Aimee Phillips is an amateur photographer and a volunteer with the Summit County Metro Parks and the Mustill Store. In tune with nature, she enjoys bird watching and capturing the world and creatures around her.
In the tradition of The Twilight Zone, imagine if you will…a bird that weighs 3.4 ounces, the same as your carry-on liquid; a bird about the size of the average maple leaf with wings spread. Now imagine that tiny, feathered creature embarking on a flight of approximately 4,500 miles, stretching from the Andes Mountains in central South America, over the Gulf of Mexico, up through the United States, and into Canada. Every spring and fall the Blackburnian Warbler makes this trek. The longest documented life of a Blackburnian is eight years, meaning this guy could feasibly have flown over 70,000 miles. Incredibly, it is thought that they fly primarily at night and alone, rather than in formation as geese or other waterfowl do for protection and energy efficiency. The Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO), an Ohio organization, uses mist nets to capture, color band, and release birds. Plastic color bands allow researchers to track local movements by sight. Some species also receive tiny radio transmitters to track, study, and crack some of the longer distance migratory mysteries. When the all-important winds blow favorably, it is not uncommon for weather radar to pick up a “storm” of thousands of birds all coming in at once. Of the 54 warbler species found in North America, 37 have been documented in Ohio. Although I will chase almost any bird, these tiny warblers have become a personal favorite. Many males sport brilliant and colorful breeding plumages in spring. Fortunately for me, Ohio has some of the best peak migration viewing in the United States, drawing people from all over the world.
It wasn’t until about five years ago that I became a full-fledged (pardon the pun) birder, building on my previous decade of backyard experience. One spring, I was discussing my hobby with a friend, who, unbeknownst to me, was also a birder. She invited me to a hot spot near downtown Cleveland, introducing me to the Ohio Lake Erie Birding Trail system which consists of nearly 90 mapped locations along the coast of Lake Erie. I purchased the guidebook soon after and am still discovering all the sites. As I crossed paths with other birders (recognizable by the binoculars), it became clear that northwestern Ohio is the place to go. About two hours west of Cuyahoga Falls, past Sandusky and Port Clinton is an incredible stretch of birding: Magee Marsh, Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge (ONWR), Metzger Marsh, Howard Marsh and Maumee Bay in what was once called the Great Black Swamp.
Formed by the Wisconsin Glacier, the Great Black Swamp covered 1,500 square miles of marsh, swamp, mud, mosquitoes, dense trees, and the basic stuff of nightmares. Native Americans avoided the bulk of the area because it was too easy to get lost in the vegetation or stuck in the mud. Determined American settlers, however, saw potential. They cut trees, dug irrigation, and tried to farm. In 1903, John Magee acquired 2,700 acres for this purpose but after several fruitless years of fighting Lake Erie waters, he decided the land was better suited to waterfowl hunting and muskrat trapping. Even with all the changes to the land in the last century, it isn’t difficult to see the dilemma he faced. Along Route 2, the terrain switches from city pavement to lush marsh to farm fields flooded over. The return of bald eagles to the area is easily visible by the enormous nests, called “aeries.” Great blue heron and great egret dot the roadside ditches, hunting for morsels. It is as though you have been transported to another world.
Today, sections of these lands have been sold or donated and are managed by the Division of Wildlife and ONWR. Returning the land to its former wetland status provides multiple benefits, such as natural filtration for Lake Erie, habitat for wildlife, and reengagement of natural ecosystems. Magee Marsh’s unique boardwalk winds through a jungle of brush, elevated to provide eye-level viewing of birds in their environment. I’ve met people from Germany, England, and Canada all there to capture the diversity of warblers, vireos, kinglets, thrushes, flycatchers, rails, and so many more. Next door, ONWR offers a ten-mile wildlife drive in addition to a couple of trails near its welcome center. The drive has limited public access, but is open daily during the migration rush with stretches of wide-open wetlands inviting shorebirds, waterfowl, eagles, owls, swans, herons, sandhill cranes, egrets, and even white pelicans.
One could easily spend several days camping or staying nearby to fully appreciate all the territory has to offer. I eagerly make the drive several times each spring. The BSBO, located on the road to Magee Marsh, annually hosts “The Biggest Week” in American Birding, a week toward the end of April or beginning of May when they guesstimate the most favorable conditions for birding. As with everything, COVID-19 changed the 2020 season. The Biggest Week was canceled and Magee Marsh was forced to close because there was no easy way to socially distance. However, COVID-19 provided more time for birding, which it turns out is the perfect outdoor, socially responsible activity. The ONWR drive remained open along with the other parks nearby, as did many of my other haunts across Lake Erie, Akron and Cuyahoga Falls. In April and May I drove 3,500 miles and put over 430,000 steps on my Fitbit. Every year I start a new list of birds “seen,” which is now up over 170 species (mostly in Ohio), including that delightful black, white, and neon orange Blackburnian warbler. I am in awe of his flight. Thankfully, there are many places in Ohio to seek him out.
For more information about these places, the guidebook, or migration, please check out: The Black Swamp Bird Observatory, Magee Marsh, Friends of Magee Marsh, Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, Friends of Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge, The Lake Erie Birding Trail Guidebook, and Kenn Kaufman’s A Season on the Wind.
