration birding, hiking, a bit of rock climbing, and our first camping of the year! The Red River Gorge in Kentucky is one of Ben's favorite climbing areas and the forest is beautiful so I always enjoy going. Before we left, I found a book of hikes in the region and picked one that was a decent distance and provided good habitat for the birds I wanted to see.

As soon as we arrived in the familiar area of the Red, we stopped for a restroom break. Immediately upon opening the car doors, we heard a Louisiana Waterthrush! Then a Hooded Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, Northern Parula, and a Black-and-white Warbler! I forgot all about the restroom and walked along the edge parking lot bordering a wooded ravine. Two Ruby-throated Hummingbirds fought over a branch just feet away from me as I listened to a Brown Thrasher singing away and even including an Eastern Bluebird chortle in his repertoire! In 15 minutes, I had added 5 new species to my year list!

We finished the drive to the trailhead of our selected hike: The Swift Camp Creek--Wildcat Loop. The supposed 5.3 mile hike (which turned out to be 7 miles) led us through deciduous and pine forest, along rocky cliffs and into the ravine to a stream, over a 456 ft. elevation change. Warblers were abundant! I could hardly keep a count of the numbers of Black-throated Green Warblers, Black-and-white Warblers, and Northern Parulas we saw and heard along the way! After about a mile and a half of hiking, we found ourselves on a trail between a rocky wall and a ravine full of rhododendrons when Ben heard a Swainson's Warbler!

We waited and listened as he got closer, further away, then nearly beside us! He jumped out on a branch right in front of me and I got an exceptional look at him for maybe 3 full seconds before he was gone again, deep within the brush. We waited around to see if we could get another look but he seemed to be hiding for good.

Along the way, the wildflowers were fantastic! Red Trillium, Rue Anemone, Wild Blue Phlox, Halberd-leaf Yellow Violet, Wild Geranium, Dwarf Iris, and more!  If I would have stopped to get photos of all of the beautiful and unique flowers we saw, it may have taken us twice as long to finish our hike! But some, I just couldn't resist! Here are a few of my favorites:

Red Trillium 

Foam Flower

 As we hiked on, several species of birds seemed curious and watched us from the edge of the trail. We had stellar looks at a Hooded Warbler, several Black-and-white Warblers and a Blue-headed Vireo! Around the 5th mile, we heard another Swainson's Warbler and this time we both got to see it!

We finished our hike before sunset and headed to Miguel's for dinner and to camp for the night. We ordered our favorite pizza with black beans, mango salsa, green peppers and spinach before selecting a spot to set up our tent. Along the way we heard Pickerel Frogs, a Bullfrog and quite a few Spring Peepers calling. Exhausted from the hike, I fell asleep quickly.  At 6 AM, I awoke to a familiar and exciting sound. an Eastern Whip-poor-will calling from the dark skies above our tent! I tried to fall asleep again as the Chipping Sparrows, Northern Parulas, American Robins, White-throated Sparrows, Red-headed Woodpeckers, and Brown Thrashers all began to wake up around us.


Our plans for our second day in the gorge were a bit different than the first. While we were still hoping to see more migrant birds, our goal for the day was to get in some rock climbing! Ben is a skilled climber and really enjoys getting outdoors to climb. I, on the other hand, have a slight fear of heights, and get anxious while climbing. I still enjoy the hikes to the crags, the wildlife we see along the way, the peacefulness of the forest, and the view from the top! My favorite thing is to get to the top of a route and look down over the valley and hope to see a Turkey Vulture or a Black Vulture!

The weather for our weekend getaway was perfect and I felt rejuvenated and ready to start back into the work week. For me, hiking 7 miles and birding is much more relaxing than lounging around at home.

In all, we saw 13 new year birds on our trip! Broad-winged Hawk, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Worm-eating Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Northern Parula, Hooded Warbler, Blue-headed Vireo, Ovenbird, Swainson's Warbler, Eastern Whip-poor-will, Yellow-throated Vireo, Scarlet Tanager, and White-eyed Vireo!

