Adams County Christmas Bird Count

With the coming of winter in Adams County, there are a few annual events you can rely on.  Piercing cold temps, slick roads, wet boots, sore throats, taxes and my favorite, the Adams County Christmas Bird Count (CBC) 

Cold day in Adams County, Ohio

This is not an event where we count Christmas birds (there is no such thing).  Instead, groups of participants gather in territories to count all birds seen or heard, like cedar waxwings, gold-crowned kinglets and Wilson's snipe (there is such a thing).  Much of the Edge of Appalachia Preserve (EOA) is within the "circle" or countable area which is a 15 mile radius centering at the courthouse in West Union, Ohio.


Typical view when driving around EOA searching for wintering birds

Many of the birds utilizing Ohio in the winter are not the same birds you might see in the summer.  Many of our resident birds leave, following food sources to the south, and birds you see in the winter may have come from the north for the same reasons.  The Audubon Society wanted to keep track of the numbers of wintering birds species and individuals in every state in the winter. So they chose the count to take place in the weeks leading up to, or just past Christmas.

Purple finch, a winter visiting species eating sunflower seeds from a very nice guy's feeder!

As compiler, I take all the numbers of individual birds and species each group counts in their pre-determined territories, and combine them for the Audubon Society who has been keeping this data for 118 years.  Adams County has been a part of the Christmas Bird Count for at least 40 years.

CBC teams count all birds encountered, even if large flocks fly by like these Canada geese

This year, on December 16, 2017, the groups in all 11 territories found a total of 79 species and 9734 individuals.  Not bad for the small number of 23 folks that came out to count that day.

The territory around the preserve (which is a small portion of the entire circle) usually finds close to 50 species of birds and close to 900 individuals on average that count day.  This year, the preserve territory produced 53 species and 702 individuals.  With a lot of forest in this territory, we feel obligated to find difficult wintering forest species like hermit thrush, red-breasted nuthatch, yellow-bellied sapsucker, brown creeper and ruffed grouse.  Only the latter was not found this year, and interestingly has not been counted on our CBC for at least 6 years.  A trend that CBC data can capture in its records.

CBC is a nice way to get out and enjoy some of our more common resident birds like this Downy Woodpecker.



Fox sparrow, another winter visitor is sometimes hard to find on the day of the count. 4 were found this year.

Dark-eyed Junco, another winter visitor will frequent feeders if you have them

Here is the tally for all birds found on December 16, 2017. Snow Goose 1

Canada Goose 837

Wood Duck 9

Gadwall 9   record high number

American Black Duck 66

Mallard 616   record high number

Green-winged Teal 3

Ring-necked Duck 3

Lesser Scaup 285   record high number

Bufflehead 12

Hooded Merganser 46

Wild Turkey 18

Pied-billed Grebe 1

Great Blue Heron 8

Black Vulture 173

Turkey Vulture 15

Northern Harrier 5

Sharp-shinned Hawk 3

Cooper's Hawk 5

Bald Eagle 6

Red-shouldered Hawk 6

Red-tailed Hawk 47

American Coot 1

Sandhill Crane 3 Second time found during Adams Co. CBC

Killdeer 5

Ring-billed Gull 2

Rock Pigeon 274

Mourning Dove 405

Eastern Screech-Owl 10

Great Horned Owl 5

Barred Owl 5

Belted Kingfisher 7

Red-headed Woodpecker 7

Red-bellied Woodpecker 50

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 3

Downy Woodpecker 47

Hairy Woodpecker 17

Northern Flicker 19

Pileated Woodpecker 16

American Kestrel 65

Eastern Phoebe 3

Blue Jay 214

American Crow 395

Horned Lark 49

Carolina Chickadee 95

Tufted Titmouse 105

Red-breasted Nuthatch 3

White-breasted Nuthatch 87

Brown Creeper 4

Winter Wren 3

Carolina Wren 41

Golden-crowned Kinglet 18

Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1

Eastern Bluebird 224

Hermit Thrush 1

American Robin 976

Brown Thrasher 3

Northern Mockingbird 16

European Starling 2998

Cedar Waxwing 52

Yellow-rumped Warbler 85

American Tree Sparrow 36

Field Sparrow 51

Fox Sparrow 4

Dark-eyed Junco (Slatecolored) 171

White-crowned Sparrow 35

White-throated Sparrow 92

Song Sparrow 99

Swamp Sparrow 5

Eastern Towhee 9

Northern Cardinal 248

Red-winged Blackbird 20

Eastern Meadowlark 39

Common Grackle 49

Brown-headed Cowbird 55

House Finch 48

Purple Finch 15

American Goldfinch 136

House Sparrow 134

Total Individuals 9734

Total Species Reported 79

Yellow-bellied sapsucker is the woodpecker that leaves lines of holes on trees. Photo by Robyn Wright-Strauss

