May 14 - Magee Marsh, Ohio

I’d set up my gear for morning, assuming that the day would continue rainy and cool.  Even though there wasn’t a cloud in the sky when the alarm went off at 5:30, I pretty much ignored the probability that it would be a nice day.  So, I dressed ‘way too warmly, and ended up having to take my coat, vest & shirt off half-way through the morning.

There are 19 in our group; 11 of us are from Washington State, including our “guide” and organizer Shep Thorp, who is a great birder and a regular volunteer at the weekly Wednesday bird walks at Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge.  The other eight are from Pennsylvania, including Shep’s Mom, Barbara.

Barb and Friend

We’ve piled into two 4-bedroom cabins at Maumee Bay State Park.  For a large group, the cabins are a great way to go, as they have all the amenities necessary for a week-long stay, including a stove, fridge, washer & dryer, and even a hot tub (which we never got around to trying…).

We carpooled over to the Magee Marsh boardwalk, and spent most of the day there.  I had heard about the press of humanity on the Marsh’s trails during the “Biggest Week in Birding”.

Many of the Young Birders around here are from the Amish community

This is the 10th year of one of America’s Premier birding festivals, hosted by the Black Swamp Bird Observatory.  It’s now the largest event of its kind, a must on the calendars of some 2,000 birders from all over Ohio, the U.S., and other nations. Together, these and other like-minded visitors generate a $42 million windfall for the region.

 
We arrived the week following the Festival itself, and there were still hundreds of birders – all drawn here by the warblers and thrushes that have just returned from their winter in Central or South America.  Many of the birds arrive here at the southwest corner of Lake Erie, after having just flown hundreds of miles during the night.  The woods and marshes here are islands of habitat in a ‘desert’ of farmland and subdivisions, and provide a needed rest stop.

This Swainson's Thrush was foraging for its life

The birds are famished, having lost almost all of their body fat, and will often feed within feet of the birders in their desperation to replenish their energy, for the final push to their nesting grounds.

A very tired Catbird

The concentration of birds, in conjunction with a boardwalk through a forest with fairly low trees and brush, allows birders to get good views.

Cape May Warbler

I immediately saw several species that were new for me this year, including Chestnut-sided, Black-throated Green and Cape May Warblers, as well as a nice bright male Scarlet Tanager.

Then, right above my head was a warbler species that was new for my “Life List”, the Bay-breasted Warbler for ABA Life Bird No. 603.
Of course, once you see a “Lifer”, then you see that species all the time, and it was so with the Bay-breasted, which were a pretty common species in these woods. This warbler is just passing through en route to its nesting grounds in the Canadian boreal spruce forest.
The numbers of birds here were somewhat overwhelming, but rewarding.  I did see – and hear – another Life Bird, which was the Philadelphia Vireo (ABA Lifer No. 604).  This species looks a lot like either a Red-eyed or a Warbling Vireo, but has a much brighter yellow plumage on its undersides.  It, too, is just passing through Ohio, on its way to nesting in Canada’s early and mid-successional deciduous woods and parklands.

Bumblebees are not birds . . .

Not all of the birds are going further north.  This Yellow Warbler was busy building her nest.  She was bringing in grass, moss, spider webs and cottonwood fluff, tucking it into the right spot, then settling into the nest cup to make certain it was "just right".

We birded the Magee boardwalk until around noon, and saw nearly 70 species of birds.

Black-throated Blue Warbler

Myrtle Warbler

Northern Parula

Cape May Warbler

Female Red-winged Blackbird

Leaving the boardwalk, we walked out to the Crane Creek estuary trail at Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, which is adjacent to the Magee Marsh.  One attraction here was a Great Horned Owl nestling.

The nestling blends in with the nest hole

A group of birders were focused on a Blue-winged Warbler (which I missed seeing).

Charley Hesse from Tropical Birding gets the birders on the bird

Along the dike there, we found a nice view of a Prothonotary Warbler,and found yet another Yellow Warbler on her nest.We birded there until around 3 p.m., then, exhausted and overwhelmed by the amazing array of migrant birds, we returned to the cottages.  Supper was at the Lodge at the State Park, where our large group surprised the poor waitress who thought she would have an early night . . .
Magee Marsh Boardwalk eBird Checklist is Here 
Crane Creek Estuary eBird Checklist is Here

May 13 - A Birthday Life Bird

The day dawned mostly clear and 43º, which was nice after all the rain the last couple of days.  This is my Sixty-fourth Birthday, and I need no presents (too many possessions already) or feasts (still trying to keep the weight down).  I do appreciate all the well-wishings from my friends and family, and am hoping for a “Life Bird” as a blessing on this day.

I left Princeton to the south on Highway 26, and stopped at the Hennepin Canal Parkway Trail south of I-180.  This is one of the old tow-boat canals that used to move all of the commerce of the nation, long before the Interstate Highway system.  On a whim, I thought that I might find a Eurasian Tree Sparrow in the neighborhood, and it was still early enough in the morning that the small birds were flitting about.  But, I only found the House Sparrows under the bridge.

Male House Sparrow

Most of us are familiar with the “English” sparrow, which is native to Eurasia, the Middle East and North Africa.

