July/August 2008

By David Dvorak

Photo: Jane Davis

Some birds that nest in the far north tundra environment begin to head south as soon as nesting activity is completed in July and August. The group of birds known as shorebirds lead the way south to wintering grounds making stops along the way to feed. The Lake Erie basin becomes a feeding ground for many of these birds beginning in early August. Dunlin, sanderlings, lesser and greater yellowlegs, solitary sandpipers and dowitchers are some of the many shorebirds that feed along Lake Erie and other inland wetlands on their way to wintering grounds from the Gulf of Mexico and southern coastal areas down to South and Central American coasts.

Next the song birds and birds of prey begin to head south from the far north arctic regions. As they move south they feed along the way. In our area many linger when they get here until the end of September and some through October as long as food is available. Migrating songbirds such as warblers and vireos are insect eaters. When cold snaps kill most insects these birds need to move south. Hummingbirds head south about the middle of September, following blooming flowers. Some song birds that nest in the far north like juncos and tree sparrows stay in our area for the winter.

For some birds of prey Ohio forms part of their wintering grounds so they stay when they arrive. This would include rough-legged hawks, along with short-eared, long-eared, saw-whet, and snowy owls. The winter population of bald eagles swells as migrants move south from the far north. A few golden eagles winter over in Ohio also. Some of our birds of prey stay the year round such as red-tailed, red-shouldered, and Cooper's hawks, along with great horned, barred, and screech owls. Broad-winged hawks move south after nesting in our area to Central and South America.

Waterfowl that nest in the Arctic head south in late August and linger in our area through early November before making their way south to the Chesapeake Bay and southeastern coastal areas and the Gulf of Mexico wetlands. Some waterfowl will spend the winter in Ohio where ever they can find open water especially if it is a mild winter. Even in a cold winter wind will blow openings in the ice and create pockets of ice free water. Rafts of canvasbacks, redheads, and scaup ducks will tough it out in these leads in the ice diving for fish in the frigid lake. Power plants will release warm water where gulls and waterfowl will search for food in the ice free water.

One of the best places to see waterfowl in winter is the spring-fed pond in the middle of the small town of Castalia. Here hundreds of ducks and geese congregate to feed as the water temperature stays in the 40's. Mallards, black ducks, bufflehead, gadwall, northern shovelers, American widgeon, and other ducks congregate to feed in this spring-fed pond.

Ocassionally white-fronted geese are found with Canada geese at the Castalia pond.

Tundra, trumpeter and mute swans can be seen in wetlands with open water along Lake Erie. Power plants that release warm water into Lake Erie draw birds. The power plants at Avon Lake, Eastlake, and East 72nd Street draw in thousands of birds at times. Here gulls from the north like Iceland's, glaucus, and little will be mixed in with the more numerous ring-billed, herring, Bonapartes, and black-backed gulls. Ducks like goldeneye and red-breasted mergansers will be diving for food.

If you feed birds in your yard, remember to be consistent in putting food out. Oil seed sunflower, mixed bird seed (with sunflower seeds, peanuts, millet, and cracked corn) and Niger thistle are the best choices to put out. Birds that will be attracted to this seed are cardinals, blue jays, chickadees, goldfinch, house finch, white-breasted and red-breasted nuthatches, tufted titmice, juncos, song and tree sparrows, and mourning doves. Suet cakes will attract woodpeckers and, occasionally, Carolina wrens.