Some  days are just meant to be fun. Today was one of them. I had the 
pleasure of  hosting a terrific young man, Logan Kahle, for a day of birding in 
Central Ohio.  Logan, a resident of San Francisco, is in Ohio visiting his 
aunt who lives in  Delaware. She was referred to me when she was seeking 
someone to take Logan  birding during his visit. Logan is a mixture of 
personality, enthusiasm and  talent. To paraphrase the adage “It’s a small world” it 
turns out that Logan’s  aunt and I have something in common; we both have 
family roots tied to Essex,  Connecticut. Essex is a pin point on the map, all 
3 by 5 miles of it, nestled on  the banks of the Connecticut River as it 
meanders into Long Island Sound. But  back to birding, I picked Logan up at 
his aunt’s and we headed first to Jackson  Township in Hardin County to locate 
Dickcissels, Bobolinks and grassland  sparrows. Success as we were 
surrounded by Dickcissels and lesser numbers of  Bobolinks and sparrows, with 
Eastern Meadowlarks thrown in.    
We  next made a circuit of Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area. We located Bald 
Eagles,  Eastern Meadowlarks, Red-headed Woodpeckers, Trumpeter Swan, lots of 
Common  Yellowthroats and Indigo Buntings, Spotted Sandpiper, Lesser 
Yellowlegs and a  lone Forster’s Tern which at first seemed like a great find 
until we discovered  a pair of Sandhill Cranes with their colt. I at first 
thought there was only the  two adults until I scoped them in and my first view 
was a Sandhill sans the red  on the head. Then all three emerged in to the 
sight  picture. 
We  cut through the Delaware Wildlife Area on our way to my home grounds, 
the Hoover  Nature Preserve. There we added more Red-headed Woodpeckers, 
Yellow Warblers,  Baltimore Orioles and a few other expected species. At the 
preserve we watched  the Osprey at the nest platform as they fed the 
hatchlings. Then off to get  Logan his Prothonotary Warbler. Mission accomplished. We 
added Yellow-billed  Cuckoo, Acadian Flycatcher, Wood Thrush, Spotted 
Sandpiper and a few  others. 
Our  last stop was at Hogback Ridge Preserve (Delaware County Preservation 
Parks).  Acadian Flycatchers were everywhere; however the trail was 
otherwise quite quiet  except for two Wood Ducks and a Green Heron. We were now out 
of water and my old  bones were running out of energy. 
Logan  added a nice group of birds to his Life List and additional birds to 
his Ohio  List. I believe he considered the day to be a success. I know I 
did as I got to  enjoy good birding (70+ species in late June) and great 
company. Between Logan’s  enthusiasm and abilities I think we will hear more of 
him in the  future. 
Charlie  Bombaci 
SPECIES  LIST 
Pied-billed  Grebe 
Great  Blue Heron 
Green  Heron 
Turkey  Vulture 
Canada  Goose 
Trumpeter  Swan 
Wood  Duck 
Mallard 
Osprey 
Bald  Eagle 
Red-tailed  Hawk 
American  Kestrel 
Wild  Turkey 
Common  Moorhen 
SANDHILL  CRANE 
Killdeer 
Lesser  Yellowlegs 
Spotted  Sandpiper 
Forster’s  Tern 
Rock  Pigeon 
Mourning  Dove 
Yellow-billed  Cuckoo 
Chimney  Swift 
Ruby-throated  Hummingbird 
Belted  Kingfisher 
Red-headed  Woodpecker 
Red-bellied  Woodpecker 
Downy  Woodpecker 
Northern  Flicker 
Pileated  Woodpecker 
Eastern  Wood-Pewee 
Acadian  Flycatcher 
Willow  Flycatcher 
Eastern  Phoebe 
Eastern  Kingbird 
Warbling  Vireo 
Red-eyed  Vireo 
Blue  Jay 
American  Crow 
Horned  Lark 
Tree  Swallow 
Northern  Rough-winged Swallow 
Barn  Swallow 
Carolina  Chickadee 
Tufted  Titmouse 
White-breasted  Nuthatch 
Blue-gray  Gnatcatcher 
Eastern  Bluebird 
Wood  Thrush 
American  Robin 
Gray  Catbird 
Brown  Thrasher 
European  Starling 
Cedar  Waxwing 
Yellow  Warbler 
Prothonotary  Warbler 
Common  Yellowthroat 
Eastern  Towhee 
Chipping  Sparrow 
Field  Sparrow 
Savannah  Sparrow 
Grasshopper  Sparrow 
Song  Sparrow 
Northern  Cardinal 
Indigo  Bunting 
Dickcissel 
Bobolink 
Red-winged  Blackbird 
Eastern  Meadowlark 
Common  Grackle 
Brown-headed  Cowbird 
Baltimore  Oriole 
House  Finch 
American  Goldfinch 
House  Sparrow

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