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February 2000

Two Greater White-fronted Geese were reported from Pickerington Pond (Fairfield/Franklin Co.) yesterday - Richard Cressman

Common Redpolls may still be found with 10 present at Lorain Harbor yesterday - Rob Harlan. Also there yesterday was a female Oldsquaw - Sean Zadar. Ducks in generela are dominated by Redhead and Canvasbacks at Lorain with hundreds of each. While off Bayshore (Lucas Co.)- Bill Whan, Joe Hammond and Sandusky (Erie Co.) thousands of scaup are staging - V.W.F.III. Amidst the throng at Bayshore, Bill and Joe found 3 Surf Scoters. Puddle ducks continue to filter into the marhes of the Western Basin with pintails and shovelers in small numbers at Ottawa N.W.R., and Gadwalls and Green-winged Teals at Medusa Marsh yesterday. No sign of the weekend Eurasian Wigeon.

Yet another strong southerly airflow and moderate temperatures pushed early migrants into the region. Rob Harlan had his earliest Tree Swallow over the Magee Marsh Bird Trail yesterday. Rob further reports a pair of Sandhill Cranes at Ottawa N.W.R. along Veler Rd. Veler was also good for 8 Short-eared Owls. The Magee Marsh Northern Shrike was still present while I had close views of the Ottawa N.W.R. bird also yesterday. Shorebirds are not usually a group garnering attention in February in Ohio, but yesterday Turtle Creek at Duff-Washa Rd. (Ottawa Co.) held 1 Greater Yellowlegs, 2 Lesser Yellowlegs, and a Pectoral Sandpiper among the usual Killdeer - V.W.F.III. A Lesser Yellowlegs reported in the northwest for last Thursday would be the earliest spring record for Ohio - fide Toledo RBA. Lapland Longspurs are massing at inland staging sites with 750 noted along Washburn Rd. (Killdeer Plains W.A.) yesterday - Bob Royse, and 127 along Ground Hog Rd. (6 miles sw of Big Island W.A.) on Saturday - Dave St. John. Somewhat early (although in keeping with recent years), the dominant blackbird at Magee Marsh W.A. yesterday evening was Rusty Blackbird with 1400 sitting in the trees at one time along the causeway. Three more Sandhill Cranes were detected yesterday passing over Spring Valley W.A. - Patti Niehoff.

The Toledo RBA reports a male Eurasian Wigeon at Ottawa N.W.R. for Saturday. Also a Yellow-headed Blackbird was noted along Stange Rd. Check out the Toledo RBA report by Greg Links for a wealth of other great birds in the area during the past week.

The extraordinary Indigo Bunting at a Columbus feeder was again present Sunday after a 9 day absence - Bob Royse.

Up to 6 Greater White-fronted Geese were present on Pond 33 of Killdeer Plains W.A. today - Jonathan Ruidisueili. Four were first reported there on Saturday - Mary Warren et al. two birds were reported Saturday at Ottawa N.W.R. - fide Greg Links.

An immature Golden Eagle was videotaped overhead at Lake Hope State Park today - Dave St. John. After some discussion with Dave, it is clear that the immature Golden Eagle he photographed at The Wilds in early January could not be confused with the adult found there 11 February by Bill Murphy. The immature was subsequently relocated yesterday by Joe Bens et al.. Also, I have received a nice photo of the South Chagrin (Cuyahoga Co.)bird by Adam Duff from 28 January. That makes 8 Golden Eagles (4 supported by photos) for the recent winter period in Ohio.

