Today Linda and I headed north to look for grassland birds. We started in
Rick Counts favorite area along the Wyandot-Hardin County Line with very
good results. We located 40+ Dickcissels and about 50+ Bobolinks, two of our
primary targets for the day. They were especially abundant along Jackson Tp
Road 50 between Hardin County Road 205 and 215. It was an in your face
sing-off with birds landing close enough to us that if we sneezed they would
have been wet. Jackson Tp Road 64 in Wyandot County between C215 and C82
also held a multitude of Dickcissels that put on quite a show for us. The
fields along this stretch also yielded 3 Henslow's Sparrows, one of which gave
us the best views I have ever had of the species; plus Savannah,
Grasshopper, Field, and Song Sparrows; and a lone Vesper Sparrow. Eastern Meadowlarks
and Horned Larks were abundant in most areas.
There is a large wooded tract on Jackson Tp Road 64 that yielded 4
Red-headed Woodpeckers, all adults, who chase each other around the edges and one
landed at the edge of the road directly in front of the car. In the sunlight
this individual looked incredibly bright and very striking.
We could see the Hardin Wetlands which are now off limits per the owner's
request. A Sora and a Common Moorhen were calling from the wetland. I think
they were heckling us since we could not get closer to look for them.
Common Yellowthroats and Yellow Warblers were present in numbers and were
constantly flitting around us. This was a good morning to search for
grassland birds as they were active and in good numbers.
We broke for lunch and then headed south to Killdeer Plains Wildlife Area.
The horse flies are getting active and numerous, thank you egg farms. One
of our first sightings at Killdeer were adult Bald Eagles soaring and then
landing in a dead tree along T108. Other than the Bald Eagles and a sole
American Kestrel we didn't see another bird of prey all day except for 2 later
at Big Island. Strange not to encounter even one Red-tailed Hawk. We
stopped at Pond 3 where we found the Trumpeter Swans and their cygnets, Wood
Ducks with ducklings, Pied-billed Grebe and a Hooded Merganser hen. Cruising
the roads in the wildlife area we found many Yellow Warblers, Common
Yellowthroats, Willow Flycatchers, Wood Pewees, a surprise was an American
Woodcock in the field south of the Sportsmen's Service Center. The numbers of
Dickcissels, and Grasshopper Sparrows were low and we didn't see any Bobolinks
at Killdeer today. Most of the other expected species were present such as
Indigo Buntings etc.
With time running out we made a quick run to Big Island Wildlife Area. We
arrived at Herr Road where we spotted two adult Bald Eagles perched in the
dead trees along the eastern side of the small pond. The only other bird
spotted here was a Wood Duck hen trailing a large group of ducklings, the
economics of egg dumping, and loads of Red-winged Blackirds. At the observation
deck we located a Pied-billed Grebe with its clutch and a few Grasshopper
Sparrows. Otherwise it was fairly quiet there. We next checked out the
fields along Espyville Road. Lots of Tree Swallows and a few Common
Yellowthroats and Yellow Warblers but sans anything else to write home about. We
finished along Prospect-LaRue Road. The water level is high which limits the
potential for shorebirds. There was no sign of waders and little else to get
excited about. Before they modified the area over the last few years this
area was often much better for rails and Least Bitterns.
Charlie Bombaci
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