The winds of November were blowing, with weather more in line with December Avids trips of the past-perhaps fitting, in that our schedule called for a rare late November trip and no December trip (to avoid conflicts with Christmas Bird Counts). Winds were forecast to come out of the northwest, blowing steady at 12 miles an hour and gusting into the 20s. Temperatures were in the high twenties and low thirties, with wind chills closer to 10 degrees. Taking the cue, the Columbus Avid Birders decided to focus on northern reservoirs and the Lake Erie shoreline. A group of six intrepid birders rose to the challenge and headed north to brave the winds, in hopes that rare birds (or just hordes of waterfowl) would be borne along to Ohio from northern climes on the winds of winter/05. Recent reports of Little Gulls and a Northern Gannet at the lake, along with tales of Ancient Murrelets, raised our hopes.
Our first destination was a spot that is traditionally our last destination for trips to the lake late in the year: Wellington Reservoir. This upground reservoir usually holds a good diversity of waterfowl species, especially among the diving ducks. Somewhat to our dismay and surprise (and predictive of the day ahead), while numbers of birds were good, diversity was rather low. Three duck species were present – only three! Ruddy Ducks were here in force, joined by a good-sized flock of Ring-necked Ducks, and a scattering of Bufflehead. Canada Geese trickled in as we scoped the reservoir, but their flocks held no other geese species. A single Tundra Swan departed the reservoir shortly after our arrival. One Common Loon, hundreds of American Coots, Pied-billed Grebes, and Horned Grebes rounded out the waterfowl assortment.
Heading north, the group made its next stop at Oberlin Resevoir, where, like at Wellington, diversity was low. We added Hooded Merganser and Red-breasted Merganser to our list and a handful of Bonaparte’s, Ring-billed, and Herring Gulls, along with our first (and only) dabbling duck species: Mallard. With winds picking up, we packed up and drove north to Lorain Harbor.
Our first planned stop at the harbor was short-circuited, when we discovered the western pier in the harbor was closed for construction activities, effectively removing the western half of the harbor from any good examination. We moved to the east side and scrutinized the gulls huddled on the marina docks, managing to pull up a single Lesser Black-backed Gull. A walk down the pier allowed us to scope the eastern half of the harbor, despite the attempts of the wind to blow us back to our cars. Hundreds of Red-Breasted Mergansers (and a single Common Merganser) were present, along with loads of gulls (mostly Ring-billed). A couple young Great Black-backed Gulls were also flying about along the distant breakwalls. Taking a break from the wind was on our mind, so we decided to put our backs to it and examine the impoundment, hoping for puddle ducks and late shorebirds that were similarly seeking shelter from the wind. However, only two Bufflehead and a single Ruddy Duck were present, along with an unhappy-looking Great Blue Heron. A quick check of the Black River below the bridge found a horde of feeding Bonaparte’s Gulls, but scanning the flock revealed no Little Gulls or other small gull species. Our eyes turned east to Cleveland, and we made our departure from Lorain.
After a very brief and unproductive stop at Bradstreet Landing in Rocky River, the group arrived at Edgewater Marina, and were immediately rewarded with point-blank views of a beautiful first-year Little Gull, flying and landing repeated on the water in front of us. Another Little Gull (and possibly a third) made brief appearances, but the first Little Gull entranced the group for a good half-hour. However, hordes of mergansers appearing on the horizon finally lured us to Wendy Park, with pelicans and gannets in the backs of our heads. Wendy Park delivered more brutal winds, and thousands upon thousands of Red-breasted Mergansers. An adult Great Black-backed Gull was the only uncommon gull we could find, however, and the Brown Pelican and Northern Gannet had decided to move elsewhere that day.
We made our way to East 72nd Street to attempt and re-locate a pair of Red-necked Grebes, but at that point, the snows arrived on the north winds, coating the lenses of our scopes and binoculars. After consulting with the group, the decision was reached to head south and spend a little time at Hoover Reservoir, which the day before had produced a Long-tailed Duck and more Red-necked Grebes. The snows chased us all the way back to Columbus, however, and Hoover Reservoir held no new birds for us.
Although the weather was in line with December, the birds did not get the message, and apparently were hunkered down to the north of Ohio that day. Later reports from Cleveland the following day indicate that perhaps we arrived before the birds did, with the gannet, pelican, a Black-legged Kittiwake, and a Red Phalarope showing up after we left. However, the hovering image of the Little Gull, displaying all its field marks in front of us (and offering itself as an addition to the life lists of some of us), overshadowed the winds and curious low waterfowl diversity on our trip, and with 32 species on our list, the trip was considered another satisfying episode in the saga of the Avids.
Trip List:
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan
Mallard
Ring-necked Duck
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Red-tailed Hawk
American Coot
Little Gull
Bonaparte’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Blue Jay
American Crow
American Robin
European Starling
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow