Hi all,
Just a word about rail ruts and what not. I was down at the Black Rail site
Tuesday evening, in and amongst the tornado weather, trying to make
recordings of the rail's vocalizations. While there, I ran into a Pickaway
County deputy sheriff on patrol, and informed him what all the to-do with
optics-bearing people along Radcliff Rd. was about. He thought it all rather
interesting, I guess, but certainly expressed no issues with people
visiting.
Also, unless ownership has changed, all of the land along the north side of
Radcliff is owned by a gentleman who lives in Dublin, and leases out the
farming rights. He and his land manager are aware of Charlie's Pond and the
uniqueness of the area. Don't know who owns the south side, but suspect it
may be the family that lives at the big farm some distance to the south,
with their driveway off River Rd. You can be sure that everyone living off
Radcliff and River roads is well aware of all the visitors.
The mowed rights of way along Radcliff that people are parking on should
actually be county or township property, I'd assume, as most road
rights-of-way are owned by the government. Nonetheless, visitors should make
every effort not to damage the grass, and I found that by parking uphill and
out of the swale, just as Ann Oliver described, it eliminated any problems.
Best of luck to you, and if any of the locals express interest in what the
spectacle is about, be sure and fill them in, show 'em a picture of Black
Rail in your field guide, and even try and get them to hear the rail!
Jim
Jim McCormac
Columbus, Ohio
Like nature? Visit my blog: http://jimmccormac.blogspot.com/
Like birds? Join the Ohio Ornithological Society: http://www.ohiobirds.org
-----Original Message-----
From: Ohio birds [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ann
Oliver
Sent: Thursday, June 05, 2008 10:30 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [Ohio-birds] Black Rail Thursday Evening/ S. of Circleville
The Black Rail was calling sporadically this evening from about 7:00 until
8:30. Nine people heard the rail from the south side of Radcliffe Road. At
times it sounded very close (within 5-10 feet from the road but hidden in
vegetation). Then it would sound quite distant as if it was 30-50 feet away.
At one point, several of us thought we were hearing two separate rails
calling from a great distance apart.
Regarding the neighbor (?property owner?), a man on a riding mower was
trimming the edge of the vegetation near the closest house. The rail
actually starting calling as the mower got a little closer! But the person
on the mower NEVER came very close to us. Someone in the group mentioned he
had earlier asked directions from the neighbor: my impression of his story
was the homeowner was working outside at the time. I don't recall hearing
the word "irate" in the tale... perhaps the neighbor was just trying to get
chores done on a very hot evening!
RUTS: I initially drove past Charlie's Pond because I did not see where
people had been pulling over along the side of the road. When I found the
correct location, I parked UPHILL and west of the wet area and walked back.
I did notice a few areas depressed by tires, but none of the "ruts" looked
more than a half an inch deep, if that. But as previously posted by others,
consideration of potential tire tracks is in order.
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Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.
Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/.
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