Ohio to Wisconsin

Wednesday morning –

Dawn chorus started while the sky was still dark. Black throated Green Warblers and Red breasted Nuthatches added their voices to the early morning avian songs. I wanted to return to Ottawa NWR for early morning birding. Skies were hazy and overcast when I arrived. I think I was the first person on the pond loop trail that morning. A pair of Wood Ducks flew up from a canal to a trailside tree. The male sat down on a big branch in the sun. A 2^nd pair joined them on a nearby branch. Quite a treat.

A Wood Thrush was singing from the deep woods. A hungry Ruby-crowned Kinglet hovered at the end of catkins to snip off the tasty tips, then sat quietly for a minute. Blackburnian Warbler, Least Flycatcher, Indigo Buntings, and Eastern Kingbird. A good start to the day.

My last birding stop in this area was at Metzger Marsh Wildlife Area. The causeway provided marsh species, and a Beaver crossing the road. Lake Erie had that wonderful ocean smell. A small forest at the end of the road is a true migrant trap. Warblers: Canada, Yellow, Magnolia, Black throated Green, Wilson’s, Nashville, and Chestnut-sided. Vireos, and Kinglets, too.

After a stop at the library in Oregon, Ohio, I headed south driving across Ohio and into Indiana. From the cool and windy shores of Lake Erie, I drove into a warm humid Mid-west afternoon. Bank thermometers read 85 and 90 F. The air was dusty and hazy. Maumee River is brown and muddy, and has the flooding receding look. This was a trip past small towns and big farms, beautiful old homes, and a magnificent old church. Fields are not planted yet, the brown earth is just being tilled. The first crop of dandelions has gone to seed leaving their fluffy seed heads to start the next generation of dandelions. Highways 6, 224, and 24.

I arrived in Kentland, Indiana, on the border with Illinois, just as a thunderstorm was breaking over the city. Much rain, thunder-boomers, and a bit of lightning. A good place to stop for the night.

Thursday - Indiana is divided unevenly by the Central Time zone. It seemed like I had an extra hour this morning for birds. Dawn chorus came in waves starting around 5 am. First the blackbirds for 15 mins, they stopped to allow the Robins, Cardinals, and Sparrows to have their say. Crows were last, and had the least amount of time.

72 F at 6 am

North of the small town of Morocco I found an entrance to the Willow Slough Nature Preserve. The forest was damp from last night’s rain, the gravel road was OK, and the mosquitoes were hungry. I walked along an old road bed thru the forest to an open meadow. Common Yellowthroats and Yellow Warblers were singing. 17 species for the morning’s efforts.

Continuing west into Illinois I drove past more fields and farms and small towns. At one intersection, Hwy 52 W was going north, and Hwy 45 S was going west. Illinois has turned the compass around. There seem to be multiple road naming conventions in use. My paper highway maps use the US hwy, state hwy, county hwy system. Road signs at intersections and the GPS use a different system of 4-digit numbers combined with N, S, E, or W.

The biomass of Red-winged Blackbirds is astonishing. They are everywhere !! But where are the Meadowlarks ? Plenty of dead raccoons on the highway edges, Turkey Vultures come and eat.

Following a report (and directions) from ebird, I went looking for county road 7. Drove around quite a bit and finally found road 600 N. Eventually I was on the correct road and found the place where Mackinaw River crosses road 2300 E. And the birding was good, 27 species at mid-day. Eastern Meadowlarks showed up, as did an Indigo Bunting, a Red-headed Woodpecker, and I heard a Summer Tanager. I was impressed with this area.

Its 1 pm, time to head north. I arrived in Madison, WI during the height of evening commuting time. Ugh, traffic.

Helen’s neighborhood is so pretty with all the flowering trees and multi-colored tulips in the front yards.