White-breasted nuthatch, a resident bird commonly hears in the forest sounding like a nasally Long Islander saying "Hank, Hank, Hank'. Photo by Robyn Wright-Strauss.

Some notable species found this year were Sandhill cranes, which have only been counted 1 other time on count day,  a snow goose which has only been found 3 years, a ruby-crowned kinglet was found for the 10^th time and 3 Eastern phoebe’s were counted which can be difficult here in the winter.

 Bald eagles seem to be getting more and more frequent as we tied the record high with 6.  Along with brown thrashers which also had a tie with the record high of 3.  The only record high numbers of individuals this year were Mallards at 616, Gadwall at 9 and 285 Lesser Scaup.

A very far away shot of a bald eagle. 6 were found on count day.

Many thanks to all who participate, and if you are looking for a fun adventure next winter, join your local CBC next year.  Info can be found at www.christmasbirdcount.org

Posted by: Mark Zloba

2018 Advanced Naturalist Workshops

Registration will open on Feb. 1, 2018 for the 14th series of the Edge of Appalachia's Advanced Naturalist Workshops. There is a fantastic line-up of topics and experts this year! More information can be found here.

Allegheny Woodrat Project 2017

This fall, Cincinnati Museum Center (CMC) and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) are assisting the Ohio Division of Wildlife (ODOW) in an effort to conserve and protect the Allegheny woodrat, Neotoma magister. 

Sub-adult male Allegheny woodrat caught in southern portion of Edge of Appalachia Preserve  Photo by: Rich McCarty

Last year, a blog post was written here, introducing our efforts to search for new woodrat sites on the Edge of Appalachia Preserve and neighboring properties. We mapped all new sites, recorded fresh Allegheny woodrat activity and collected raccoon scat.  The raccoon is known to be a carrier of a roundworm that, if ingested by woodrats, can wipe out entire populations.  These "packrats" collect many things, including raccoon scat, to store in their middens, and if so, could contaminate not only themselves, but any other rat in the area.  The removal of said scat could prove paramount in protecting this species from extirpation.  This entire project is headed by biologists Al LeCount and Cheryl Mollohan. 

Ideal habitat or Allegheny woodrat.  Peebles dolostone cliffs jetting out of hillside with many cracks and tunnels.  Photo by: Robyn Wright Strauss

This year, CMC and TNC staff along with assistants Laura Hughes and Emily Garnich, have teamed up with these mammal biologists to capture as many Allegheny woodrats as possible in all known active sites in southern Adams County.  Once captured, small tissue samples are collected from the animal's ear, minor processing occurs, and the animal is released.  These curious and I’d have to say adorable rodents are lured into live traps with apples, rodent nutrition blocks and bedding. 

Live traps set in "cave" of Peebles dolostone cliffs

The curiosity of these "packrats" make them pretty easy to catch.  Photo by Mark Zloba

Allegheny woodrats kept satisfied with apple slices, nutrition block and bedding.  Photo by Mark Zloba

Allegheny woodrats are handled gently in soft cones for processing age, weight, sex etc.  Photo by Rich McCarty

Once all captures from all known sites are processed, the collected samples will be sent to CMC curator of zoology, Heather Farrington, for DNA analysis.  Our goal is to learn population size and health of this disappearing mammal. 

Captured woodrats are released in same location they were caught.

It may be the rarest mammal in Ohio, but more importantly, this species is imperiled throughout its range of the Appalachian region of Eastern North America.  ODOW recognizes this species as endangered and understands the possibility of the Allegheny woodrat becoming non-existent in Ohio.  So, they have joined the effort to help protect and study Allegheny woodrats.  Along with supporting this genetic project, ODOW has started distributing harmless medicinal baits that will de-worm any animal that eats it.  The theory is,  raccoons will find the bait, eat it, and the roundworm will die before woodrats collect any scat and bring it back to their middens.

