First hawk-watching trip of the spring: Malek Park, Conneaut, Ohio

                        
The first hawk-watching trip takes place each year in March, on one of the first warm days with south or southwest winds. Usually this is around the middle of the month or later. This year four of us headed up to Conneaut on Friday, March 19. The weather forecast was for temperatures in the 60’s with wind from the southwest. As promised, the day was beautiful as we set up our spotting scopes and settled into chairs to wait for the first raptors. First to arrive was a Sharp-shinned Hawk, followed by a Northern Harrier. Lots of non-raptors kept us busy when no hawks were in sight - Wilson’s Snipe, a number of different ducks and gulls, lots of blackbirds, Lapland Longspurs, American Pipits, Tree Swallows, and woodland birds. It wasn’t long before the first Red-shouldered Hawk came through, heading on east along Lake Erie. These lovely buteos are the main attraction at Conneaut in March. Later on in April, Broad-winged Hawks and other raptors will take center stage. Turkey Vultures are also on the move in mid-to-late March with peak numbers around the end of the month. On this particular day, Turkey Vultures were the most common migrant, with a total of 141. It’s much easier to see the large, dark vultures, especially if the birds are high in the sky. Smaller birds such as Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s Hawks can be difficult to see, even when going by overhead. Around 11 in the morning we felt a cold breeze, the result of a gradual wind shift. The wind was coming from the west, which meant that it passed over the partly frozen Lake Erie. South winds blow the raptors toward Lake Erie, and since they don’t cross the lake, the birds turn and head east along the south shore of the big lake, heading on up into Pennsylvania and New York. When the winds are not favorable, the raptors tend not to concentrate along Lake Erie. We have tried to watch from other locations further inland, and sometimes this works, but it’s hard to find the right place, and it may change as the wind direction changes. On this particular day, the flight continued, but not with large numbers. More Red-shouldered Hawks appeared, as did Red-tailed Hawks, plus two Rough-legged Hawks. A total of five Northern Harriers, two Bald Eagles, eight Sharp-shinned Hawks, 12 Cooper’s Hawks, 54 Red-shoulders, and 47 Red-tails completed the list for the day. We packed up and headed home at 4 p.m. when it seemed clear that flight was basically over for the day. Later I checked with the Ripley, N.Y., hawk-watch site and found that they had similar numbers, although somewhat less than we had in Conneaut. Several days later, on Sunday afternoon, March 21, I headed over to Pleasant Hill Lake and Clear Fork Reservoir to check for migrant waterfowl. I wasn’t disappointed. Pleasant Hill had lots of activity, including my first two Common Loons of the year. Close to 200 Bonaparte’s Gulls were joined by more than 400 Lesser Scaup, nearly 100 Bufflehead, and at least seven other kinds of ducks. Most interesting was the large concentration of Horned Grebes, at least 87, plus a few Pied-billed Grebes. At Clear Fork there were 32 more, and on the way home I found 19 Horned Grebes at Shreve Lake - a total of 138 for the day. I think that is the most I’ve ever seen in one day in our part of Ohio. At Clear Fork Reservoir there were many ducks, including 750 Lesser Scaup, 140 Red-breasted Mergansers and 50 Double-crested Cormorants. One lone Common Loon was busy diving in the middle of the lake - I almost missed seeing it. The gulls at Clear Fork were almost entirely Herring and Ring-billed - quite different from all the Bonaparte’s at Pleasant Hill. Next was a quick stop at Funk Bottoms Wildlife Area, where the water had gone down a lot over the last week. There were still 162 Tundra Swans there, but another birder informed me that on Saturday there had been 290 of the beautiful big white swans. Two Sandhill Cranes were feeding in the cornfield along route 95, while perhaps 1,000 ducks were scattered through the wildlife area. At Funk it can be difficult to see the ducks, especially when the water recedes. Many Northern Pintails, Northern Shovelers, Gadwall, American Black Ducks, Ruddy Ducks and many divers kept me busy as the sun was setting. Finally I located a Blue-winged Teal, the first one of the season. There will be many more over the next several weeks. This is a great time to check out the waterfowl. Good birding. Contact Bruce Glick at birderbruce@yahoo.com, or phone 330-317-7798.


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