Notes From The Field

One of my new pet projects is to collect the Warbler photos I’ve taken over the years, delete the bad ones and store the average to above average ones in a new album on my Flickr page. The recent posting of my Prairie Warbler photos was the first in the hopes of getting decent shots to fill in the many blanks.

If you’re interested in my Warbler Album on Flickr, the link is below.

“Warbler Album”

So yesterday I decided to head off to a local park where Louisiana Waterthrush can be common in the Spring. The park has a trail that cuts through a gorge with a nice flowing stream which is perfect. It was pretty quiet as I approached the area where they’ve been spotted recently. I hear their familiar song first. Now the tough part, locating the bird.

It takes several minutes before I’m able to get on the bird, then move into position to snap off dozens of shots before settling on this one.

As I was about to leave for the day and head home I decided to check my local birding Facebook page to see what’s going on. Well it turns out Ellis Lake has a Wilson’s Phalarope and 2 Cattle Egrets. So off I go.

The birds in question weren’t either in the lake, they were in the agricultural field that was partially flooded from all the rain, and the fact that the area sits in a real low lying area that’s prone to floods. The park sits so low that bordering the park sits the ancient remains of the Miami-Erie Canal.

Well the cattle Egrets were pretty easy to tick off.

Now the Wilson’s Phalarope was another matter all together. From what I gathered from other birders was that an eagle flew overhead and scattered the flock of wading birds and moved them all further away and a little more difficult to observe. So trekking out into the muddy and through standing water i was able to get some terrible photos of a great bird.

Notes From The Field

On a recent trip to Ellis Lake, I came upon this beauty.

These are some of the hardest birds to spot since they only move through during migration. So our window of opportunity is small to find and locate this beautiful Nelson’s Sparrow

Sedge Wren

The Sedge Wren ( Cistothorus platensis ) are erratic visitors during the summer, however it’s during autumn when you chances go up spotting this skulking visitor. Found in sedge marshes and wet meadows, this small ( 4.5″ ) skulker is always a challenge to locate. Distinguished from the Marsh Wren ( Cistothorus palustris ) by a small, short bill, while the Marsh Wren is darker in color and more contrast overall, with a solid brown crown, with a longer curved bill. The  two birds can easily be misidentified unless field markings aren’t looked at closely

Yesterday Jon and myself were off to Ellis Lake to track down the LeConte’s Sparrow that’s been seen there for the past several days. We hikes off to a lone patch of stunted Willow trees situated along a low channel that runs the length of a sizable field that splits everything into two. Normally this would be impassable to foot traffic, however during this dry spell we’ve had we were able to walk all the way the Willow stand.

Despite working the area for more than two hours, we never came across the LeConte’s Sparrow, however it was a 8 sparrow day with both Nelson’s Sharp-tailed and Lincoln’s being sighted. Besides the Lincoln and Nelson’s, another treat for the day was the Sedge Wren that we saw several times, usually in the Willow Stand. Always moving and never giving me a clear shot, I was able to click of a couple of acceptable photographs.

Notes From The Field

Cincinnati Zoo Preserve, Ellis Lake/ West Chester Preserve, Voice of America, & Gilmore Ponds

What is it about bird watching that keeps us going out into the field as well as keeping our curiosity peaked? Is it the primeval instinct of being the hunter without the killing as we stalk that elusive Nelson’s Sparrow? Or is it the chase of adding another bird to your life list from a far away place? Meeting new people  certainly justifies that attraction to birding. How about just getting outside after a very long, cold, snowy Winter. Spring is definitely in the air in the Ohio Valley with this last weekend, as temps soared into the 50’s with sunny skies. And as is my usual custom I dropped Jon a text about a Sunday field trip.

So to get back to my original question. What is it about bird watching that keeps us going out into the field, as well as keeping our curiosity peaked? Well today it’s our Spring time visitors, the wading birds. All of those “Sandpipers” are making a big comeback with some outstanding numbers being reported. So not wanting to be left out on all this fun we decided to keep our birding adventure in the Butler County area.

Last year the Cincinnati Zoo property was quite the go to spot for wading birds. The recent rains have been a blessing for this hotspot, but not yesterday. A good 30 minute scan turned up nothing but ducks, which isn’t a bad thing. But when your looking for waders you limit your time at each location till you find them.

We moved on.

It was during our drive to Ellis Lake that we stopped at Voice of America Park for a quick drive through. Well it seems that the Butler County Metroparks has been busy with redesigning the park around. Less grasslands and more water with more ducks. We weren’t necessarily looking for wading birds here, it seemed nature to stop since we were driving by.

We moved on.

It was pretty obvious that water wasn’t draining as fast as it usually does. The farm field which was now reduced to just corn stubble was practically under water. And once again there were plenty of ducks to be found. We had a feeling that there had to be wading birds amongst the corn stubble, it’s just that we couldn’t locate any. That was until a Red-tailed Hawk flew over and sent the majority of the birds airborne. I was able to pick out 2 waders in the chaos of wings and feathers. But before I was to ID them they lighted, and then gone.

We moved on.

It was a short drive to Gilmore Ponds, which was going to be our last stop for the day. Now what both Jon and myself will discuss before we reach any location is what might we find here. Gilmore Ponds has been a good spot for the “Black Bird” species, Rusties, Red-winged, & Grackles. And for myself I always hold out for some Rusty Black Birds, which is turning into one of my favorite birds. Their numbers are rapidly declining due to all sorts of various reason, so finding a couple to get a photo of is always in the back of my mind. Gilmore Ponds is perfect habitat for them.

It was just a few weeks ago I was there during the evening to catch American Woodcocks displaying when a massive flock of “Black Birds” came in to roost for the night. It was too dark to discern species because of darkness, but I was confident that there had to be a few.

It was late morning when we arrived, and the din of birds calling filled the air. The parking lot fronts onto a flooded woodlot which covers a large area of this side of the park. We walked about 50 yards down the trail towards the noise when we started to scan the tree tops at all the “Black Birds”. Jon immediately pointed me in the direction of this tree top that held a couple of Rusties. Then there was some more…and more…and even more!

THEY WERE EVERYWHERE!

They were…

in the trees.

And they were foraging on the water logged ground.

It was the highest concentration of Rusty Black Birds either Jon or myself have ever seen. I think the most I’ve ever seen at one time was a couple of dozen while hiking the Loveland Bike trail in the vicinity of Spring Valley Wildlife Area. Granted there were a few Common Grackles and Red-winged Black Birds mixed in, but they were hard to pick out from all the Rusties. It was a spectacular sight.

We watched a awe as we tried to come up with an approximation as to how many Rusties there might be. We needed to submit the data we came up with to e-Bird and the Rusty Black Bird Blitz data base, so we had to make some educated guess. We agreed that there was probably 2 birds for every 30 square feet. So he calculated the area at Gilmore Ponds from Google Earth and came up with approximately 1,500 Rusties. Which he told me was a conservative guess.

So I’ll ask myself again why do I keep going out into the field?

Need I say more.

Notable birds for the day include:

1. Northern Cardinal
2. Carolina Chickadee
3. Northern Mockingbird
4. Downy Woodpecker
5. Northern Flicker
6. Red-bellied Woodpecker
7. Eastern Bluebird
8. Eastern Meadowlark
9. Mourning Dove
10. Pied-billed Grebe
11. Canada Geese
12. Mallard
13. Northern Shoveler
14. Killdeer
15. Green-winged teal
16. American Pipit
17. Blue-winged teal
18. Red-winged Black Bird
19. Common Grackle
20. Rusty Black Bird
21. Tree Swallow
22. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
23. Purple Martin
24. Wilson’s Snipe
25. Red-shouldered Hawk
26. Red-tailed Hawk
27. Turkey Vulture
28. Northern Harrier
29. Cooper’s Hawk
30. Gadwall
31. Lesser Scaup
32. Greater Scaup
33. Blue Jay
34. Barn Swallow
35. Horned Lark
36. Gray Catbird
37. Song Sparrow
38. Field Sparrow
39. American Tree Sparrow
40. White-throated Sparrow
41. Bufflehead
42. Hooded Merganser
43. American Coot
44. American Wigeon
45. Wood Duck
46. Great Blue Heron
47. Eastern Towhee
48. Eastern Phoebe
49. Great Egret
50. Great Horned Owl
51. Ring-necked Duck

Notes From The Field

Magrish Riverland Preserve, California Woods, Fly Ash Pong, Ellis Lake, Zoo Farm

The forecast called for rain later on today around dinner time, so with Kathy and David at work, and Ethan spending some time with a friend in Springfield Ohio, it was no better time to get some early morning birding done before the rain came.

