Hello!

After a day of birding in and around parts of central Ohio, Ben Morrison and I decided to end the day by making a quick stop at Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area and we were treated to yet another birding spectacle in our state.

We stopped first at the pond at the Harold Roe Wetland area.  As we pulled to the side of the road to scan the birds, a small group of 5 Snow Geese (all white phase) flew over us and headed west.  Not long after seeing a couple of Greater White-fronted Geese mixed in with the hundreds of Canada Geese on the water, several more flocks of GWFG began to arrive giving us a total of 73 for that area.  To hear their call and see them mixing in flight with CAGO was educational in comparison of size, flight style, and shape, which is not something I have yet to experience much.  We also had some Redheads, a lot of American Black Ducks and Mallards, as well as good numbers of Tundra and Trumpeter Swans.  Many Harriers were working the areas all around us.

We then shot over to Pond 27 to finish our day as daylight was slipping away and it was here that we were really treated to a spectacle.  As we walked up with our scopes to scan the flocks on the pond, geese were arriving in mass from their day of feeding in the surrounding corn fields of Wyandot and Marion Counties.  Thousands and thousands of geese were arriving and already sitting on the water.  Soon, we started seeing large flocks of Greater White-fronted Geese coming in as well and we estimated that we had over 300 land while we watched.  Also mixed in with the arriving geese were 4 Cackling Geese, which were far easier to pick out in flight with the other geese than they were to find once they landed, but we did manage to relocate 2 of them swimming a bit before settling down for the night.  At the same area were large numbers of Tundra Swans, as well as some more Trumpeter Swans.  A couple of the Trumpeters were “trumpeting”, which was my first time hearing them well, particularly in contrast to the constant calling of the Tundras.  Somewhat surprising, we did not see any Short-eared Owls, but we did not really make much of an effort as it was the end of long day and dinner was calling...

Every now and then we get to be witness to some small view of the wonder of what it might have been like in our state before European contact and so much of the land was drained off for agriculture and development.  


Jon Cefus
Carroll Co. 


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