A few more pictures from the weekend:

My favorite wildflower: Wild Columbine

Pleasing Fungus Beetle

Red Eft

After climbing!

My lovely husband watching a Blue-headed Vireo on the Wildcat Trail

Ohio Big Day

At 1:00 AM, May 17, 2016, our alarms sounded. Our team, the Benannaquits, sleepily, yet excitedly, dressed and headed to the already packed car. Ben, my mother, Julie and I were off on our Big Day birdathon for the Columbus Audubon! By 1:52, we had our first species of the day: the night flight call of a Swainson's Thrush. Decided to start our day north. We drove first to Oak Openings Preserve Metropark, usually one of my favorite birding locations. The weather wasn't great and in the mist of the night, a single close Grasshopper Sparrow sang, and in the distance, another replied. We listened carefully to pick out even the quietest of calls from any other species, and besides crickets, the night was silent. We still had a few hours before sunrise so we opted to go to Irwin Prairie and return to Oak Openings later, for a hopefully better start. As we arrived at Irwin Prairie, the birds started to awaken. American Woodcocks "peented" before the first Field Sparrow began singing. A distant rooster seemed to wake the Song Sparrows, American Robins, Common Yellowthroats, and Swamp Sparrows. After tallying 16 more species before 6AM, we went back to Oak Openings, hoping for the specialty birds there. The second attempt was more what we were hoping for! Orchard and Baltimore Orioles, Scarlet and Summer Tanagers, Acadian and Willow Flycatchers, Red-headed Woodpeckers, Lark Sparrows, Blue-winged Warblers and more. We were finally off to a decent start!

Oak Openings. A reliable area for Lark Sparrow, Red-headed Woodpeckers, and Summer Tanager. 

Our next stop was for some shorebirds. We knew the Curlew Sandpiper we saw last week was gone, but the habitat was still good so we wanted to check the location. We successfully tallied 9 species of shorebirds, American Pipit and all the expected swallows. The most exciting bird for me, was one of several White-rumped Sandpipers! The first I have ever seen during spring migration! White-rumped Sandpiper was a bit of a nemesis for me, until I finally got it, then I seemed to see them every time I went birding last fall.

White-rumped Sandpiper. Phone-scoped photo by Ben Warner.

As I walked along the dike, hoping to stumble upon the Least Bittern that was hanging out during The Biggest Week, I almost literally stumbled upon a Purple Martin. I looked down, and there it was, 3 inches from my boot. I reached down slowly to pick it up, and the poor bird didn't even have the energy to try to get away. I gently picked him up, as I had been trained to during avian rehab and bird banding internships. I quickly walked back to my mom and Ben who were still scanning the mudflats for shorebirds. I said "I have a Purple Martin!" and they replied, "you HAVE one?" I held it up and explained how I found it. I peeked in the scope to see the last few shorebirds so we could add them to our list and I looked p the phone number for a nearby wildlife rehab facility. Of course they were still closed, it wasn't even 9AM yet. I contacted several friends in NE Ohio to see if they could help or had ideas of another place we could take the bird. Kimberly Kaufman almost immediately responded saying that she would care for the martin if we could bring it over to BSBO. BSBO/Magee Marsh wasn't scheduled until later in the day but we reversed our plans to get the bird to her asap! Of course it was great to take a minute to see my Bird-mom and get a hug before we rushed back to our Big Day!

Up next was the Magee Marsh causeway, boardwalk and beach. The birds weren't overly numerous, as they often are, but we slowed our pace to get spectacular views of warblers, such as this Northern Parula that was waist-level, literally 3ft from us! Ben took this photo with his PHONE! No adapters.

Northern Parula. Magee Marsh Boardwalk. Photo by Ben Warner.