With the tremendous luck Jon and I had last Saturday at Shawnee Lookout I needed to see if the Warblers were still as plentiful. Traffic was light as I made my way down I-71 towards my first stop for the day, Magrish Riverland Preserve. 

Seasonal flooding can make this park almost impassable along some of the lower trails, however today the trails were open and the song birds were active as I pulled into the parking lot. And it’s from this parking lot that some of the best birding can be found. Prothonotary Warblers breed here and are always a delight as flashes of yellow catch the corner of your eye. 2 early Blackpoll Warblers were singing and giving some decent views from the parking lot as well. I meet a friend of a friend who is also a birder, so we hooked up for about 30 minutes. After which he left to take care of some work and I made my way slowly through the park and back towards my car for the short 3 minute drive to my next stop. California Woods and my hopes of catching a Louisiana Waterthrush.

At 113 acres this little gem within the confines for Cincinnati offers some great birding. It has some very nice hiking trails and a stream which attracts the Waterthrush. I normally just stick close to the road and the stream where the most activity is. However today I decided to take a hike and enjoy the solitude of the woods.

The beginning of Trillium Trail

The wild flowers were in bloom as I made my way up the trail to the top of the ridge, where it winds about and then slowly descends.

Vireos and Gnatcatchers were keeping me company as fewer and fewer Warblers were seen, let alone heard. The trees were really leafing out making it harder to see anything in the canopy.

After reaching the bottom I started to walk back towards my car. Across from where I parked there is this small open area where birds will sometimes feed making it easier to see them. A bridge spans the stream and terminates at this open area. That’s when I heard the Waterthrush. It was staying one step ahead of me as I chased it down the stream towards the entrance to the park. It finally came to rest long enough for me to snap this poor photo.

He’s right in the center with this leaf blocking it’s head.

Now I’m happy. And with that recent addition to my year list it was time to head off North to my next stop, Ellis Lake. However on the way I made a quick stop at this series of small, fenced in ponds that local birders call “Fly Ash Pond”. They’re not very nice to look at and because it has a fence around might be a good thing. Who knows what could be growing in there. But it can be a hot spot for birds, and today it was for me, because out of the corner of my eye a flash of blue zipped by and perched on the fence. My first thought was Indigo Bunting. But being my lucky day it turns out to be a Blue Grosbeak.

A truly sad picture, but one where you can use it to ID the bird.

Happy once again with yet another new bird for the year I drove up the highway towards Ellis Lake to see if any more shore birds were there. With the afternoon wearing on and chores facing me when I get home this stop and the next were short. A small flock of Least Sandpipers were seen feeding along the edge of one of the larger sky pools that dotted the field at Ellie Lake. More wading birds were there than has been in the past few visits, so maybe things will turn around especially with this coming rain.

My last quick stop was the Cincinnati Zoo Farm near my home. Yellowlegs and Pectoral Sandpipers were the only wading birds here, so after scanning the ponds for about 30 minutes I made my way home and the impending mowing of the lawn.

Notable birds for the day include:

1. Turkey Vulture
2. Red-tailed Hawk
3. Cooper’s Hawk
4. Northern Parula
5. Yellow Warbler
6. Blackpoll Warbler
7. Yellow-rumped Warbler
8. Prothonotary arbler
9. Common Yellowthroat
10. Louisiana Waterthrush
11. Palm Warbler
12. Pine Warbler
13. Yellow-throated Vireo
14. Red-eyed Vireo
15. Warbling Vireo
16. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
17. Chipping Sparrow
18. Field Sparrow
19. White-throated Sparrow
20. Swamp Sparrow
21. Song Sparrow
22. Gray Catbird
23. Northern Cardinal
24. Carolina Chickadee
25. Tufted Titmouse
26. American Robin
27. American Goldfinch
28. Mourning Dove
29. Blue Jay
30. Indigo Bunting
31. Carolina Wren House Wren
32. Pileated Woodpecker
33. Red-bellied Woodpecker
34. Downy Woodpecker
35. Northern Flicker
36. Brown Thrasher
37. Blue Grosbeak
38. White-breasted Nuthatch
39. Eastern Towhee
40. Canada Goose
41. Great Blue Heron
42. Killdeer
43. Common Grackle
44. Red-winged Black Bird
45. Solitary Sandpiper
46. Pectoral Sandpiper
47. Spotted sandpiper
48. Least Sandpiper
49. Greater Yellowleg
50. Lesser Yellowleg
51. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
52. Mallard
53. Wood Duck
54. Blue-winged Teal
55. Eastern Phoebe