Spring migration kicked off in earnest last Tuesday and did not stop in the wake of record-setting heat through the region into Saturday. Killdeer were among the first conspicuous migrants with birds reported from Pickaway Co. (Jim McCormac) and Tiffin (Zac Baker), and South Bass I. - Stan Wulkowicz last Tuesday. By Saturday, a great variety of species from waterfowl to songbirds were noted across the state. American Woodcock began with an individual on the 20th at Paint Creek W.A. - fide Donna Daniel. They were further noted in Ross, Butler, Clermont, and Hamilton Counties by Wednesday - m.obs, and Lucas Co. on Thursday - Greg Links. Friday saw birds in Tiffin - Tom Bartlett, Erie Co. - Brad Phillips, 6 at The Wilds - Jason Larson, and a dozen at Silver Creek Metropark in Summit Co. - Rob Harlan and Sandy Wagner. Two were noted Saturday at Killdeer Plains W.A. - Mary Warren et al.. Turkey Vultures were mentioned widely across the north. Nonetheless, the kettle of 70 birds at Bellefontaine Sunday was extraordinary for the season - Grant Rettig.Other raptors were moving along the Lake Erie shoreline late last week with a Red-shouldered Hawk already passing by Maumee Bay S.P. Friday - Lee Garling. Pied-billed Grebes were noted as individuals across the north while 4 Horned Grebes at Caesar Creek S.P. were new on the 23rd - Scott Reeves. Horned Grebes reached Lake Erie yesterday - fide Greg Links. Other waterfowl have gotten off to a quick start with 2 Blue-winged Teal at Ottawa N.W.R. Saturday - Adam Blank, Wood Ducks across the northern tier of counties (m.obs.), and early concentrations of Ring-necked Ducks; 150+ in Lake Co. - Haans Petruschke and 200 at Killdeer Plains W.A.- Erich Baumgardner et al. Fifty Northern Pintails was a good February tally for the Sandy Ridge Metropark (Lorain Co.) on Saturday as was the 35 Red-tailed Hawks - Craig Rieker. Green-winged Teal had reached South Bass I. by the 23rd - Stan Wulkowicz. Stan had a 1st winter Iceland Gull on the island the next day. Snow Geese have been on the move with at least 50 in the Metzger Marsh/Ottawa N.W.R. area over the weekend - Zac baker / Adam Blank, 49 flying past Lakeshore MP Sunday - John Pogacnik, and 33 at Killdeer Plains W.A. The latter site has been hosting up to 9 Long-eared Owls for the past three weeks - Erich Baumgardner, m.obs.. Sandhill Cranes have already pushed northwards with a flight of 5 the 22nd (Joe Bens), and 8 on the 26th (Lois Shadix). Both observations coming from Hamilton Co. Diurnal migration noted from Maumee Bay S.P. Saturday included 2100 Lapland Longspurs, 8 American Pipits, and an early Common Snipe for the north. Brad Cullen flushed another snipe from the entrance road to Ottawa N.W.R. today. Snipe had already put in appearances in the southwest on the 23rd with individuals at Spring Valley W.A. - Scott reeves, Miami-Whitewater Wetlands - Paul Wharton, and 5 at Gilmore Ponds - Mike Busam. Elsewhere, Common Grackles and Eastern Meadowlarks were staking territories in the northwestern counties by Wed. - m.obs. A flock of 75 Snow Bunting could be found along Howard Rd (Lucas Co.) on Saturday - V.W.F.III. That day at Ottawa N.W.R. and Magee marsh W.A. the wintering Nothern Shrikes were still present - Jim Lesser, Karl Overman. Jim also located a Fox Sparrow on the Magee Marsh Bird Trail. The last report of the Spring Valley W.A. shrike is for the 18th - Kathy Beal. John Shrader earlier gave a convincing description of a Northern Shrike from this location - an exceptional record for the southwest. By Thursday, one singing male Pine Warbler was back on territory at Waterloo Experimental Station, Athens Co. - Dave St. John. Back on the 19th, a Vesper Sparrow was extraordinary for northeast Ohio. The bird was found along Price Rd. (Portage Co.) - Larry Rosche.

There is an apparent immature Gyrfalcon in the Portsmouth (Scioto Co.) area. First discovered by Brad Sparks last week it was seen and photographed Tuesday by Dr. Stephen J. Harvey. His directions follow:

The area to look is: OH Route 73/104 on the west side of the Scioto River valley here at Portsmouth.

If coming from the north on US 23, come all the way into Portsmouth until you reach US 52 (6th stop light). Just before US 52 you will pass a Foodland on your left and there is Bob & Floyd's Tires on the right where you turn. Osco Industries is on the south-west corner of the intersection. US 23 at this point is one-way south and US 52 is one-way west (R) at this intersection. Turn west (R) onto US 52. Keep in the right lane as you pass over the Scioto River. The first exit to the right (approx. 1 mile) is 73/104 heading north. About two miles north on 73/104 (four lanes at this point), begin to look for the bird on your right. The frontage road to the west (50 feet) is county route 239. In the early morning the gyrfalcon has been seen perched in the trees between 73/104 and 239, or on the guard rail between 73/104 and the farmland in the river valley to your east (R). The most frequented area of the bird is the area around Ed's Auto Salvage on route 239. When 73/104 narrows to two lanes, you have just passed the general area that the bird is frequenting. This road is a heavily traveled road including semi's, so please be very careful in this area.

Careful attention should be given to this extraordinary sighting - there is the chance of an escapee origin as the bird may be the more exotic white morph which is generally not expected as a stray into Ohio. It is certainly worth investigating the area as immature Golden Eagles have been sighted in the region including a bird near Chilicothe on Tuesday - David Brinkman, Hank Armstrong et al.; "flying due East low over the interchange of Rt. 159 and Rt. 23 just north of Chillicothe (Delorme page 78, A-2)".

Another oddity is that of the overwintering Sandhill Crane at a Toledo park. First noted 17 October!, Jeff Loughman has been keeping track of this bird which has taken up with the local Canada Geese. Below is an extraordinary image of this suburban crane courtesy Joe Szczerbiak.

Directions in Toledo: Take Front St. to Consaul st. (Tony Packos). Take a right on Consaul and follow it to Burger St. Take a right on Burger and follow it until you crest a hill. Once you crest the hill you will see Heckys Pond.

