First raptor watch of 2014, and a new Bobolink Area Checklist of Birds

  • By Bruce Glick
  • April 3, 2014
  • 411
                        
First raptor watch of 2014, and a new Bobolink Area Checklist of Birds Columnist Bruce Glick summarizes happenings in the local birding world. This week Bruce reports on the first raptor watch of the year, as well as a newly published Checklist of Birds for the local area. Read more about it in the "Gone Birding" column. March finally offered up a good day for raptor migration on the last day of the month. I have been waiting not so patiently for a chance to head over to Maumee Bay State Park east of Toledo. Over the years Holmes-area birders have done their hawk watching mainly at Conneaut (northeast corner of Ohio), but started out at Maumee Bay. Raptors flying north through Ohio have a choice to make - go around Lake Erie on the east side or the west side. That choice is probably made primarily by the final destination, but also is influenced by the weather. From where we now live in Goshen, Indiana, a trip to Maumee Bay is about the same distance as it was when we lived in Holmes County, and it offers me a chance to do some Ohio birding again. The weather forecast turned out to be accurate, south wind around 10 miles an hour, with mostly clear skies and temperatures rising from around 40 degrees to a high of 60 by late afternoon. From the big hill (used for sledding in the winter), I could see in all directions. There was still a lot of ice on Lake Erie, but the open areas were filled with an estimated 5000 ducks, mainly scaup. Blackbirds came by in large flocks and continued to do so all day. Rusty Blackbirds could be heard in the woodlot close to the hill. Gulls were in evidence all day, with a number of them appearing from the south. Killdeer were calling and flying around the area as well. The first Turkey Vultures appeared in the southeast late in the morning and worked their way northwest along the Lake Erie shoreline. Some came right overhead while others were inland, but easily visible with binoculars and spotting scope. Several Northern Harriers and both Red-shouldered and Red-tailed Hawks added to the list. With clear skies, vultures were much easier to see than the hawks. It would have helped to have a number of other people scanning the skies. I missed a lot of birds while trying to constantly check the entire sky. Action picked up after lunch with small kettles of Turkey Vultures coming through, often accompanied by other raptors. The first Osprey of the year soared close overhead. A few Sharp-shinned and Cooper's Hawks also made appearances. Around 1 pm I noticed that it got much colder as the wind quickly switched around to the north (called an on-shore wind). Although the wind remained south away from Lake Erie (one-to-two miles), along the shore the strong, cold north wind kept migrant raptors away from the lake. Fortunately I was able to locate the flight line several miles south and west of Maumee Bay. The numbers really picked up as the weather warmed, resulting in three hours during which I was kept busy scanning and counting. A total of 1408 Turkey Vultures dominated the flight, with 41 Red-tailed Hawks, 11 Red-shouldered Hawks, and 14 Northern Harriers making for a good day. Bald Eagles were in the air all day, but most of them were local birds. In other Ohio birding news, lots of reports of newly arrived birds have been coming in, including a Louisiana Waterthrush, Caspian Tern, White Pelicans, and lots of Eastern Phoebes, American Woodcock and many other spring birds. It's a great time of year. An important new resource for people interested in birds in the Holmes area, is the recently completed Birds of the Bobolink Area Checklist. This very helpful up-to-date checklist is a 14 page booklet with abundance information for each season. I highly recommend it. Authored by Mervin H. Troyer, James E. Yoder and Ed Schlabach, the checklist is available from Time and Optics (north or Berlin), Birds and Beyond (Farmerstown), or from Mervin H. Troyer, 54263 TR 85, Fresno OH 43824. The cost is $1.00 each, or 10 for $8.00, or 20 for $15.00. All prices are postpaid. Good birding! Bruce Glick birderbruce@yahoo.com 330-317-7798


Loading next article...

End of content

No more pages to load