With respect to North America, eight pairs of House Sparrows were released in the spring of 1851 in Brooklyn, New York by Eugene Schieffelin – a member of the American Acclimatization Society.  The species was also introduced between 1872 and 1874 by the Cincinnati Acclimatization Society.   Numerous similar introductions occurred in the years following the first release in 1851, and small numbers were collected within this country and transported to other parts of the country, resulting in house sparrows being established throughout the lower 48 states.

House Sparrows are messy nesters

House sparrows were established in Oregon by 1889, in Washington State by the 1890s, and California by 1910.  The release of this species into North America was only slightly less successful than the release of European Starlings by Eugene Schieffelin.

House Sparrows are the common ‘city’ sparrow, and are often found around farm yards as well.  The male is actually pretty handsome, with his gray cap and black bib.  The Eurasian Tree Sparrow has a brown cap and a smaller bib, but all the birds I saw here were the usual House Sparrows.

"We hear the note of a stranger bird

 That ne'er till now in our land was heard;

 A wingèd settler has taken his place

 With Teutons and man of the Celtic race;

 He has followed their path to our hemisphere -
 The Old-World Sparrow at last is here."

   - Roslyn, 1859

There were LOTS of warblers in the trees along the Hennepin Canal, mostly Yellow Warblers and American Redstarts.

I don't know why the female Redstarts aren't called "Yellowstarts" . . .

 . . . because only the males have the red coloring in their 'starts'

I looked on the eBird website, and saw that there was a spot near Putnam where the Tree Sparrows had been seen, so drove down to the corner of County Roads 13 and 500 North.  As I braked for the stop sign, I saw a bird carrying nesting material into a hole in some irrigation machinery, and put the binoculars on it to discover that it was, indeed, my ABA “Lifer” No. 602 – the Eurasian Tree Sparrow.

Eurasian Tree Sparrow

This species can be distinguished by his brown cap and a dark spot on his cheek.

I watched the sparrows where I first found them, and then drove a ways up & down the 500 Road, seeing a few others at feeders by some of the farm houses.  The House Sparrows joined the Tree Sparrows to exploit that bounty.

Female House Sparrow

En route to the east, I noted that a lot of the corn and soybean fields were either wet or under water.  There has been a lot of rain and flooding here in the Midwest, and farmers are ‘way behind in getting their fields worked and planted.  That, combined with the Trump Tariffs, will contribute to another year of poor profits, and more farm foreclosures.

It's May - this field should be tilled and planted already . . .

I made a long drive across Illinois and Indiana, cut south of Toledo, and arrived at my goal - the Maumee Bay State Park, where Shep Thorp had reserved a couple of cabins for the week to host birders from Washington State to Philadelphia.  These are great people, and we enjoyed visiting and listening to the Woodcocks “peenting” behind the cabins this evening.

Turtles at the Hennepin Canal

Hennepin Canal eBird Checklist is Here

Putnam, Illinois farms eBird Checklist is Here

Maumee Bay State Park eBird Checklist is Here

May 12 - Otter Creek Marsh, Iowa

I was wide awake at 5 a.m., so tried to catch up a day or so on my Blog, which is about 3 weeks behind at this point.  It’s difficult to catch up when I’m on the road, but I always figure that one should live life rather than just sit at a computer . . .  I breakfasted at the Wahoo Inn, which has a meagre fare of cereal and microwave waffles, green bananas, and orange juice.  The coffee was welcome, however.

I left town at 8:30, en route east through Omaha and into the State of Iowa.  I’d read on the eBird site that a species had been found in Iowa that I hadn’t seen before.  Nor, for that matter, had I ever birded in Iowa.  The species in question was the Eurasian Tree Sparrow, a close relative of the common English House Sparrow, and an exotic that is likely not recognized by any of the Bird Record Committees as being ‘established’.  However, I’d like to see it, so, I decided to head toward Otter Creek Marsh Wildlife Management Area.  As it turned out, the Marsh was further north than I’d planned on driving, and I burned up a couple of hours that I’ll probably wish I’d spent driving toward Magee Marsh tomorrow.  But, I arrived at the spot, which is managed as waterfowl habitat and as a fishing area, and walked out on the access road.

Blue-winged Teal drake

I didn’t find any of the sparrows, but enjoyed the walk, and had great views of a couple of Sedge Wrens, which were Life Birds for me back in January when I was down in Florida.  There was an inquisitive mink along the dike.

Humans should be happy these things don't grow to be 50 pounds . . .  I still feel like a prey item.

And, a pair of somewhat aggressive Sandhill Cranes strode toward me, bugling the entire time.

Letting me know I'm intruding on their home

I left the marsh, and got on the highway toward Interstate 80 East, gassed up in Davenport for $2.599/gallon and ended up in Princeton, Illinois for the night at the Super 8.  I got online and checked the restaurants, seeing that the Spoon in downtown had Moroccan stew on the menu.  So I went down there, and enjoyed the meal, along with 2 ales.  I also had quite the conversation with the barmaid, Lisa, who flashed on my kilt, and expressed a longing to visit Scotland.  I encouraged her to plan for it, and go there!  Life is too short to wish you’d done something, then realize you’re too old, sick or tired to do it.

Most of the Yellow Warblers were in the trees, this one foraged in the marsh

New bird species seen at Otter Creek this year included Blackpoll Warbler, American Redstart, Warbling Vireo, and Chimney Swift.

Red-winged Blackbirds bade me farewell

Otter Creek Marsh eBird Checklist is Here