We left Worthington Place at 5:30 am on a breezy 21 degree day, headed for Amish country. Exiting US 30, we commented on a gentleman giving out free Bibles from an open outdoor area at 7:00 am in 22 degree weather. Apparently we are not the only ones passionate about what we do!
After the traditional caffeine break at a McDonalds in Wooster, we headed to a previously-identified Amish farm hoping to find the “most reliable Barn Owl in the area.” In typical Avids tradition, we drove past the farm, turned around, and proceeded up the long gravel driveway. We met two Amish women hitching a horse to their buggy, who told us to go ahead to the house, and as we traipsed up the walkway, an Amish gentleman came out of the house to greet us. We asked about the Barn Owl and he told us to go wherever we desired. So we headed for the silo, and, since it appeared empty, climbed (some of us crawled) inside. Hooray! The owl was clearly visible. As we were leaving the silo, the farmer approached and asked if we’d seen the owl. We told him we had, whereupon he said that the female was in a nest box in the barn and offered to flush her from the box. We declined, not wanting to disturb a nesting owl. The owl was a life bird for a young man on the trip who lives within five miles of the farm!
The Amish farmer then told us about the Western Tanager at a nearby farm. We replied that this was our next stop, and we offered to take him to see it, He declined; we don’t know whether he had other things to do or was (justifiably) concerned about accepting a ride from such a gang of birding lunatics!.
Upon arriving at our next stop, we saw the Western Tanager before we were out of our cars. A small group of birders were watching it while standing near an outbuilding under a roof overhang. One of the Amish men let us observe the bird through his scope, providing superb views for everyone. The homeowner uses suet with meal worms embedded in it, which attracts not only the Tanager (a bird very far from from its usual home in the American West), but also more local birds, such as Eastern Bluebirds and Red-headed Woodpeckers. Meanwhile, the Western Tanager, a female or perhaps an immature male, was a lifer for a couple people in our group.
Encouraged by obtaining two target birds before 9:00 am, we prepared to leave. But just as we were starting our cars, a report came in from Jen Brumfield that she had located a California Gull at East 55th Street in Cleveland. Everyone seemed willing to change plans to chase this Ohio rarity.
While driving to Cleveland, another report came in that the gulls had been dispersed by gunshots! Hopeful that it would return, we continued north. Fun fact: the California Gull became the state bird of Utah after a flock of these gulls ate the locusts that were devouring the crops of Mormon settlers.The harvest was saved and the settlers survived the long, cold winter.
On arriving at the Marina on East 55th, we were greeted by a couple inches of snow on the ground and very stiff winds. Avids are not detterred by mere wintery conditions, though, so we unloaded our scopes and searched the huge flocks of gulls for the one that was different from the rest. Our optimism was tempered when we learned that a couple other birders had been searching for the California Gull for two hours without success. Meanwhile, though, we did see Northern Shovelers, Red-breasted Mergansers by the hundreds, and a few Horned Grebes.
An hour later, we decided to warm up by having lunch at Wendy’s. We returned after lunch, but the California Gull eluded us as well as the other birders present.
We then did some car birding, driving down Marginal Road and searching Burke Lakefront Airport for raptors or a Snowy Owl; none were present. We took another break from the cold and wind in the airport terminal, watching for birds through the windowed north side of the building.
Next, we decided to go to Wendy Park, specifically the Coast Guard Station, as several people had never been there. Here we saw several hundred Double-crested Cormorants and a few Great Black-backed Gulls, a life bird for one member of our group. We also added a Ruddy Duck to the trip list, but mostly viewed hundreds of Ring-billed Gulls, with a few Herring and Bonaparte’s Gulls mixed in. An immature Bald Eagle flew over, mixing up the gulls as they all lifted off and resettled.
The cold and waning light finally got to us, and six happy birders headed for home. For the day, we had 37 species, not bad at all for a December trip.
You can view an album of Lisa Phelps’ photos from the trip.
Our species list:
Canada Goose
Gadwall
American Black Duck
Northern Shoveler
Mallard
Ruddy Duck
Red-breasted Merganser
Horned Grebe
Double Crested Cormorant
Bald Eagle
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Bonaparte’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Blacked Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Barn Owl
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
American Kestrel
Merlin
Blue Jay
American Crow
White-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
European Starling
Dark-eyed Junco
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Western Tanager
Red Winged Blackbird
American Goldfinch
House Finch
House Sparrow