Hello!
As a follow up to my post of Saturday, Oct. 21st, I have returned the past 3
days to bird the pet trail at this park just north of Columbus to observe any
trends or changes in species/quantities. Of special note was last evening
when I would observe anywhere from 2 to 16 Turkey Vultures flying south at
fairly low altitudes as I walked along the trail. Eventually, I was in the
back loop of the trail towards dusk observing various sparrow species on the
ground when I happened to look up and behind me to see a huge kettle of Turkey
Vultures gliding in a somewhat circular fashion within a fairly tight "ball"
at a fairly low altitude. At one point, the setting sun peeked through a
break in the clouds to cast a golden hue on the outer edges of some of the wing
feathers of the vultures. It truly was an awesome sight! I lost count at 132
before the flock drifted off to the north and my best conservative estimate
of the total flock size was about 150-160. I did have my "point and shoot"
digital camera with me and took a few somewhat crude photos if anyone is
interested in seeing them (e-mail me privately).
Also, I observed the first Fox Sparrows of the season last evening and
tonight. Field Sparrow numbers have steadily declined, whereas White-Throated
Sparrows consistently were the dominant species. My observations for the three
respective evenings were as follows:
Eastern Phoebe 0-1-0
Hermit Thrush 5-4-1
Ruby-Crowned Kinglet 1-0-2
Winter Wren 0-1-0
Brown Creeper 0-1-0
Fox Sparrow 0-8-4 (most seen in the back loop)
Yellow-Rumped Warbler 50+, ~30, ~30
Barred Owl 0-1-0
Chipping Sparrow 0-1-0
White-Crowned Sparrow 2 (juv)-1 (adult)-0 (all near back loop)
White-Throated Sparrow 75+, 100+, 75+
Swamp Sparrow 5-1-1
Field Sparrow 11-6-0
Song Sparrow 8-14-9
Eastern Towhee 8-6-6
Eastern Bluebird 1-0-0
Northern Mockingbird 0-0-1 (by the pond)
Carolina Wren 2-5-4
Pied-Billed Grebe 0-1-1
Red-Winged Blackbird 2-0-18 (at the pond)
Northern Flicker 0-5-4
Cedar Waxwing 0-5-14
American Goldfinch 7-0-0
American Crow 0-12-1
Coopers Hawk 1-0-0
Red-Tailed Hawk 0-1-1
Little Brown Bat 0-0-1 (I know it's technically a mammal : ) )
Cardinals, Downies, Red-Bellieds, Chickadees, Titmice, Blue Jays, Starlings,
House Finch, Mourning Doves, Nuthatches (White-Breasted), Robins +, and GB
Heron
The White-Throated Sparrows have been chowing down predominantly on
Honeysuckle berries whereas the Yellow-Rumped Warblers have been sucking down Poison
Ivy berries. Again, I observed a Hermit Thrush last evening fluttering in
mid-air while he/she would pull wild grapes off of the vines. It always
interesting to observe the various traits/characteristics of the different species.
Directions to Highbanks are at _www.metroparks.net_
(http://www.metroparks.net) .
Rob Lowry
Powell, Ohio
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