I visited several areas along the Scioto River in Columbus today looking for waterfowl and early landbird migrants. I started at the Haul Rd ponds and worked north through the Hart Rd Quarry, Scioto Audubon MetroPark, Watermark Lake, Marble Cliff, Griggs Dam, and Kiwanis park, joining an Audubon trip at the latter park. Migrants were much more apparent in the stops south of downtown, which is a fairly typical pattern; it's why Greenlawn is so much better in Spring than in Fall. Waterfowl were scant, suggesting that the river and quarry ponds don't offer the same feeding opportunities as the shallow marshes out at Darby or Pick Ponds. Notables included:
Mute Swans - 2 were still hanging around the Hart Rd Quarry
Wood Duck - a single male was at Scioto Audubon
N.Shoveler - a pair was at hart Rd Quarry, while 3 males were at Haul Rd ponds
Amer.Wigeon - a pair was at the Haul Rd Ponds
Ring-necked Ducks - 5-6 were still lurking at the Hart Rd Quarry
Buffleheads - 8 were at Haul Rd ponds, while another 1 was at Scioto Audubon
Hooded Mergansers - pairs at almost every stop
Pied-billed grebes - a small flock of 5 were out on Watermark Lake, one of the few waterbirds there
Horned Grebe - 1 was at the Haul Rd ponds
Cormorants - 12 were feeding in the south set of Haul Rd ponds
Coots - 2-4 were at Haul Rd, Hart Rd, and Scioto Audubon
Black-cr.Night Herons - a flock of 10-12 were roosting in trees along the bay at Scioto Audubon
Turkey Vultures - surprisingly scarce, with only a few the entire day. The high count was 4 flying north over Kiwanis
Bald Eagle - 1 adult was sitting near the big nest at the back corner of the Haul Rd ponds
Kildeer - 2-3 were at almost every stop, many as flyovers.
Ring-billed Gulls - mostly gone, with only 4-6 down at Haul Rd and Scioto Audubon
Belted Kingfishers - very few given this habitat, with singles at Scioto Audubon and Griggs
Downy Woodpeckers - surprisingly common, with some at every stop, topped by 9 in 30 minutes below Griggs Dam
No sapsuckers, Phoebes, or Tree Swallows, so these early migrants haven't arrived here yet.
Brown Creepers - still unusually scarce, with only 2 in the riparian strip below Griggs dam
E.Bluebirds - singing birds at Scioto Audubon, Griggs, and Kiwanis; the latter spot had 3.
Savannah Sparrows - 1 was in the fields north of the Grange Audubon Center at Scioto Audubon
Fox Sparrows - 2 were along the bikepath south of the Grange Audubon Center at Scioto Audubon
Red-winged Blackbirds - 2-4 at virtually every stop
Common Grackles - less common, with 6 at Scioto Audubon and singles at Griggs and Kiwanis
Brown-headed Cowbirds - single calling males were at Scioto Audubon and Griggs.
Finches - little other than the expected House Finches and Goldfinches.
Kiwanis has a bumper crop of Skunk Cabbage this year, with flowers almost everywhere along the boardwalk trail. We tried to find Snow Trilliums at several nearby sites in the Scioto Gorge, but with no success, so not all early flowers are out. We also had 3 freshly-emerged E. Garter Snakes at Kiwanis, about as early as I've ever seen them.
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