We also got great looks at Philadelphia Vireos, Blackburnian Warblers, Canada Warblers, Black-throated Blue Warblers, and a lovely perched Ruby-throated Hummingbird! After we walked the boardwalk, we headed towards the beach to scan for terns and shorebirds. On our way, a small group had gathered where some had been seeing a Connecticut Warbler. We scanned the beach with little success and then returned to the CONW spot. By then, several others had joined in, including a group from Cleveland led by Jen Brumfield. Jen pretty quickly refound the bird and got nearly everyone on it! I was able to see it for a few seconds as it walked along foraging! Thanks Jen! That was only the second Connecticut Warbler I've seen, and the first, 2 years ago, was only about 20 meters away from this one!

Jen also gave us a tip of some Wilson's Phalaropes being seen at the Benton-Carroll Rd Boss Unit, which was already our next stop anyway. In addition to the Wilson's Phalarope, we added several birds to our day list: Green-winged Teal, Short-billed Dowitcher, Greater Yellowlegs and a Red-tailed Hawk.

We continued west along the lake to Metzger Marsh. By now, it was nearly 3:30pm. As we drove along the causeway, a small brown bird darted next to the road into a pile of logs and branches. I quick glimpse of the bird indicated a new species for the day: Lincoln's Sparrow! As we watched for a closer look, several Marsh Wrens sang away in the marsh! Another new bird! We arrived at the parking lot and decided to walk along the lake to scan for gulls and terns. As we walked, we saw some birds moving in a tall tree. Two Nashville Warblers foraged in the foliage. Another new bird for the day! It was interesting how a so abundant in the days and weeks prior seemed to be totally gone from the area with the change in weather, but thankfully at least these two were still around! Common and Caspian Terns were added and we were off to Maumee Bay State Park.

One of our main targets at MBSP were the Eastern Screech Owls that nest in boxes along the boardwalk. Unfortunately, the cooler weather must have had the babies huddled together inside and no one was peeking out of either box. There were no signs of fledged babies or parents hanging around in the trees nearby either. Oh well, we didn't have time to spend searching, so we continued along. We made it to the marsh at the end of the cabin camping area. One of the first birds we heard was an American Bittern! Shortly after, we spotted a Common Gallinule. Two new species! After spending some time waiting for a Mourning Warbler to pop out from behind a log with several other birders that had seen it a while before or had also not yet seen it, we decided we should probably keep moving without it. A stop at the beach yielded one additional new bird for the year... a single Ruddy Turnstone. At just after 6pm, standing at 135 for the day, we knew we had a long drive to our final destination before dark and we weren't sure we would reach our goal of 140.

We arrived at Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area at 7:51pm. Our first stop wasn't promising. There were no waterfowl on the water, but as we headed back to the car, we heard a Sandhill Crane calling! We finally found some waterfowl and added Mute Swan, American Wigeon, Hooded Merganser, and Ruddy Duck. As we were birding we heard a Ring-necked Pheasant calling from a field! We've seen pheasants at KPWA before, but it definitely wasn't a bird I was expecting that evening so it was a very pleasant surprise! As we drove to look for shorebirds, we were commenting about seeing TONS of Gray Catbirds all day, several Brown Thrashers, but not a single mockingbird. After another catbird flew across the road, we joked about just counting it as a mockingbird. Just then, I saw something in a tree and told Ben, who was driving at the time, to stop a reverse a bit. There in a tree, 8 feet off the ground and right along the roadside was our Northern Mockingbird for the day! We all cheered and went along on our search for more shorebirds or waterfowl. We pulled up to an area that is often good for shorebirds, but there wasn't much out there. A few Killdeer and yellowlegs walked through the shallow water. Then Ben found them, probably the best birds of the day, and definitely the least expected birds of the day: a pair of Black-necked Stilts! We figured these would be the last birds of the daylight, and we had already surpassed our goal, so we all enjoyed these birds. We watched them through our binoculars and took turns looking through the scopes at these two tall, beautiful birds. Ben and I were even able to get a few shots with our phones, handheld through the scope. Here's Ben's:

Black-necked Stilts at KPWA

Our last efforts to see waterfowl before dark were at the reservoir. As we scanned across the water with our scopes, I saw a duck quickly move behind an island. I couldn't immediately tell what it was in the low light and with such a brief view, but I thought it was a scaup. This was good because we didn't have either scaup for the day so either way it was an additional species! Ben confirmed that it was a Greater Scaup, which isn't typical for this time of year. After we watched it to get an ID, Ben was able to get this photo of our last bird of the day.

