A trip to southernmost Ohio to greet arriving migrants is a tradition of the Columbus Avid Birders. For the past several years, we have trekked to Shawnee State Forest in Scioto County, which has usually yielded a bounty of birds, and this year was no different. A lovely weather forecast brought warm temperatures and the initial arrivals of the spring’s first big migrant push, doubling the pleasure experienced by winter-weary Ohio birders.
Beginning at the Shawnee Marina, a group of 17 Avids met up, sparking the trip list with Common Yellowthroat, Blue-winged Warbler, and Orchard Oriole. Avid leader emeritus Brad Sparks donned his leadership hat for this trip, which is essentially in his boyhood backyard. One thing that we have always talked about for the Shawnee trip was to begin at the top of the ridges to catch the migrants, then work our way down the valleys for the resident warblers. In past years, this has never panned out, as we always had to stop on the way up to the ridges for this Worm-eating Warbler or that Kentucky Warbler. This year, our determination held firm and we made it straight to Picnic Point without stopping!
Picnic Point rewarded our efforts, with Pine, Black-and-White, Magnolia, Yellow-rumped, Hooded, and Black-throated Green Warblers. A Scarlet Tanager was briefly seen, and Yellow-throated and Red-eyed Vireos serenaded us. A very pleasant surprise were calling Black-billed and Yellow-billed Cuckoos.
Our next ridgetop stop was Tanager Point (alas, no Tanagers here this trip), which held another nice group of migrant and resident warblers, including an early Tennessee, Nashville, Cerulean, Chestnut-sided, Palm, Prairie, Yellow-rumped, Hooded, and Blue-winged Warblers, Yellow-breasted Chat, and Purple Finch. Downward we drove, adding Kentucky Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, Ovenbird, Louisiana Waterthrush, Yellow-throated Warbler, American Redstart, Blue-headed Vireo, Northern Parula, and Broad-winged Hawk, among others. By the time we reached the valley floors, we had 24 species of warbler, five vireos, four raptors, six woodpeckers, and two flycatchers — a fine mix of species.
The Avids regrouped at the Shawnee Marina, with some folks going their separate ways. Two car loads of Avids, including the group leaders, continued to bird on their way back to Columbus, with stops at a mostly barren and drawn-down Lake White (adding Ring-billed Gull to the list); a bridge over the Scioto River for Cliff Swallows and a Baltimore Oriole; a stop in Waverly ostensibly for a Eurasian Collared-Dove reported the day before, whose location just happened to coincide with a Whit’s Custard shop; and finally at a tradition stop on the way back, the Charlie’s Pond area in Pickaway County. While Charlie’s Pond used to be the main attraction, a small wetland on River Road has been the star of this area for the last several years, and did not disappoint this day. The group was treated to nice looks at an American Bittern, and heard Virginia Rails and Soras. Hooded Mergansers, Wilson’s Snipe, and a Savannah Sparrow were also all nice additions to the list. Birders satiated with birding and custard, the day drew to a close and once again, a spectacular spring trip at Shawnee was in the books.
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Here is our trip list of 98 species for the day:
Canada Goose
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Hooded Merganser
American Bittern (River Road wetland NW of Charlie’s Pond)
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Cooper’s Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel (Near Charlie’s Pond)
Virginia Rail (River Road wetland NW of Charlie’s Pond)
Sora (River Road)
Spotted Sandpiper
Killdeer
Greater Yellowlegs
Wilson’s Snipe (River Road)
Ring-billed Gull (Lake White)
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Black-billed Cuckoo
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Eastern Phoebe
White-eyed Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Horned Lark
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Eastern Bluebird
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Blue-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Pine Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Palm Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Worm-eating Warbler
Ovenbird
Louisiana Waterthrush
Kentucky Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Savannah Sparrow (River Road)
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Purple Finch
House Sparrow