Today Linda and I visited a few areas at Hoover Reservoir and made a side stop on the way home. Although the birds were quite scattered we still managed to locate a nice selection and some decent numbers.
At Oxbow Road there was a respectable variety of waterfowl. There were smaller numbers to the north and south of the causeway, but the best activity was viewed from the north end of Oxbow Island. Species at Oxbow Road included, in part:
Common Loon (6)
Pied-billed Grebe (5)
Horned Grebe (7)
Double-crested Cormorant (23)
Great Blue Heron (2)
Canada Goose (200+)
American Black Duck (13)
Mallard (100+)
Northern Shoveler (2)
Redhead (9)
Ring-necked Duck (300+)
Lesser Scaup (200+)
Hooded Merganser (67)
Red-breasted Merganser (400-500)
Bonaparte’s Gull (200+)
Herring Gull (3)
 
We next stopped at the boardwalk at Area M in Galena. First, there was a pair of Osprey at the nesting platform (they obviously like Dick Tuttle’s architecture). The other species, in part, at Area M were:
 
Common Loon (1)
Pied-billed Grebe (3)
Horned Grebe (2)
Double-crested Cormorant (8)
Canada Goose (75)
American Black Duck (2)
Mallard (50)
Redhead (3)
Ring-necked Duck (37)
Lesser Scaup (100+)
Hooded Merganser (27)
Red-breasted Merganser (200+)
Bonaparte’s Gull (100+)
 
Our last leg was to check the reservoir from the Maxtown boat launch south to the dam. This area had fishermen out in small boats which cleared the birds away, however, the waterfowl gathered in clusters and a check of the rafts produced a pair of Long-tailed Ducks at an east side cove just south of the East Walnut Boat Launch. These were likely the same pair that Doreene Linzel located earlier this week. However with all the Long-tailed Ducks popping up around Ohio who knows. The last time I remember numbers like we are currently seeing currently in Ohio I was living on the coast in New England. Species observed along this leg of our day included, in part:
 
Common Loon (5)
Pied-billed Grebe (4)
Horned Grebe (10)
Double-crested Cormorant (3)
Canada Goose (400+)
American Black Duck (10)
Mallard (200+)
Redhead (8)
Ring-necked Duck (100+)
Lesser Scaup (200+)
Long-tailed Duck (2)
Hooded Merganser (16)
Red-breasted Merganser (200+)
Bonaparte’s Gull (100+)
Herring Gull (2)
 
We finished the day by stopping to view a Great Horned Owl and 3 owlets in a subdivision near our home (Data for the OBBA II). While I was scoping the nest a resident came out to see what we were doing (a spotting scope on a tripod is less suspicious than standing there with binoculars). I ended up doing in impromptu nature program for him, his wife, father and a neighbor. They had been hearing the owls but didn’t realize they were so near to their home. They were very pleasant and the father told me that they are regularly sharing experiences in nature with their children. A tip of the hat to them for appreciating nature and for investing time with their kids, a combination in which everyone wins.
 
Charlie Bombaci
 



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