Greater Scaup in the last light of the day. KPWA.

It was a fun day to spend together and out birding, but it was for a cause. Our day was to support the Columbus Audubon's efforts of educating the public, supporting local conservation, and funding the Ohio Young Birders, a great group that gets kids out birding and learning about the environment! Please consider supporting Columbus Audubon and our team, the Benannaquits, by following this link to donate: Donate Here!

Thank you for reading about our day and donating! 

My mom and me birding during our Big Day! 

Here's a complete list of our 144 species:

1. Canada Goose
2. Mute Swan
3. Trumpeter Swan
4. Wood Duck
5. American Wigeon
6. Mallard
7. Blue-winged Teal
8. Green-winged Teal
9. Greater Scaup
10. Hooded Merganser
11. Ruddy Duck
12. Ring-necked Pheasant 
13. Pied-billed Grebe
14. Double-crested Cormorant
15. American Bittern
16. Great Blue Heron
17. Great Egret
18. Snowy Egret
19. Green Heron
20. Turkey Vulture
21. Bald Eagle
22. Red-tailed Hawk
23. Sora
24. Common Gallinule
25. American Coot
26. Sandhill Crane
27. Black-necked Stilt
28. Semipalmated Plover
29. Killdeer
30. Spotted Sandpiper
31. Solitary Sandpiper
32. Greater Yellowlegs
33. Lesser Yellowlegs
34. Ruddy Turnstone
35. Dunlin
36. Least Sandpiper
37. White-rumped Sandpiper
38. Semipalmated Sandpiper
39. Short-billed Dowitcher
40. American Woodcock
41. Wilson's Phalarope
42. Ring-billed Gull
43. Herring Gull
44. Caspian Tern
45. Common Tern
46. Rock Pigeon
47. Mourning Dove
48. Common Nighthawk
49. Chimney Swift
50. Ruby-throated Hummingbird
51. Red-headed Woodpecker
52. Red-bellied Woodpecker
53. Downy Woodpecker
54. Hairy Woodpecker
55. Yellow-shafted Flicker
56. American Kestrel
57. Eastern Wood-Pewee
58. Acadian Flycatcher
59. Willow Flycatcher
60. Least Flycatcher
61. Eastern Phoebe
62. Great Crested Flycatcher
63. Eastern Kingbird
64. White-eyed Vireo
65. Yellow-throated Vireo
66. Blue-headed Vireo
67. Warbling Vireo
68. Philadelphia Vireo
69. Red-eyed Vireo
70. Blue Jay
71. American Crow
72. Horned Lark
73. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
74. Purple Martin
75. Tree Swallow
76. Bank Swallow
77. Barn Swallow
78. Cliff Swallow
79. Black-capped Chickadee
80. Tufted Titmouse
81. White-breasted Nuthatch
82. House Wren
83. Marsh Wren
84. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
85. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
86. Eastern Bluebird 
87. Veery
88. Gray-cheeked Thrush
89. Swainson's Thrush
90. Wood Thrush
91. American Robin
92. Gray Catbird
93. Brown Thrasher
94. Northern Mockingbird
95. European Starling
96. American Pipit
97. Ovenbird
98. Northern Waterthrush
99. Blue-winged Warbler
100. Black-and-white Warbler
101. Prothonotary Warbler
102. Tennessee Warbler
103. Nashville Warbler
104. Connecticut Warbler
105. Common Yellowthroat
106. American Redstart
107. Cape May Warbler
108. Northern Parula
109. Magnolia Warbler
110. Bay-breasted Warbler
111. Blackburnian Warbler
112. Yellow Warbler
113. Chestnut-sided Warbler
114. Blackpoll Warbler
115. Black-throated Blue Warbler
116. Palm Warbler
117. Myrtle Warbler
118. Black-throated Green Warbler
119. Canada Warbler
120. Wilson's Warbler
121. Grasshopper Sparrow
122. Chipping Sparrow
123. Field Sparrow 
124. Lark Sparrow
125. White-crowned Sparrow
126. White-throated Sparrow 
127. Savannah Sparrow
128. Song Sparrow
129. Lincoln's Sparrow
130. Swamp Sparrow
131. Eastern Towhee
132. Summer Tanager
133. Scarlet Tanager
134. Northern Cardinal
135. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
136. Indigo Bunting
137. Red-winged Blackbird
138. Eastern Meadowlark
139. Common Grackle
140. Brown-headed Cowbird
141. Orchard Oriole
142. Baltimore Oriole
143. American Goldfinch
144. House Sparrow

