Yesterday, I went down to Shreve, Ohio to attend the Shreve Migration Sensation. It’s a one-day event incorporating all of the birding hotspots around the town. There were also other events, including presentations/talks by several birders on topics such as wildlife management, ducks and even the movie, “The Big Year.” Greg Miller of “Big Year” fame, was going to be there to talk about his big year. I didn’t stay to see him, as I was wet, hot and sweaty!

I arrived very early, getting there at around 7:10am, as the festival was scheduled to start at 7. A word of advice; nothing happens there till around 8:30am, as the guides – they had guides with scopes at every stop – didn’t start till 9am. I checked in and then got myself some breakfast. The Amish had a nice food station set up, and for a donation you could have breakfast; eggs, sausage and gravy on a biscuit, fruit cup, it was all actually very good. They had a couple of vendors there, including Time & Optics, an Amish-owned and local birding optics store. I had to check out the Swarovski 10×42 NL bins, which are super-nice and super-expensive. The Swarovski NL and the Zeiss Victory SF bins are the best money can buy, and all reports, including Time & Optics, say they view about the same. But that’s another story.

After I had finished breakfast, signed in and got my guide map, I headed out. My first stop was the Funk Bottoms observation area and platform, also known as the Funk Bottoms Wildlife Area. “This 1,536-acre wildlife area in northeastern Ohio is in portions of Wayne and Ashland counties. State Route 95,
running east-west, goes through the middle of the area, from Blachleyville (east), through Funk and Lake Fork(west). The area lies in the glaciated central hills region of Ohio, with flat to moderately rolling topography. The vast majority of the wildlife area consists of seasonally flooded moist soil meadows and bottomland hardwoods.” I got to see several FOY birds while there, including Wood Duck, Sandhill Crane and Tree Swallow. There were also Trumpeter Swans, Pintails, Lesser Scaup and immature Bald Eagles. So I’ve learned about one new place to bird regularly, and when I go to Wayne County, there are several places to visit.

My next stop was Brown’s Lake Bog Preserve, which is owned and operated by The Nature Conservancy. It is a 100 acre preserve that “protects a bog with a floating sphagnum moss mat and a 7-acre kettle lake.” This “well-preserved, virgin boreal acid bog” was dedicated as a National Natural Landmark in 1967. This Preserve is one dedicated to the plants growing there. I really didn’t see any birds so much as hear them. But I did see a Tufted Titmouse! Other birds heard were Carolina Wren, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Cardinal, Black-capped Chickadee and others. I did not spend much time there. The Bog does seem to be a great area for Rails, so I will check on that during the late spring and early summer.

Returning to town, I camped out in a coffee shop named “HeBrews,” and had a blueberry scone and a caramel macchiato. I inputted all of my bird sightings, all the while trying to kill time till the speakers started. The presentations started at 12pm, and the one I wanted to see, Greg Miller, didn’t start till 2pm. It was now 11:15am. Feeling somewhat hot, wet and sweaty after wearing my waterproof jacket all morning and getting rained on for a good portion, I made the decision to head home, and reluctantly took a pass on meeting Greg Miller.

Now, one major area that I hadn’t hit up is the Killbuck Marsh Wildlife Area, a 5,703 acre state wildlife area located in Wayne and Holmes counties. There are many places to bird Killbuck Marsh, and I had birded one a week ago at Wright Marsh, a part of Killbuck. As I was beginning my drive home, I noticed a bunch of cars and people with scopes, so I pulled off onto… Cemetery Road, a hotspot. There were numerous birders there. One person mentioned a Blue-winged Teal, and I asked her if she could relocate it with her scope, which she did… another FOY bird. There were also Green-winged Teal, Pintails, Gadwall, Wigeons, and other ducks being seen. I should’ve taken out my scope and spent much more time there, but I took the FOY Teal, and proceeded home. I’m going to revisit this coming week and will definitely be scoping the area.

Take-aways: Don’t go too early; the field guides aren’t at the keyed sites till 9am. Plan to get to the Town Hall by about 8:15, sign in, get the map and have something to eat, then head out. I would recommend hitting up Wright Marsh first, and its small lot fills up very quickly. The visit Cemetery Road at Killbuck. Travel over to Wilderness Road on the way to Funk Bottoms for all it has to offer. Hit up Funk Bottoms, then head back to Shreve for lunch. Attend the presentations if interested, and that’s it! Good birding!