In the world of nature that surrounds you, September belongs to the asters. The last hurrah of summer bursts forth from every Cleveland Metroparks meadow as the purples of New England aster, yellows of goldenrods and whites of flat-topped aster and little white
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Labor Day marks the traditional migration of the nighthawks, a common bird throughout our suburban area. This whippoorwill-like bird zooms through the summer night skies hunting for insects and creating a loud “b-u-z-z-t” sound as it dives. Look for its long narrow wings with white wing bars in flight.
Hummingbirds may still be flitting around your flower garden if the days have not grown too cold, but most will be gone by the end of the month. Their migration may include a non-stop trip of over 500 miles across the Gulf of Mexico!
Shortly behind the nighthawk migration the chimney swifts also leave. These small swallow-like birds gather in wheeling flocks of a hundred or more around their summertime nesting sites in dormant chimneys. A spectacular migration at Baldwin Lake in Rocky River Reservation presents rare and unusual shorebirds using the exposed mud flats as a feeding area. Among September stop- overs, look for semipalmated plovers, greater and lesser yellowlegs, great egrets and hundreds of killdeers. Small sandpipers, called “peeps,” are difficult to identify, but fun to watch as they probe the soft mud in search of small invertebrates.
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Spotted fawns appear more frequently in Cleveland Metroparks meadows and open areas at dusk. Their watchful mothers are never far behind.
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Flocks of robins increase their numbers daily as they prepare for migration. Fall-ripened crab apples are a favorite high-energy food.
wildflowers New England aster, perhaps the most beautiful of all fall asters, begins to bloom this week. The bright yellow center is surrounded by deep purple petals, making a lovely contrast of colors on the fall landscape. Ironweed’s bright indigo flowers top its stems at heights of five feet or more in Cleveland Metroparks meadows. Look for it among the bright yellows of goldenrods blooming nearby.
trees and shrubs The first blush of autumn colors are now found on sumacs, sassafras, red and sugar maples, tulip trees, ashes and dogwoods.
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Dark-eyed juncos may appear at feeders beginning this week. Sometimes called “snowbirds,” legend says that they appear just before the first snow of winter and leave after the last snow of spring. Previous years’ observations show that their timing is considerably off, fortunately.
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Although most warblers are in their confusing fall colors, watch for blackburnian, hooded, Tennessee, Cape May and magnolia warblers in and around Cleveland Metroparks forests.
Grackles accumulate in flocks numbering in the thousands as they prepare for migration. They may be joined by a few cowbirds and red-winged blackbirds as well.
Black ducks and green-winged teal return from northern haunts this week. Watch Cleveland Metroparks rivers and ponds for them.
The woods grow silent as most non-resident songbirds leave for warmer climates. Cardinals and robins still serenade the dawn.
wildflowers Cardinal flowers reach their peak of blooming this week. The vibrant red flowers dot many Cleveland Metroparks marshes and river edges. A stroll through Cleveland Metroparks meadows reveals the beauties of gray goldenrod, gentians, great lobelia and turtlehead.
trees Ohio buckeye nuts are ripe! Can you find them before the squirrels do? Look for the polished-looking “buck’s eye” beneath the tough green husk. A good crop of hickory nuts and other “mast” may take the squirrels away from your birdfeeders starting this week. To your delight (or dismay) they will soon return!
White-throated sparrows begin to appear this week on their annual migration from Canada through Cleveland to warmer climates. Listen to their half-hearted “old Sam PeabodyPeabody-Peabody” calls.
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The month closes with hints of the colors of autumn splashed about the landscape. Drive through Cleveland Metroparks and see the reds and yellows of maples, golds of ashes and sassafras, and bright crimson of tupelo. Another month remains before peak color arrives.