50
BIGGEST WEEK IN AMERICAN BIRDING
2013
further details regarding birding at Maumee Bay, contact the naturalist at 419-836-9117. For information about the park, call 419-836-7758.
Red-bellied Woodpecker. (Photo by Maggie Dandar/MDandarPhotography.com)
Maumee Bay, Pearson thriving By J. Patrick Eaken and Tammy Walro Press Staff Writers Located in Oregon, Maumee Bay State Park boasts a variety of easily accessible bird habitats, including the open waters of Maumee Bay, a sand beach, inland ponds, a swamp forest, a wetland meadow, an upland meadow and cottonwood/hawthorn/dogwood thickets. Take St. Rte. 2 to Curtice Rd. and turn north to reach Maumee Bay. The state-of-the-art Trautman Nature Center, which is naturaliststaffed and open fi ve days a week, features information about native wildlife, interactive displays and a working lab with live animals on display. A two-mile elevated boardwalk trail winds through 80 acres of wetland habitat, perfect for spotting migrating songbirds. More than 300 species of birds have been recorded at the park, with shorebirds such as snipe, great blue heron, common gallinule and ring-billed gulls residing with waterfowl including Canada geese, pintails, redheads, and ruddy ducks. Songbirds include the red-winged blackbird, yellow warbler, killdeer and swamp sparrow. Spring migration brings many others, including the colorful warblers. In addition, the Lake Erie shoreline sets the stage for the comeback of the bald eagle in Ohio. The park’s plant life is diverse as well. Cattails, buttonbush, phragmites, bur-reed, cottonwood and black willow are just a few examples of the marsh
Birders at Pearson Metropark’’s “Window on Wildlife” at hte Packer-Hammersmith Center. (Photo courtesy of Toledo Area Metroparks)
plants at the park. The park’s campground has a 2.5mile mile perimeter trail edged in shrublike habitat great for roosting owls. The 1.5-mile sandy beach fronts Lake Erie, and is a great spot for picking out gulls, terns and waterbirds. After a busy day birding, enjoy a meal at The Water’s Edge dining room, located at the Lodge and Conference Center. Finish your evening with comfortable accommodations either in one of 102 rooms overlooking Maumee Bay, or in one of the luxury cottages located along the Scottish-Links golf course. Maumee Bay State Park is located at 1400 State Park Rd., Oregon. For
Pearson Metropark: The under story in Oregon’s metropark, with its good cover and food supply, is a boon for birds. The thick woods and proximity to Lake Erie make Pearson a favorite stopover spot for a wide variety of migrating warblers, or songbirds. Pearson is located along St. Rte. 2 (Navarre Ave.) Other species to look for are woodpeckers, oriole, red-eyed vireo, ovenbird, scarlet tanager, redstart, woodthrush, hermit thrush and Acadian flycatcher. Occasionally, visitors will see predatory birds, such as screech and great horned owls and sharp-shinned hawks. A “Window on Wildlife” at the Packer-Hammersmith Center in the center of the park provides a quiet retreat where you can observe birds and other animals in their natural environment. The 300-acre addition to Pearson north of Starr Avenue offers a unique perspective on the benefi ts of wetland habitats. Visitors will notice that water on the land is a magnet for birds. Already, water-loving birds from killdeer to red-wing blackbirds, great egrets to great blue herons and a wide variety of warblers have discovered the site. When mature, this area should attract migrating birds like thrushes and warblers. Visitors are also likely to see sandpipers, red tail hawks, eagles, green herons and the Great Blue Heron, said John Jaeger, retired director for natural resources at the Metroparks of the Toledo Area, The springtime woodland will offer important foraging areas for neo-tropical migrating birds such as warblers and thrushes. Jaeger said he has observed 24,086 birds in the 300-acre expansion area, with 15,462, or 64 percent, on the northeast side. The remaining 8,642, or 34 percent, were found on the southwest side. He observed 97 different species with an average daily diversity of 22 species. On May 29, 2009, he observed a high of 37 species. He counted 6,846 birds, the most on a single day, on October 10, 2009. On an average bird day, he counted 831 birds (24,086 divided by 29 days). More importantly, he says, is finding unique species, such as the return of the whip-poor-will or the Dunlins. About 34 Dunlins were hanging around the Johlin Cabin one day, he said. Other species include killdeer and marsh hawks. Jaeger counted 2,061 waterfowl (nine percent), 4,568 shorebirds (19 percent), 298 wading birds (one percent), and 148 birds of prey (.6 percent), but he explained there will be an effort to reduce the number of geese.