It was June, so naturally the Avids went looking for for grassland birds. Crown City Wildlife Area near the Ohio River is one of the best spots in Ohio for them.
A couple firsts for an Avids trip: We had a Northern Cardinal strike our windshield on the freeway; and a non- birder accompanying her son knitted a turtleneck!
On arrival at Crown City WA, we turned right hoping for some early morning warblers and vireos. We were able to see four American Redstarts darting around in the canopy, the male with its stunning-black plumage with orange patches; the female duller with lemon yellow patches. A Yellow throated Warbler showed us its handsome bright yellow throat and black and white streaks.
We waited out a few episodes of light rain, then headed to the grasslands. We heard a number of Bobwhite, but they eluded our visual confirmation. Henslow’s Sparrows were more cooperative as they sang on the ridge top. Oddly lovely Yellow-breasted Chats were frequent along the road. We heard Grasshopper Sparrows and saw a distant one. We were surprised to see a Green Heron fly by as there is little water in the immediate area.
When we were turning around, a German Shepherd jumped up on our car, sticking its head in the open window. It followed us for several miles, running along the road and into the fields. It did not have a collar, but a couple fishermen said they frequently saw it at the nearby store being fed and petted. And here you thought that the Avid Birders just looked at…well, birds!
This one must have been a bird dog, because while it was leading us we saw several Scarlet Tanagers and Indigo Buntings. A guinea fowl (definitely not native to Ohio!) was beside the road as we left the area. We also saw a flock of Wild Turkeys.
One car returned to Columbus, while the other drove around the Pickaway Airport/River road area. There we added Horned Larks, Eastern Meadowlarks and recently fledged Killdeer to our list. We enjoyed watching the Thirteen lined ground Squirrels – I know they are not birds, but they are so cute!
We mostly avoided the scattered showers, ending the day with 68 species.
Here’s a list of species seen on the trip:
Killdeer
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
White-breasted Nuthatch
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Carolina Wren
Northern Mockingbird