The Wonders of Birding Northwest Ohio

Since I lived in Bowling Green, Ohio when I really got into birding, Ottawa NWR, Metzger Marsh, and of course the Magee Marsh Boardwalk were some of my favorite birding locations that I visited often. Almost weekly my friends and I would head to the lake for some great birding,especially during spring and fall migration! The northwest part of Ohio, along the lakeshore is still one of my favorite places to visit, although much more infrequently now that it is such a drive from Columbus.

My mom, Ben and I made it up that way on Monday and it was quite a day! We left home at 5:30am and returned 18 hours later, absolutely exhausted but it was totally worth it! We first went to the boardwalk. In three quick hours, we turned up 53 species of birds, including 11 species of warblers! Most of the warblers were expected, but warbler migration is so exciting because they migrate at night while we're all sleeping. We wake up in the morning, and almost magically, the trees are covered with colorful warblers hopping about, feeding on any insect they can catch. What we don't get to see is the beauty of their actual migration flight. This is possible, however, with Blue Jays! Yesterday was the second time I have been able to witness a big movement of Blue Jays along Lake Erie. They migrate during the day and you can look up and watch, literally a stream of Blue Jays across the sky, nearly all day long!

I know many people don't like Blue Jays. I work in a store where our customers prefer the "small colorful" birds, and while the Blue Jay is one of the most colorful and beautifully patterned birds we have year-round in Ohio, they have somehow made many bird-feeders' "bad bird lists." We get complaints daily about the birds on these lists and often people are looking for solutions to get the birds out of the yard or away from their feeders. While I have to regularly suggest feeding options that exclude their favorite foods, or feeders that are weight sensitive so heavier birds cannot eat, it saddens me that so many miss out on the brilliance of the Blue Jay. Personally, I love having jays in my yard, yes, the smaller birds leave the feeders while the jays are there, but they're never too far away and you can still watch the little ones in the nearby trees. The jays are so smart and seemingly playful. I love to watch them interact with each other and the feeders. It is especially fun to watch them snag a whole peanut in the shell, fly across the yard and cache the nut in a tree for later. If another Blue Jay is nearby and sees where the food was cached, the first jay will re-hide its prize! I have even seen them pretend to cache a nut when another bird was watching. It would pretend to hide it in several locations before finally settling on a secret location to cache the nut. That's pretty cool, if you ask me!

But anyways, seeing multiple and sometimes large flocks of Blue Jays streaming across the sky all day long is really a sight to see! While I get really excited about watching a single species, like the migrating jays or a personal record flock of Willets (see below) the lister in me still wants to see ALL THE BIRDS!! So, as we walked along the boardwalk, I was thrilled to see so many new migrants! White-eyed Vireo, Black-and-white Warbler, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Veery, Chimney Swift... my year list total just went up and up as the sun moved higher in the sky. It seemed as though we had just started birding when my stomach started growling and we realized it was lunch time! One of the most exciting birds to find during our morning walk was a Rusty Blackbird. While their populations seem to be decreasing, this spring has been great for seeing Rusty Blackbirds across Ohio. I have been seeing quite a few, nearly every week for a while now, but my mom, however, had never seen one despite her efforts over the past few years.