Once released, these personable rats will sometimes pose for a few pictures.  Photo by Robyn Wright Strauss

Then they scurry off to hide, sometimes in a poor hiding spot.  Photo by Mark Zloba

More information to come on this large conservation project.  Many woodrats have been captured to date, and hopefully many more will be captured this fall to obtain the best genetic data possible.  The Edge of Appalachia Preserve and surrounding properties are the last stronghold of this animal in Ohio and we would like to thank ODOW, their biologists, assistants on this endeavor to better understand the Allegheny woodrat and hopefully save it from extirpation.

Enjoy these short videos of the releasing of the woodrats.  If you turn up the volume on the first video, you might hear the thumping sound this female woodrat is making with her feet to scare us away.  If you watch carefully, she continuously and quickly thumps her feet.

Posted by Mark Zloba

Alien invasion?

This is the week of the 2017 solar eclipse, and I have been staring up into the sky, a lot. With all the celestial commentating the past week, I have been thinking more about life in outer space, and the possibilities of that life reaching earth.  What does this have to do with the preserve??  Well, we find many things on the preserve that remind me of, and I cannot say 100% did not come from outer space.  ManySci-fi movies eerily portray alien creatures that look very similar to things we find creeping around the preserve.  Here are a few videos from our lab (turning up your volume might make this theory more convincible)  that star creatures that could possibly be from another world......I'm just saying.

"They" say this is a mantidfly, Climaciella brunnea, a paper wasp mimic that has an alien head and preying mantis arms.  It mimics paper wasps because they lay their eggs on wasp larva in the nests.  I'm pretty sure I've seen this creature in a black and white sci-fi movie when I was 10.

Maybe the comedians of SNL weren't joking when they portrayed aliens as coneheads.  There are coneheads (katydids) out right now at night buzzing in fields.  This Neoconocephalus retusus is Awfully alien-like I'd say.

This video of a hairy slitmouth snail, Stenotrema hirsutum, looks like a creature emerging from a rock on the dark side of the moon.

Are these clam shrimps (Cyzicus sp.?) found in a tire rut, or what alien eggs look like?  I'm not sure.  The eggs of clam shrimps can lay dormant withstanding drought, freeze and pressure for several years.  Sounds astronomical to me.

Very tribble-like (if you watched Star Trek from the 1960's), this moth caterpillar seems to have a protective fuzzy covering.  A stellar coincidence that Hollywood would know this??

On earth we call these black fly larva, Simuliidae, but to me this video looks like some sort of transedental communication occurrence.

This extraterrestrial looking caterpillar is known as the monkey slug, Phoebtron pithecium.  Its slug-like movement and stinging hairs remind me of a creature that would have chased astronauts in the old show Space Patrol.  Discalimer:  Unlike the television shows from the 1950's,  this video may contain language unsuitable for younger viewers.  Not meant to offend, but intended to illustrate the supernatural affect these creatures have on folks!

To me, the similarities are uncanny.  But when I was younger my mother always said I should be an astronaut, or astronomer..... or maybe she just said I was taking up space.....I can't remember.  Either way, this unknown, ethereal world we live in already contains sci-fi creatures waiting to be explored.

Posted by Mark Zloba

Spring birding at the Edge

Each year, multiple bird surveys are conducted on the Edge of Appalachia Preserve. Most of these occur in the spring as many birds are on the move.  Moving because they are leaving their winter grounds, or returning to their breeding grounds.   As an event, the anticipation of  returning migratory birds never seems to get old.  Like clockwork, many birds will arrive to their breeding grounds almost on the same date they arrived the year before.  If you know the dates a specific species returns, and watch weather patterns, one could almost predict the day this species will make landfall to the same habitat it perched the year before.

For example, the hard to find Henslow's sparrow returns each year around May 1st, to old farm fields that look as if they have not been mowed in a few years.  To find them you would have to listen for their quick song in the fields which sounds like someone is saying "SLIP" real fast.

Henslow's sparrow, Ammodramus henslowii

But not all birds we find in the spring are breeding birds.  Many people find joy in the hunt to see a new bird.  And spring is one of the best times to see birds that do not breed in your area, and pass through to their own breeding grounds to the north.  Birds like this palm warbler are found only for a couple weeks in the beginning of May at the Edge. And the Black-throated green warbler start moving through southern Ohio in mid-April.  But neither bird sticks around to breed.
  

