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April 2009

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From:
Kenn Kaufman <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Kenn Kaufman <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:12:14 -0400
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Chris Knoll and Mary Warren already have reported on some of the birds found
among the huge influx of migrants this morning at the Magee Marsh Wildlife
Area boardwalk (Lucas Co., n.w. Ohio), but I wanted to add a few notes.

Kim and I spent much of the morning at the boardwalk, and as in the past, we
had a chance to observe how things changed during the course of the morning.
Most of the birds we're talking about in that situation are nocturnal
migrants, of course, and they had arrived en masse during the night last
night, but these birds don't necessarily stay put at the spot where they
first touch down.  They may move a considerable distance before they settle
in for the day at a particularly favorable piece of habitat.  Early in the
morning, for example, we saw a Savannah Sparrow deep inside the woods near
the parking lot.  It had undoubtedly arrived during the night, the habitat
undoubtedly seemed as incongruous to the sparrow as it did to us, and I
suspect that before long it had left to seek a more appropriate open, grassy
habitat.  A short time later we were at the extreme western end of the
parking lot, watching as Ovenbirds, thrushes, gnatcatchers, and a variety of
warblers moved eastward through the narrow strip of habitat along the beach,
working their way toward the larger woods near the boardwalk.  The number of
Ovenbirds in the woods definitely increased as it got later in the morning,
and the same seemed to be true of some other warblers and of Purple Finches.
Of course, once a migrant finds a great foraging spot, it may stay
essentially in the same tree for the rest of the day.  And when that
happens, of course, birders can repeatedly re-find birds of interest.

Again this morning, talking to other birders, I was reminded of the numbers
along the boardwalk and how helpful these would be if birders would use them
more consistently.  For example, the Worm-eating Warbler that we watched was
staying on the south side of the boardwalk between numbers 7 and 8.  The
male Tennessee Warbler was over the boardwalk at number 2.  A Kentucky
Warbler was east of the boardwalk at number 17.  The Great Horned Owl nest
was visible from number 18B.  These kinds of designations are much more
useful than saying something like, "over on the back of the big loop."  The
problem is that, when you've seen an interesting bird, you may not remember
to hunt around and find the numbers engraved in the top handrail of the
boardwalk.

I'd like to suggest that birders try to note these numbered locations when
reporting birds of interest.  An easy way to do it is to consult our map of
the boardwalk.  Black Swamp Bird Observatory has maps available for free
downloading and printing, showing the boardwalk in detail with all the
numbers in place.  You can find it by going to http://www.bsbo.org/birding/
and following the links for "birding hotspots: directions and maps."  The
Magee Marsh boardwalk is a great place for birders to share observations,
and this numbered map could help us all to share information more clearly.

Thanks, everyone, and good birding!  Judging by current weather, it looks as
if tomorrow will be another great day!

Kenn Kaufman
Oak Harbor, Ohio

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