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Contents of Volume 1 , Issue 1

Published November 1999

Summer 1999 Bird Review by Victor W. Fazio, III	Coverage map for seasonal reports: Summer 2000
Introduction Range Maps Accompanying photo file

Also . . .

1998 Barn Owl Nesting Success . . . . O.D.N.R., John Wisse

Literature Review: Hemlocks a Key for Northern Species Nesting in Hocking Hills . . . . Jeff Grabmeier

Species Accounts: The Golden-crowned Kinglet Breeding in Ohio . . . . David Hochadel

The West Nile Virus: New to North America . . . . USGS Health Alert, Bob McClean

Questions in Ohio Ornithology: Gypsy Moths in the C.V.N.R.A. . . . . Ann Chasar

Surveys in Ohio Ornithology: The Breeding Birds of Lakeview Cemetery . . . . Richard & Jean Hoffman

The Summer 1999 Bird Review

The season was impacted by two environmental phenomena, the drought and the emergence of the seventeen-year cicada.

The warmth of spring brought northern migrants to their breeding grounds quicker than average so very few boreal species were caught lingering along Lake Erie’s shoreline into June. For the most part, this was true of the spring shorebird migration, making the sizeable flocks of Semipalmated Sandpiper that were found at inland locations all the more surprising. While the remainder of June was not especially warm, it became clear the area was in the grips of a drought, regarded as severe by the National Weather Service across the southern two-thirds of the state and moderate in the north. Such conditions may have prompted the appearance of several Bell’s Vireo in the southwest and possibly had a hand in the occurrence of a Least Tern near Cincinnati, but otherwise the impact on vagrants seems to have been minimal. Likewise the impact on breeding populations may have been ameliorated by the emergence of the Seventeen-year Cicada. Ann Chasar made this observation from the northeast:

The 17-year cicadas Magicicada septendecim emerged en masse in June to provide plentiful food during the nesting season. There is a theory that the cicadas come out in such large numbers so that their predators will be overwhelmed. Cedar Waxwings settled in trees and gorged themselves on cicadas. Ring-billed Gulls flew low over trees catching the cicadas they disturbed. Red-shouldered Hawks pounced on the easy bounty. The woods hummed loudly throughout the heat of June as the males attracted females—it was futile for a bird to announce its territory. And then it was silent. Thousands of branches with bent tips of dead leaves now attest to the next generation.

Speculation in the southeast had the Wild Turkey faring better than usual based on the observation of poulets gorging themselves on emerging cicadas. This is borne out somewhat by the record estimated state population this year of 145,000 birds [O.D.N.R., D.O.W.].

Waterbirds were perhaps not so fortunate as suitable habitat disappeared. The normally luxuriant Killbuck Marsh W.A. dried up completely, with Sora and Virginia Rails abandoning their territories in early June. For some species, drying reservoirs proved a boon, concentrating food resources. Frog concentrations at Medusa Marsh and Killdeer Plains W.A. attracted scores of herons and egrets for the few weeks before the ponds were completely dry.early breeding season as not only adults were found much earlier than normal but juveniles of several species had appeared before the end of the period.

Apparently independent of either drought or insect activity, numbers of hemlock specialists reached new highs in the state. Most pronounced were the records for Blue-headed Vireo, Hermit Thrush, and Magnolia Warbler. While observer effort plays a major role in elucidating these populations, it is likely the numbers do reflect a continuuing expansion of these populations. Care should be taken to monitor this developing situation among some of Ohio’s rarest breeding species. - V.W.F.III