Mastodawn

Daniel 🐅🏔May 10, 2024

(Insert guy falling back in chair meme) #Warblerpalooza #BirdingInOhio #birds

Spent the afternoon in the marshes, got some more good new species including my lifer Common Terns! I think I got a couple great Trumpeter Swan photos as well

Just ate my Lifer Pie at Blackberry Corner, apparently a big birder tradition here 🥰

#BirdingInOhio #birds

The morning rain has cleared and we are headed to the Magee Marsh Boardwalk once again to see if the weather encouraged some birds to hang out #BirdingInOhio #birds

I wonder how many millions of dollars in optics are on this boardwalk at one time #BirdingInOhio #birds

Oh yeah, it’s Big Day!! Go look at birds and log your lists with eBird! #birds #birding

Well… more like Bored Walk so far #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Everyone’s just taking pictures of turtles. Not much in the way of visible birds #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Large groups of non-birders just congregating to talk because there’s nothing to look at #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Birds are slow which is fine. A lot of people is fine when they’re being polite and sharing space, good birder etiquette etc. The combo of slow birds and rude, aggressive people today is not a fun one #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Whew. The afternoon pass made up for it big time. FIFTEEN warbler species; picked up Ovenbird and my lifer Canada Warbler 😍

Seems like most of the aggressive folks left at lunchtime #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Lifer American Black Duck on a blustery day at Howard Marsh. All the ducks were wayyyyyy in the middle of the huge pond area, of course. Picked up a few new species for the trip, though #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

#LiferDance #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Oh yeah I *forgot* a lifer from the end of the walk at Magee this morning bc I was in such a foul mood.

Philadelphia Vireo!!

Just met Kimberly freakin KAUFMAN #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Looks like eBird’s new server setup is not handling the traffic from Big Day very well #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

#LiferDance #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Lifer Mourning Warbler!!

Lifer Black Terns!!! #LiferDance #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

Sunniest and warmest day by far but it was a great one and still way nicer than back down South

Added a Blackpoll Warbler back at Magee Marsh in the afternoon. We gotta be close to 20 warbler species for the trip now which is crazy.

Tried for some birds at the beach but too many people by the time we got there and the kids were chasing the gulls off right as we were starting to scan them. Might try tomorrow morning; Monday should be much quieter

Up to 111 species in Ohio and 129 for the trip!!

#ProthonotaryWarbler #BirdingInOhio #birds #birding

hey, whatcha lookin' at?

“Just another Bald Eagle”

Wild what comes out of your mouth during a birding festival 😅

Getting into the woods a bit today and we found ALL the mosquitoes

Some good woodland bird species we didn’t have yet though!

Lifer Olive-sided Flycatcher!

Daniel 🐅🏔

We’ve added Hooded and Blue-winged today; up to 24 warbler species. About the last one we could count on would be a Northern Waterthrush. Cerulean would be amazing but much rarer

Spent the afternoon at Oak Openings Park, which is absolutely incredible. Could spend a year exploring this one park.

Headed to what might be our last visit to Magee Marsh. Tomorrow’s weather isn’t looking great

Watching the Woodcock twilight dance for the first time 🥰😭🥹❤️

Magee Marsh this afternoon had the highest number of warblers yet and a couple of primo eye-level photo ops. No new species but some wonderful looks at some we’d only gotten glances of

Well the rain has held off and we’re scrambling for a few more birds before it rolls in this afternoon

What might Magee Marsh have in store for us this morning?

Picked up a Yellow Billed Cuckoo at Magee, a new bird for the trip and Ohio bird number 132 for me!

Ohio is now my 3rd highest state for species, behind Louisiana (263) and Texas (169)

One more round on the Wildlife Drive at the Ottowa NWR and we added Sedge Wrens and a brief look at an American Bittern!!

It looks like that’s going to be it for our major Ohio birding. What a wonderful five days. We are both completely exhausted, but it’s always worth it.

Safe to say my mom and I are each other’s favorite birding partners 🥰