In the past few days I've spent a little bit of time in the afternoons looking over some of my OBBA areas just to see what's back and what's not. The most interesting areas at Deer Creek now, as expected, are the northern and southern extremes of the Wildlife Area. Along the creek many or the resident birds are back : Prothoniotary, and Y-t Warblers, and N Parulas can all be found in the same locations where I saw them last July.  

In the wetland area near New Holland there are a lot of shorebirds right now, with Lesser Yellowlegs (~100) being the most numerous, but Greaters are plentiful too. Other shorebirds there now include Killdeer, Semipalmated Plovers, Pectoral, Semipalmated, Solitary, and Spotted Sandpipers, Dunlin, S-b Dowitchers, and Wilson's Snipe. The fields surrounding that area hold lots of sparrows : Savannah, Grasshopper, Henslow's, Vesper, Song, and Field. Henslow's is a new addition to that particular block. The habitat wasn't suitable for them last year, but last year's dead grass makes the habitat suitable for them now. I sure hope that ODNR doesn't mow it away. Blue Grosbeaks have returned, but I haven't found any Bell's Vireos or Dickcissels yet. 

Besides the shorebirds, I haven't noted many migrants. Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers are numerous at both the above mentioned areas with a few Nashvilles here and there. I would guess when the next big wave of migrants hit (tonight?) that the Deer Creek corridor would be a natural place for many migrants to gather considering that mostly farmland stretches for miles in every direction away from there.

Bob Royse


Robert Royse
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www.roysephotos.com

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