By the time we left the boardwalk for lunch, I had added 13 new year birds! We had a picnic lunch on the beach and walked the estuary trail before checking the east end of the boardwalk for Fox Snakes. We were unsuccessful finding Fox Snakes but throughout the day we found several Eastern Garter Snakes, a Northern Water Snake, many Painted Turtles including a quarter-sized baby, and a few big Map Turtles! We also saw a few species of frogs, including a Bullfrog, Green Frogs and Leopard Frogs! In addition to the fascinating reptiles and amphibians, we found several types of mammals including an elderly Muskrat, Eastern Cottontails, and some White-tailed Deer.

Muskrat

Before we left for the day, we stopped by Metzger Marsh after hearing a report of a number of Willets. We arrived and it wasn't hard to find them! They were calling away and there were flocks in the marsh as well as circling through the sky!! We were able to count 75, although it was difficult to get an exact number when we were counting the ones on the ground and more and more continued to fly in from several directions! There could have easily been quite a few more than 75. This is by far the most Willets I have ever seen in one place, and probably more individuals than I had ever previously seen, combined! Willets are one of my favorite shorebirds, so I was definitely excited to watch the fantastic show they were putting on!

What a great day, spent with my wonderful family! I even got to see my Bird-mom, Kimberly Kaufman, which is always enough to make any day great! In all, I added 24 year birds during our excursion!

Trip Year Birds:

• House Wren
• American Golden-Plover
• Greater Yellowlegs
• Willet
• Pectoral Sandpiper
• Caspian Tern
• Purple Martin
• Barn Swallow
• Chimney Swift
• White-eyed Vireo
• Blue-headed Vireo
• Warbling Vireo
• Gray Catbird
• Veery
• Orange-crowned Warbler
• Prothonotary Warbler
• Black-and-white Warbler
• Northern Waterthrush
• Nashville Warbler
• Yellow Warbler
• Blue-winged Warbler
• Common Yellowthroat
• White-crowned Sparrow
• Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Join me Birding! 
The next time I'm in that corner of the state, it will be The Biggest Week in American Birding!! I am so so excited for all the wonderful birds and friends I'll be seeing! This year Ben and I will be leading three of the van field trips! If you'd like to join us, look for open seats on the Monday, May 9 trip to South Bay, the Wednesday, May 11 trip to Catawba/Marblehead, or the Thursday, May 12 trip to Erie County! I will also be heading up the BSBO Woodcock Walk on Monday May 9!! I can't wait and hope to see some of you there!

If you're in the Columbus area, join me this Saturday, April 30 at 9am at Kiwanis Riverway Park, or Saturday May 21 at Highbanks Metropark as part of the Wild Birds Unlimited Nature Hike Series!

More Cemetery Birding

Exactly one month ago, I started a new job. It was two months after my wedding day. I was happy to be married to my wonderful husband, Ben, but I didn't like my previous job. I was stressed enough over starting a new job and moving to a new city. Not even mentioning moving INTO the city from my woodsy bird-rich rural home where I had spent the majority of the last 26 years back in Lexington, Ohio; and I was worried about how the move and my own stress was affecting my 15 year old kitty, Maxine.

Well, zip past that month, back to today, and Max is very contently sleeping next to me; purring away as I type! I absolutely love my new job at Wild Birds Unlimited! It is great to be able to talk with people about birds all day long! I love being able to help them solve problems. I often get to share exciting the natural history of a variety of birds and I even get to put my IDing skills to test. It is so great to be surrounded by so many people, every single day who appreciate and love birds as much as I do! On top of that, a few weeks ago I was asked if I'd like to lead some birding/nature hikes around the Columbus area throughout the season. As much as I love seeing new birds for the first time, I think I love sharing birds with others even more, or at least just as much! I absolutely enjoy being a part of someone finding a new life bird, or better yet, one they've been trying to see and missing previously. So, needless to say, I was thrilled to be asked to lead some trips. Plus, getting paid to do my favorite activity!? Was I dreaming!? We worked together on getting the schedule set up for our WBU Nature Hike Series and it was difficult for me to choose places I'd like to lead trips because there are very few areas in Columbus that I am familiar with. I took this as an opportunity to get to know some new places. I asked my manager to choose the locations, and I'd start visiting them to become familiar with the areas.