Palm warbler,  Setophaga palmarum

 

Black-throated green warbler, Setophaga virens

On the Edge, we wait all winter for some of our migratory birds to return.  If you know the right habitats and learn some of their songs, you can find many breeding and non-breeding birds of the preserve in just one day.  Here is a look at a few, and where to find them.

In April, the sweet whistling song of the rose-breasted grosbeak can be heard deep in the woods, and in yards with feeders.  Although not until discovered recently, this now is one of the preserves breeding migratory birds.  Not a common breeder in southern Ohio, it can be found in some local populations.  Most of them heard or seen in Ohio during April and May are moving north.

Rose-breasted grosbeak, Pheucticus ludovicianus

One of the most common breeding warblers found in Ohio is the common yellowthroat.  It takes advantage of old fields, wet ditches and floodplains .  If you learn the easy to recognize song of this bird, you will realize how common they are.

Common yellowthroat, Geothlypis trichas

If one bird would represent the Edge of Appalachia Preserve in springtime, it would have to be the prairie warbler.  This succession loving brush bird is found anywhere on the preserve where Red Cedars grow.  Which is almost anywhere on the preserve.

Prairie warbler, Setophaga discolor

A breath taking breeding bird in Ohio's forests is the scarlet tanager.  If you pay  attention deep in the forest, you might get lucky enough to see the rich colors of this red and black bird. 

Scarlet tanager, Piranga olivacea

Some bird species stick around all winter, but may look freshly painted in the spring because their breeding colors stand out.  This Eastern Bluebird  really stood out in a field of Butterweed.

Eastern bluebird, Sialia sialis

Since it is not a common breeding warbler on the preserve, the prothonotary warbler is an exciting find because it only nests in the floodplain forests along Ohio Brush Creek.  Only a few breeding territories are found each year on the preserve.  A fun way to survey them is by canoe.

Prothonotary warbler, Protonotaria citrea

Some of the non-breeders that pass through the preserve can best be found by listening for their songs.  Once you know their song, you know which part of which tall tree to search.  The black-throated blue warbler gives itself away by singing it's buzzy song which sounds like its saying "ZHHee, Zhhee, Zhee??"  The third part sounds as if its asking a question.

Black-throated blue warbler, Stenophaga caerulescens

Also along Ohio Brush Creek, or along roadside creeks, you might find a solitary sandpiper standing in the mud or rocks near the water.  If it doesn't fly away as soon as you see it, it might teeter-totter in place quickly.

Solitary sandpiper, Tringa solitaria

Every year, the preserve staff hunts and counts as many species as they can in a 24 hour period.  Up to 145 (averaging about 130) bird species have been counted in and around the Edge of Appalachia Preserve properties in a one day bird-a-thon.  That is a pretty good number considering almost 200 species have been recorded on or above the preserve, and at least 110 species breed here.  This preserve is rich in diverse habitats suitable for many bird species, including forest species that have declined across their ranges.  For a taste of a diverse birding experience, drive, look and listen along Waggoner Riffle Rd. and you might be surprised with what you find.

Posted by: Mark Zloba 

Eulett After Hours

The Spring 2017 series of Eulett After Hours programs are coming up soon! Check out the dates, times, and program descriptions on the 'public programs' page. Hope to see you then!

Fireflies: The flash season approaches

I have always found it a little embarrassing that, as a naturalist, I never knew the differences between the fireflies in Ohio.  After all, fireflies are one of the first animals people chase as children.  If you grew up in the Eastern United States, you certainly enjoyed fireflies.  But so few people could tell you much about these glowing critters and how to identify them.  They were simply these magical beetles flittering about on summer nights, and for most of us, that's all we needed to know.  Enjoying the spectacle is something everyone can appreciate.  BUT, if you ever wanted to know more, now you can.

Yellow-bellied Fireflies, Photinus scintillans, showing the typical firefly shape and color.  many look alike, but their flash gives clue to the species identification.