Notes From The Field

Cincinnati Zoo Farm & Ellis Lake

Spring is truly in the air, and more so this weekend as temperatures reach into the 60’s and the sun warms the air. Daffodils are in bloom, and the inevitable yard work “Job Jar” is overflowing with much needed tasks to be completed.

In preparation of a new mowing season, yard waste needs to be picked up. Sticks by the thousands litter the yard as left over leaves from this last Autumn pile up behind the air conditioning compressor and along the fence line. The compost bins are spilling over and need to be emptied, wheel barrel after wheel barrel load and dumped into the garden. And speaking of the garden, it needs to be tilled. Not just once, but several times to at least to incorporate the arrival of some beautiful compost fresh from the bin. And I’m still not done.

And even with all this excessive outdoor activity I was still able to steal away for a few hours yesterday and get a little birding in while Kathy got her hair done. And not wanting to press my luck by going too far away, my best option was to keep it close and try to keep it as short as possible, which can be difficult considering my past history. Birders do get distracted easily you know.

The Cincinnati Zoo owns this property which has become one of my favorite places to go to now, especially since it’s so close to my home. A large lot with plenty of standing water that will never be developed as long as the zoo owns the property, has been attracting some good birds lately. And I’m in the mood for some wading birds. A large group of volunteers were planting trees all during the time I was there which might contribute to the fact that I never saw any while I was there. However the Wilson’s Snipes were very active and as they foraged along the edge of one of the bigger sky pools.

Getting a picture of these small birds, at a distance isn’t easy. If you look close he’s right in the center of the picture.

Since the property is still closed to the public I was left to walk along the side of the road along the grassy edge and scan the ponds from there. Thankfully if you own a spotting scope this doesn’t become a problem. However if you were just using your bins you might be able to spot the snipe as the blended in well with the vegetation.

FOS Great Egret. This was a real treat to see. I thought it might be a little early to start seeing these large wading birds, however as I got home and added my bird list into eBird it was amongst the list to choose from without going into the “rarities” list.

I walked back to the bird-mobile after about 30 minutes and drove to my next destination, Ellis Lake. Ellis Lake can be a real hot spot and wanting to satisfy my wading bird thirst I was thoroughly disappointed when I started my scan of the flooded field adjacent to the lake.

Now as you look at this picture you might imagine all sorts of Spotted Sandpipers, Yellowlegs, Pectoral Sandpipers and the like having a great old time feeding in such a wonderful place. Nope, you’d be fooling yourself. Other than a few Killdeer and a lonely looking pair of Mallards swimming in one of the larger pools, there was nothing in terms of wading birds. So I took some pictures instead.

I wish I had gotten this picture of a Red-winged Black Bird focused crisper, it was a great close-up.

There were both Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal present and here is my attempts at capturing these two species without scaring them off. The Blue-winged Teal were feeding amongst the reeds and always had their heads down in the water. The Green-winged Teal were far away and I was having some issues with focusing. How can something so easy, be so difficult.

Blue-winged Teal

Green-winged Teal

It was a joy just to be outdoors yesterday. Even though my target birds weren’t around I’m confident that it’s only a matter of time before they show up in mass. With both of these location in such close proximity to where I live a weekly, or even bi-weekly visit isn’t out of the question. They have such great habitat for some of my favorite birds.

Notable birds for the morning include:

1. Eastern Bluebird
2. Eastern Meadowlark
3. Red-winged Black Bird
4. Killdeer
5. Wilson’s Snipe
6. Great Egret
7. Great Blue Heron
8. American Robin
9. Song Sparrow
10. Tree Swallow
11. Canada Goose
12. Mallard
13. Northern Shoveler
14. Wood Duck
15. Blue-winged Teal
16. Green-winged Teal
17. Mourning Dove
18. Red-bellied Woodpecker
19. Turkey Vulture
20. Red-tailed Hawk
21. American Kestrel