My first trip was scheduled for today, at Green Lawn Cemetery. I wasn't sure what to expect with the weather being full sun and 70 degrees after last Saturday was snowing all day! In addition to the excellent weather, perhaps people were excited about the possibility of seeing Great-horned Owlets. And the Whip-poor-will. I found it and shared it, Kenn Kaufman mentioned it on NPR, and we excitedly talked with customers about it all week. Although we never said or implied that the bird would be around, perhaps people wanted to see it, and thought that just maybe, if they went birding with me at the location where the bird was found we could magically drum up another Eastern Whip-poor-will. Whatever the series of circumstances was, nearly SEVENTY people showed up at Green Lawn Cemetery this morning to spend the sunny morning in search of migratory birds! It was a great group and a lot of fun birding. Several people had lifer Pine Siskins, or Winter Wrens, or Eastern Towhees. We saw recently fledged Great-horned Owls, recently fledged White-breasted Nuthatches, nest-building American Robins and a variety of migrating species such as Sharp-shinned Hawks, Myrtle Warblers, Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Hermit Thrushes.

What a great morning! And before the WBU walk began, Ben and I headed out bright and early to do some scouting and to bird together before Ben had to head off to our nephew's birthday party. The cool morning air was perfect for us, and the birds were quite active too! We were able to see our First of Year Pine Warbler, a beautiful male and Green-throated Warblers! We also got to see a Purple Finch and Blue-gray Gnatcatchers!

I have definitely enjoyed the first month working at my new job, and getting out with my lovely husband to explore the great birding areas Columbus has to offer has made my move to the city more enjoyable. I can't wait to see what lies ahead!

Rainy Day Birding

This week, Ben and I only had one day off together and it happened to be a day of 100% chance of rain... all day. We were excited to get out and find some warblers so we didn't let the rain slow us down! Well, it may have slowed us down a little. We relaxed inside with our kitty, Max, most of the morning and headed out just after lunch to Green Lawn Cemetery in Columbus, Ohio. Last week we saw our first-of-year Pine Siskins, Hermit Thrush, Brown Thrashers, and Ruby-crowned Kinglets, in addition to TONS of Yellow-shafted Flickers, Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Fox Sparrows, Eastern Towhees and other great birds! This week we were hoping for a returned warbler. I would've been happy with even a Yellow-rumped. Ben was hoping for a Pine Warbler; but we really both wanted a Yellow-throated Warbler! I drove south in the rain, wondering why I had even agreed to leave the house. It was cold, and wet and I was grumpy. I didn't want to get out and bird in the rain (even though I wanted to see the birds!) but I also knew I had to go to Green Lawn to get a better idea of the layout so I wouldn't get lost in the loops of roads during my first field trip this Saturday with Wild Birds Unlimited! I'm really excited to be able to lead bird walks as part of my new job, so I definitely don't want to get lost on my first one and I want to be well prepared and scout out some good areas and birds!

As we pulled into the cemetery's main drive, the rain slowed to a light sprinkle! I found the meeting area and the two areas I want to take people for birding on Saturday, with no problems. Yay! Then we decided to take a walk while the rain was nearly stopped. We walked along a little gravel trail and the birds were enjoying this break in the rain too! We were delighted to find American Robins and Yellow-shafted Flickers foraging all over the grassy areas and Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers and Carolina Chickadees lining the trees! As we noticed some leaves rustling on the ground we found Fox Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, Brown Thrashers and Eastern Towhees tossing leaves to dig up some delicious bugs. "Fee-bee" called his name from a bridge and some Northern Cardinals seemed to be very upset and scolding... some sparrows? No! An Eastern Whip-poor-will!!! I jumped up and down, somehow never taking my binoculars off the bird, saying, "Oh wow, look over here! Look over here!!!" Never actually saying what I was seeing because in my excitement, I actually forgot the name of the bird, or any other bird! Ben quickly figured out where I was looking, despite my lack of describing the bird or where it was! He had thought maybe the birds were scolding a small owl, but perhaps they had noticed this life-like bump on the branch and confused it for an owl. Why else would a group of song birds be mobbing a little bird who flies around catching insects out of the moonlit skies?

