The week preceding the Avids July trip saw a scorching heat wave across the state. Temperatures in the mid to high 90s were the rule, and advice to stay in air-conditioned spaces abounded. Our leaders consulted the ancient tomes: Avid Birders in days of yore famously endured summer death marches through the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge under the baking July sun. So would the threatened heat deter the Avids? Would the current crop of Avid Birders shame their predecessors? Of course not!
Luckily for us, a series of storms moved through Ohio on Friday and into Saturday. As we shall see, the Avids successfully avoided the rain, and at the same time were cooled by dropping temperatures and gentle breezes left over after the storms rolled through.
A small but hardy group of six departed our usual meeting place at the usual time, 5:30 am. We headed directly for Glacier Ridge Metro Park, where a friendly ranger had agreed to open the gate at 6:00 rather than the usual 6:30. (Thanks, Mike!) Walking the path in the Honda Wetlands to the small bridge, we surprised good numbers of drowsy mallards and roosting blackbirds. The treat for us, though, was a Least Bittern that, after a few feints, hopped about in the reeds directly in front of us, affording long, open looks at this usually secretive species. From the observation tower, we also picked up Virginia Rails and Soras, along with a number of more common birds. Although the often-reported King Rail did not make an appearance, we left happy with our sightings and still cool.
We then headed for a series of stops west of Bellevue that included CRP lands and flooded fields. Dickcissels had been reported in amazing numbers across the state for the past several months, and we managed to find one still singing. A series of flooded fields yielded a number of shorebirds species, including Stilt Sandpipers, as well has an unexpected Hooded Merganser.
Next it was on to the lakefront, with our first stop at the west end of Pickerel Creek Wildlife Area. By this time, the clouds had largely departed and the day was starting to heat up, although breezes from the lake kept the temperature under control, or at least a little short of oppressive. Bald Eagles, both adult and juvenile, were common; in fact, our count of eagles exceeded that of vultures! In any case, a nice assortment of expected summer species and encouraged us to continue through several more stops in this birdy area.
We had little luck at our next stop, Willow Point. Management in this area seems rather hit or miss: when water levels are right, Willow Point can host flocks of shorebirds; when water levels are too high, which seems very common, few birds are in evidence. This time the vegetation was high; although the water level was dropping, it still was not inviting for most shorebirds.
Our final stop was the Lorain impoundment. A phone call from a friend alerted us to the presence of a newly-discovered Marbled Godwit, and we were able to walk from the car to the dike directly in front of the bird within moments of our arrival. After carefully scoping out the closest pond, we circumambulated the entire impoundment, finding a number of nice surprises along the way, including two Common Moorhens. By this time, there was no doubt about it — it was hot. Also, It was getting late, so it was time to head for Columbus.
Oh all right, we just couldn’t resist “fluffing” the day’s list. On the way home, we drove through part of Findley State Park, picking up a few woodland species. After all, who wants to end a day of birding in Ohio without a chickadee on the list?
All in all, fortune did smile on us: throughout the day, storms in our path magically cleared away before we arrived, leaving cooler temperatures and pleasant breezes. What could have been a day of dodging showers or roasting in horrendous heat was, until midafternoon anyway, rather pleasant. The birds were cooperative. What more could we ask? Oh wait, never ask a birder that question — we always could ask for yet another rarity!
We ended today with 86 species, a respectable total for late July. The complete list follows.
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Canada Goose
Trumpeter Swan
Wood Duck
Gadwall
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Hooded Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Wild Turkey
Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Green Heron
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Cooper’s Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Virginia Rail
Sora
Common Moorhen
American Coot
Semipalmated Plover
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Marbled Godwit
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Dunlin
Stilt Sandpiper
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Caspian Tern
Common Tern
Rock Dove
Mourning Dove
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Red-headed Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Eastern Wood Pewee
Willow Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Horned Lark
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Marsh Wren
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Grey Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Common Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Field Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Dickcissel
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow