I had already planned to go birding this morning (Saturday 1/27/18) so a little rain wasn't going to stop me. Afterall, I've seen many good birds in the rain, among them my lifer Henslow's Sparrow and Willow Flycatchers, and hoards of Soras and Virginia Rails.
I began my morning in the dark driving some back roads to see if I could find Sandhill Cranes in the cornfields before they take off at day break. I also needed to determine where the county line is when Oxford Rd. becomes Race Lane Road at the Hamilton Co./Butler Co. line. There is no county sign marking this boundary, so I had to rely on my Ohio Delorme Atlas & Gazateer. Apparently the county line is shortly after a sharp bend in the road.
I also tried for Northern Saw-whet and Eastern Screech-owls using playback. No luck. I initially was going to begin daybreak at Miami Whitewater Wetlands, but I decided to go to Fernald to see if I could get Short-eared Owls at the gate at daybreak. When I arrived, I was surprised to find the gate open, so I was able to drive to the overlook area that overlooks the grasslands. From there, as soon as I got out of the car, while still dark, I could hear a pair of Great Horned Owls dueting. I wasn't going to count heard only birds for my January 100 list but when I couldn't locate the owls when I had enough daylight to see, I decided to count them. Thus I also added a heard only Winter Wren from January 10th at Miami Whitewater.
After sunrise, I walked the fields looking for Eastern Meadowlarks and Rusty Blackbirds. Some blackbird flocks in flight went unidentified, but then I heard and saw five Rusty Blackbirds as they flew directly overhead. They are more slender than Red-winged Blackbirds, have a club shaped tail, and have a deeper "chack" call in flight.
Still feeling disappointed for not seeing the Great Horned Owls, I decided to try to find their daytime roost in the pines. As I walked through the pines I discovered a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and then heard nasal nuthatch calls, ever so faint. They were close, and looking up in the pines, I saw movement. Skies were overcast all day and lighting was not the greatest, but I was able to see the reddish underside and striped face pattern of a pair of Red-breasted Nuthatches! I was ecstatic because I had been searching diligently for these at Spring Grove Cemetery and Mitchell Memorial Forest all month.
Since I have most of the waterfowl on my list I was going to skip Lodge Pond until I ran into another birder who told me there were two Trumpeter Swans there. So I moved my car to the lot in front of Lodge Pond and got my scope out of the trunk. Finding the Trumpeter Swans at the pond involved sifting through 16 Mute Swans. The Trumpeters were actively feeding and had their heads in the water frequently, making careful study of them difficult. But finally they stopped feeding and gave side and frontal views so that I was able to see the straight, not concave head and bill profile and the pointed, not rounded, white feathering on the forehead in the frontal view. The Ohio Bird Records Committee does not recognize Trumpeter Swan as a countable species in Ohio, therefore I am not including it in the official total.
After showing some waterfowl to some novice birders through the scope, I headed over to Miami Whitewater Forest to search for Red-headed Woodpeckers. In the Timberlakes region of the park I found 9 Red-bellied Woodpeckers and 3 Hairy Woodpeckers among other winter forest birds. Then I heard the commotion and alarm calls of a Red-headed Woodpecker. I soon located it through the bins before it flew with a Red-bellied giving chase.
My search for Eastern Meadowlarks did not end at Fernald. I walked the loop from Baughman Rd. along the Shaker Trace Trail, Wildlife Viewing Shelter, Farm Lane and then the treeline back to Baughman Rd. (about 1.75 miles) at Miami Whitewater Wetlands. Very few sparrows and no icterids in the fields. I saw two Red-shouldered Hawks along the way and then heard the squeaky calls and looked up to see 24 Cackling Geese flying overhead at the farm lane and descending toward the lake. I turned the corner and began walking the treeline, kicking up Northern Cardinals, Song Sparrows and American Tree Sparrows. Then I heard a sound that I have been hoping to hear for most of the month, one of the toughest ducks to find in the month of January in southwest Ohio. I looked out over the lake to see three Mallards with a more slender, slightly smaller duck in tow, giving high-pitched whistling calls. It was a long-awaited and much appreciated Wood Duck!
Some very good birds were added to the list today, some that have proven very tough to find this month. Today I added Winter Wren (heard only on January 10th at Miami Whitewater Forest), Great Horned Owl (heard only this morning), Rusty Blackbird, Red-breasted Nuthatch (heard only Jan 11 at Mitchell Memorial Forest but obtained a visual today at Fernald), Red-headed Woodpecker and Wood Duck. This brings the county year list to 96 (+1). Trumpeter Swan is not included because it is not countable in Ohio.
I began my morning in the dark driving some back roads to see if I could find Sandhill Cranes in the cornfields before they take off at day break. I also needed to determine where the county line is when Oxford Rd. becomes Race Lane Road at the Hamilton Co./Butler Co. line. There is no county sign marking this boundary, so I had to rely on my Ohio Delorme Atlas & Gazateer. Apparently the county line is shortly after a sharp bend in the road.
I also tried for Northern Saw-whet and Eastern Screech-owls using playback. No luck. I initially was going to begin daybreak at Miami Whitewater Wetlands, but I decided to go to Fernald to see if I could get Short-eared Owls at the gate at daybreak. When I arrived, I was surprised to find the gate open, so I was able to drive to the overlook area that overlooks the grasslands. From there, as soon as I got out of the car, while still dark, I could hear a pair of Great Horned Owls dueting. I wasn't going to count heard only birds for my January 100 list but when I couldn't locate the owls when I had enough daylight to see, I decided to count them. Thus I also added a heard only Winter Wren from January 10th at Miami Whitewater.
After sunrise, I walked the fields looking for Eastern Meadowlarks and Rusty Blackbirds. Some blackbird flocks in flight went unidentified, but then I heard and saw five Rusty Blackbirds as they flew directly overhead. They are more slender than Red-winged Blackbirds, have a club shaped tail, and have a deeper "chack" call in flight.
Still feeling disappointed for not seeing the Great Horned Owls, I decided to try to find their daytime roost in the pines. As I walked through the pines I discovered a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker and then heard nasal nuthatch calls, ever so faint. They were close, and looking up in the pines, I saw movement. Skies were overcast all day and lighting was not the greatest, but I was able to see the reddish underside and striped face pattern of a pair of Red-breasted Nuthatches! I was ecstatic because I had been searching diligently for these at Spring Grove Cemetery and Mitchell Memorial Forest all month.
Since I have most of the waterfowl on my list I was going to skip Lodge Pond until I ran into another birder who told me there were two Trumpeter Swans there. So I moved my car to the lot in front of Lodge Pond and got my scope out of the trunk. Finding the Trumpeter Swans at the pond involved sifting through 16 Mute Swans. The Trumpeters were actively feeding and had their heads in the water frequently, making careful study of them difficult. But finally they stopped feeding and gave side and frontal views so that I was able to see the straight, not concave head and bill profile and the pointed, not rounded, white feathering on the forehead in the frontal view. The Ohio Bird Records Committee does not recognize Trumpeter Swan as a countable species in Ohio, therefore I am not including it in the official total.
After showing some waterfowl to some novice birders through the scope, I headed over to Miami Whitewater Forest to search for Red-headed Woodpeckers. In the Timberlakes region of the park I found 9 Red-bellied Woodpeckers and 3 Hairy Woodpeckers among other winter forest birds. Then I heard the commotion and alarm calls of a Red-headed Woodpecker. I soon located it through the bins before it flew with a Red-bellied giving chase.
My search for Eastern Meadowlarks did not end at Fernald. I walked the loop from Baughman Rd. along the Shaker Trace Trail, Wildlife Viewing Shelter, Farm Lane and then the treeline back to Baughman Rd. (about 1.75 miles) at Miami Whitewater Wetlands. Very few sparrows and no icterids in the fields. I saw two Red-shouldered Hawks along the way and then heard the squeaky calls and looked up to see 24 Cackling Geese flying overhead at the farm lane and descending toward the lake. I turned the corner and began walking the treeline, kicking up Northern Cardinals, Song Sparrows and American Tree Sparrows. Then I heard a sound that I have been hoping to hear for most of the month, one of the toughest ducks to find in the month of January in southwest Ohio. I looked out over the lake to see three Mallards with a more slender, slightly smaller duck in tow, giving high-pitched whistling calls. It was a long-awaited and much appreciated Wood Duck!
Some very good birds were added to the list today, some that have proven very tough to find this month. Today I added Winter Wren (heard only on January 10th at Miami Whitewater Forest), Great Horned Owl (heard only this morning), Rusty Blackbird, Red-breasted Nuthatch (heard only Jan 11 at Mitchell Memorial Forest but obtained a visual today at Fernald), Red-headed Woodpecker and Wood Duck. This brings the county year list to 96 (+1). Trumpeter Swan is not included because it is not countable in Ohio.
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