Posted in Birds

Sam, the Screech Owl, Gets Animated

I met Sam while participating in the Hocking Hills Annual Winter Hike. A naturalist with the state of Ohio was holding him on his arm as the crowd walked past. I took several photos of Sam while he was turning his head every which way as he looked over the crowd. I decided to combine these images into one animated image that shows off his amazing head-turning skills. Check out the image below. In case you are curious, the four images below were combined with the owl head at the top Read more ➜
Posted in Birds, Park review, Southeastern Ohio

Kessler Swamp State Nature Preserve

We'd visited every (non-permit) park and preserve in Hocking county except one - Kessler Swamp. This weekend on the way home from a hike at Conkles Hollow, we stopped there. The parking lot for the preserve in a pull-off off of Hideaway Hills Road. A very short path leads you to an observation platform overlooking the swamp. The preserve is a 20-acre site consisting mostly of the swamp which is fed by Durbin Run, a tributary of Rush Creek. When we visited we noted mostly waterfowl Read more ➜
Posted in Birds

Mother Goldfinch Feeding her Fledgling

I decided to set up a bird feeder a few years back because there was just so much snow that year that I felt bad for the little creatures. Although I originally thought I'd just feed the birds until the snow melted, I ended up feeding the birds all year. One of the rewards of feeding the birds in the summer is getting to watch the parent birds feed their young at the bird feeder. By the time that the young birds can fly around after their parents they are just about the same size as mom Read more ➜
Posted in Birds, Park visit

Morning at Hoover Mudflats Boardwalk

One of our favorite locales for bird watching is Hoover Mudflats Boardwalk. We've previously posted about it here. This locale is constantly changing with the season and the level of Hoover reservoir, but it rarely disappoints. Hoover reservoir is purposely lowered every fall to create a way station for migrating shore birds. But due to the drought, the water level has dropped earlier than usual. When summer began the boardwalk was several feet above the water's surface. Last month the Read more ➜
Posted in Birds

When birds watch you back

We have bird feeders in our backyard. I like to sit in our breakfast nook reading or working on the computer. Then from time to time I'll lift my head to see what birds are out there now. The feeders are located far enough away from our house to make it unlikely that a bird will strike our windows. But that means that I sometimes resort to using binoculars if I want to get a good look at a particular bird. My bird watching got a little easier when the goldfinch in the topmost photo Read more ➜
Posted in Birds, Central Ohio, Park review

Hoover Mudflats Boardwalk

Hoover Mudflats Boardwalk is part of the Hoover Nature Preserve operated by the Columbus Parks and Recreation Department. It is one of the best birding sites in central Ohio. In the fall the city lowers the water level in Hoover Reservoir, so it's more hospitable to migrating shore birds. The area around the boardwalk is also used for fishing and launching kayaks, and I've seen crew teams training here. Beyond that, the site is just lovely. One Read more ➜
Posted in Birds

So Many Canada Geese

I have had the good fortune of vacationing in Canada on a couple of occasions, and one thing that became immediately clear to me is that Ohio has way more Canada Geese than Canada has. It's possible to go an entire day in Canada and not even see a Canada Goose. Let's see you manage that in Ohio! Given that Ohio appears to be the center of the Canada Geese population, I suggest that we rename them Ohio Geese, or since Ohioans go by the nickname, "Buckeyes," maybe we could call them Buckeye Geese. My Read more ➜
Posted in Birds

Ohio’s Overwintering Robins

This is the time of year that many northern areas of the United States are seeing their first robins, a sign that spring has finally arrived... unless you live in Ohio. Our robins have decided that migrating south is too much hassle. In case you're unfamiliar with Ohio and mistakenly believe that we typically have mild winters, here are a few other photos that I took the same day. I thought I was being so clever while taking the above macro. After putting my camera Read more ➜