I really appreciate specific responses to the commentary in these pages. After my remarks regarding Evening Grosbeaks, I heard from Barb Kaplan of her 2 birds at the feeder in Peninsula (Summit Co.)currently, while just this week Rebecca Hatfield noted the arrival of 8 of these portly seedeaters in NE Hocking Co. Other winter finches continue to be sporadically reported with White-winged Crossbills leading the way. Monday David Horn noted 4 birds by the main library on the Ohio State Univ. campus, 3 more birds were at Woodlawn Cemetery in Toledo that day - Steve Stockford et al., and up to 4-5 on Wed. - Don Burton and Dan Sanders while 7 males and 2 females continue at Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati (Hamilton Co.) over the weekend - Casey Tucker.

The "Patagonia Picnic Table effect" is frequently seen at the height of migration when vagrants get the attention, but occasionally it manifests on a small scale at other times of the year. Just last week, Bill Whan mentioned the gull concentration at a dump outside of Lacarne (Ottawa Co.) only to be capitalized upon by Rob Harlan Saturday with the discovery of an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull; the species remains very rare away from the shore of Lake Erie. Pearson Park, another site heretofore receiving little mention until the Northern Shrike posting last week, attracted observers in recent days, revealing 2 adult Yellow-headed Blackbird at the Windows-on-Wildlife feeders Tuesday - fide Greg Links. Nearby Orleans Park (Wood Co.) Killdeer and an American Pipit on Monday - Steve Stockford et al.. Steve's Big Day crew (Craig Nilsson and Joe Lipur) also sighted 2 White-winged Scoters at Bayshore Power Plant. Indeed all three scoters were reported in recent days with a Surf Scoter at Avon Lake (Lorain Co.) Tuesday - Robert Royse and a male/female pair of Black Scoters there on the weekend - Ed Pierce. Waterfowl gatherings on Lake Erie have been the largest of the season in the Maumee Bay and at Avon Lake. Robert's numbers for Avon Lake include 1500 Canvasback, 200 Redhead, 500 Greater Scaup, 800 Lesser Scaup, and 200 Bufflehead; the last number for Bufflehead a good tally away from the Western Basin in mid-winter. Maumee Bay birds likewise number in the thousands but distant views have precluded estimates of flock size from shore. I'm sure the aerial surveys will have a handle of the numbers. I have been wondering where all the Greater Scaup were. A flock of 5000 had been reported earlier in the season staging at Long Point along Lake Erie's north shore. The species appears to make its debut in Ohio waters coincident with substantial shore ice (or roughly the week after the Castalia build-up of puddle ducks): Or is that just a half-baked idea?

Elsewhere: In addition to the usual Summit Co. Merlin roost at Bath, Ed Pierce reports another individual in the Akron area. Formerly, Killdeer Plains W.A. has hosted up to 6 Merlins at a winter roost. With few reported in recent years, it was nice to see the photo of a bird taken there on Sunday by T.J. Vince. T.J.'s family also enjoyed close views of a Gray Catbird there on Sunday. John Yochum's mid-winter waterfowl concentration at Independence Dam continues through Tuesday. Up to 19 swans involving all three species are among the highlights. The Toledo Water Treatment plant attracted an adult Glaucous and a Lesser Black-backed Gull on Sunday - fide Greg Links. On Wednesday, Don Burton and Dan Sanders estimated 3000 waterfowl of a number of species; highlights a Wood Duck and 6 Mute Swan. At Bayshore Poer Plant they added a Horned Grebe and a 1st winter Iceland Gull, and 13 Snow Geese in Jerusalem Twp. Lucas Co. on teh way to Ottawa N.W.R. Robert Royse reports the Sheldon Marsh SNP, Northern Saw-whet Owl remains as of Tuesday. The bird has less fidelity to one perch than last years bird, as several persons searching for it last week had failed to relocate it, as was the case Wednesday. A Fox Sparrow at Sheldon Marsh on the 22nd adds to the spate of reports of that species for mid-January - Paula Lozano. Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs continue to impinge upon the birding consciousness not merely throughout the northwest but south to Allen Co. (Jonathan Ruidisueli), and longspurs down to Montgomery Co. - David Dister. In nearby Darke Co. a Rough-legged Hawk was located at New Harrison Lakes W.A. - Regina Schieltz. In a failed attempt at Evening Grosbeaks in Mohican S.P., Terry Sponseller did locate a Hermit Thrush Sunday. The day before John Pogacnik sighted a Northern Shrike at Mosquito Lake W.A. (Trumbull Co.) and three more at Grand River W.A.; both known winter sites for the species. Given the great numbers in neighboring PA, I would guess a few more could be located from Ashtabula to Mahoning Counties.

maintained by Victor W. Fazio III / last modified 26 Nov. 2000