I have been waiting for years for a publication to come out describing the species and life histories of these incredibly interesting creatures.  And finally, the book has arrived.  A fascinating author and friend of the preserve, Lynn Faust, has put her years of firefly knowledge together in a long-awaited field guide.  Now the rest of us can figure out who is flashing in our own backyards and when and where are the best times to search.  The book is called "Firelies, Glow-worms, and Lightning Bugs". 

Great new firefly book available now.  See link below to purchase.

You might be surprised to find out that there is more than one species of firefly.  In fact, I learned many interesting things while spending a few days firefly chasing with Lynn, and reading her book.

Did you know??
1. Not all fireflies produce light as adults, but they can as larva.
2. Firefly flash rates, intensity and color differ between the species.
3. Firefly species are seasonal and some even flash only specific times of the night.
4. Some fireflies are cannibalistic and mimic the flash of other species to lure them in, and then eat them.
5. Many fireflies are light sensitive and city lights mimicking dawn and dusk have changed the distribution of species ranges.
6. Male fireflies flash to attract females, and sometimes they flash synchronously because they are all trying to be the first noticed.

Fireflies that flash have abdominal segments that act as "lanterns" to show light created by bioluminescence. 
Pictured is the Yellow-Bellied Firefly, Photinus scintillans.

It is extremely difficult to photograph the remarkable display of light.  This photo by John Howard captures 2 flash patterns.

There is so much to learn, and Lynn has packaged all this information into one easy to read book.  I can now pick a species in the book, read about its flash pattern, what time of night it flashes, what time of year, what habitat to look in and actually find that species in the field.  It really works!

There are some fireflies that you might find in Southern Ohio this winter and spring, even though it is not quite yet the flash season.  One species you can find from late fall through the winter is the Winter Firefly, Ellychnia corrusca.  It overwinters as an adult.  This species does not flash, but from info in Lynn's book, I learned to find them on the south side of large tree trunks on sunny winter days.   

Ellychnia corrusca, the winter firefly.

One of the first flashing fireflies in the spring should start communicating through glowing abdomens in mid April.  It is the Treetop Flasher, Pyractomena borealis.  This early season beetle flashes once every four seconds in the tops of trees before the leaves grow.  It's larva can be found pupating on large tree trunks in late winter. In late summer and fall, the larva is found on the forest floor eating snails.  Pictured below is one of these larva, whose head telescopes out to reach snails inside their shell.

Spring treetop flasher larva feeding on a Northern three-tooth snail (Triodopsis tridentata). Photo by Chris Bedel.

Once May comes, the flash season begins.  Besides the Spring treetop flashers, another firefly, this one from the cannibal genus called Photuris, begins to flash.  Fields around the preserve start to fill up with the quick flashes of the Spring 4-Flashers,  Photuris versicolor var. quadrifulgens.  These beetles appear to stutter as they flash 4 times.  By the first weeks of June, this species will disappear before other species begin flashing.

Fireflies in the genus Photuris (like these P. quadrifulgens) have long legs and large pronotums, usually with a black "anchor" mark.

By June, many more species begin to flash, some right before dark like the Little Grays,  Photinus marginellus, and some right at dark like the very common Big Dippers, Photinus pyralis.  This, in Southern Ohio, is the real flash season.  The majority of firefly species will be out in June and July.  By then, we should all be skilled at counting flashes, observing flash patterns and be expert firefly hunters thanks to Lynn's field guide.
Other species found on the preserve with the help of Lynn Faust are:

The lanternless species
Sneaky Elf, Pyropyga decipiens
Woodland Lucy, Lucidota atra

The lanterned flashing species
Synchronous Firefly, Photinus carolinus
Mr. Mac, Photinus macdermotti
Creekside Tree Blinkers, Photinus sabulosus

The carnivorous species
Slow Blues, Photuris caerulucens
Chinese Lanterns and the Flashbulbs, Photuris sp.
Heebie-Jeebies, Photuris hebes
July Comets, Photuris lucicrescens
Dot-Dash, Photuris pennsylvanica
Variable Triple Flash, Photuris versicolor

This will be the year to find more new and unusual firefly species on the preserve.  Watch for blog posts this summer about new species and some of the interesting species mentioned in the above list. 

I cannot think of another long-awaited book that all naturalists need in their libraries. To purchase this great new book on fireflies, search the title on Amazon.com or click on link below.

http://www.ugapress.org/index.php/books/fireflies/

Posted by: Mark Zloba