Folks who write to this forum, or write for Ohio bird publications, 
often have valuable information about finding birds. Sometimes the 
information may be personal--you may want to share with a friend the 
presence of nesting egrets or hummingbirds--or more often you may have 
some valuable experience of the birdlife worth sharing with birders in a 
particular location.
        One thing we're missing is accounts of the birdlife of larger areas as 
well as some smaller productive habitats. How much do we know about the 
birdlife of the state parks, forests, lakes? If you know a particular 
area pretty well, have you written it up for others? A well-described 
area will attract observers, and records. I'm not suggesting you share 
owl nesting sights or anything like that, but your knowledge of the 
habitats in an area that you can write up as potential
spots for observing birds. Sure, we occasionally get reports of odd
waterfowl at Dogface lake, but does anyone even know about Mudpocket Pond?
        More than interesting reports of birds, other birders need to know 
about promising locales and habitats that might be close by, but not 
always well covered by observers. Surely there must be a bend in the 
local river that has an island or a reed patch, an obscure segment of a 
state park especially attractive to birds, or a remote patch of really 
old trees...  Write-ups on such potentially productive spots are truly 
gold for avid birders, and it would not be all that frightening to share 
them with others....
        Just as an example, here is a write-up I did for the Wilds--famous 
for winter raptors among other things--I wrote some years ago, and which 
I didn't finish because I don't know it well enough, but you can get the 
idea:
Notes on “Driving Guide to Birding the Wilds”
        Take I-70 to Zanesville, then the marked exit to The Wilds (SR 146 
east). After about 17 mi, the countryside will abruptly open up and 
you’ll see a big sign for The Wilds on the right. Turn here, on Zion 
Ridge Rd. Mostly birding by car from here.
        You’ll pass through big open country here, with lots of potential. The 
usual raptor-finding criteria apply: eagles may be soaring high on a 
sunny day, and most raptors will be perched if it’s raining, etc. 
Perches are at a premium: check dead trees on wooded margins, utility 
poles, hay bales, fence posts. Scott Road, though it appears on the map, 
is not open to the public, and is almost always gated.
        When Zion Ridge ends at SR 284, take a left. Before long you’ll see 
another big Wilds sign on the left; this is International Road. It has 
been the most fruitful stretch for golden eagles, and the prairie falcon 
has been seen here on a number of occasions. Big vistas, worth frequent 
stops to scan. The HQ of The Wilds can be reached by taking a dirt road 
about halfway along this route if the gate’s open. There is more habitat 
here, plus views of some of the exotic animals—-giraffes, elks, horses, 
etc.
        International Rd descends into a wooded area before it ends at SR 340. 
This is a birdy spot, with lots of different habitats visible, but not 
for open-country raptors. As of now (late Nov), SR 340 is closed just a 
quarter mile to the right—which is the direction you’d want to go—for 
what looks like culvert repairs. If it is closed when you go, it would 
be best to turn around, retrace your course, and check International 
Road again.
        When you get back to SR 284, take a left. You’ll go through some 
marginal countryside, and eventually intersect with SR 340 (on the other 
side of the closed section). Turn left onto 340, and proceed through 
some more big open country with lots of altitudinal changes, studded 
with lakes. As at all spots, proceed carefully, scan all perches, look 
for raptors in flight, check especially for harriers/rough-legs 
harassing another raptor, and birds soaring very high.
        Head down past the lakes and open country into some woods, and look for 
a dirt road heading uphill on the right. [If the 340 road repairs are 
done, this is not far to the right from the International Rd terminus. 
[Take this up into open country again. At the next intersection, Prouty 
Rd (unsigned), go the short distances both right and left (both are 
blocked off within a quarter mile) for prospects, especially perches on 
hay bales. Return to the intersection, continue on the original dirt 
road, and explore it and the next road both left and right. Then retrace 
your route back to paved 340, turn left, and go to SR 284 again.
        Turn left on 284 and go maybe half a mile to Rural Dale Rd on the left 
(you’ll pass Rural Dale turn to the right along the way), and turn. Bird 
Rural Dale. The first left will be the rest of Prouty Rd that had been 
blocked off to you before; check this out, especially the hay bales and 
any dead trees. Return to Rural Dale and check out other passable side 
roads, always returning to Rural Dale, for the next 2-3 miles. The hay 
bales and these side roads have been productive for the prairie falcon.
        Return to 284, and return to any of the previous areas; the birds move 
around constantly, and any place you’ve found empty once could be 
productive on a subsequent visit. This route covers all the sites where 
golden eagles and the prairie falcon have been seen over the past year. 
  If you want to get there from Toledo and back in the same day, you 
will have limited time in a short winter’s day, so you may not be able 
to visit all areas, and then only once.	
         Someone more familiar with the area could write a much better account, 
but this is an example of the kind of thing needed.
Bill Whan

	

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