Eastern Whip-poor-will in Columbus, Ohio 4.11.16

We never made it beyond the bridge before I spotted the Whip-poor-will, so we barely noticed when the rain started picking up again, until the wind started lowing the water droplets onto our scope, binoculars and phones (since we had to other cameras with us!) Then we  were stuck. Under the bridge with nothing to look at besides the cutest little bird, perched up on a branch like he was a part of it. Every so often he would sway as though the wind were blowing him around like a leaf... keeping up his disguise even though the rest of the birds were out of sight, seeking shelter from the downpour. While we were waiting under the bridge for the rain to let up, I posted my exciting find on Facebook. I had used my new cell phone to take a picture through Ben's scope and I was very pleased with the results! More than just a diagnostic photo, I had a nice portrait of this bird in his habitat! Within minutes, I had several local friends asking where we were and if we'd help them find the bird! We were just standing around waiting on the rain anyway so we agreed to stay until they could arrive. We stayed, the bird stayed, and several friends were able to add an Eastern Whip-poor-will to their lists of county or state birds or to their lists of birds seen at all! This was a new county and year bird for me, but a more exciting achievement, this is the first Eastern Whip-poor-will I have ever found on my own!! The others I have seen before were spotted by someone else, and others would either point it out to me, or I would at least know the general area to look for it. I've always wanted to find one and now I'll never forget this one!!

A very wet Eastern Whip-poor-will

Ben and I walked back to my car, deciding what to do next. We were excited about the whip and still hadn't seen any warblers so we determined that a trip south was in order. Rain or no rain, we were heading to Clear Creek Metropark in Hocking County! We thought the rain might not be as bad further south but as we headed the hour south, the rain never let up. By that time, we had three hours until sunset and we had driven all that way we made the decision to "go for it!" Ben picked a trail that he wanted to hike and we made a plan. You can either hike the Hemlock trail from the road in, and have to turn around, or you could take another trail to it, hike the Hemlock trail, and loop back to the car. I suggested the loop so we wouldn't have to backtrack and Ben agreed. Little did we know that the starting trail and Hemlock trail were quite narrow and steep, uphill, and downhill and uphill and uphill some more. All during a steady, heavy rain. These were absolutely beautiful trails with the wet weather enhancing the contrast between the wintery brown trees and the lively, green, spring wildflowers blooming on the hillsides. The fog sat low in the hills over the meandering steams and the flute-like songs of a Hermit Thrush echoed across the trail. We had very few birds (and still no warblers) during our two-hour hike, but the scenery made up for it! Before our hike ended, we caught a glimpse of a Pileated Woodpecker flying in the distance. From under a piece of fallen bark, a tiny species of shrew ran and as we looked for it again, we saw a Red-backed Salamander!

The end of our hike at Clear Creek Metropark

In all it was a lovely rainy day exploring central Ohio with my husband! I am still very excited about the Whip-poor-will, and after seeing this eBird map of this year's sightings, you can probably see why! 

Map from 2016 eBird.org data, copied by J. Muller

That's my bird! The lone red dot in the middle of Ohio!! Poor bird is probably wondering WHY it decided to make the trek to Ohio on such a cold rainy weekend, but at least the weather is warmer today! Hopefully it has a safe journey to wherever it is heading this spring!

"Leaning Lena" on the way out of Clear Creek Metropark

If you are interested in joining me this Saturday, April 16 at Green Lawn Cemetery, please meet at the Huntington Chapel at 9am. If you follow the main road in, and take a right at the first fork in the road, Huntington Chapel is the biggest building you can see right in the middle. 

For more information regarding the 2016 WBU Nature Hike Series, visit our website, here. Keep your eye out for more dates being added soon, including a hike in May at Clear Creek Metropark!