Southern Ohio Trip Nets 7 State Birds - August 23-25, 2024

Since moving to the southeast I’ve been looking for an excuse to get back to Kentucky to fill some gaps in my state list.  Then in late summer of 2023 I began to notice lots of good birds being reported at the Falls of the Ohio - a wetlands area in the Ohio River near Cincinnati.  I finally had my excuse to go birding in KY!   And although birding at the Falls could be my prime reason to return to KY, I could always try for other new state birds en route or nearby.  Plus, while I’m in the area I could cross over into Ohio and bird the southwest part of that state as well.  I last birded in OH in 2017 and that state total was at 228.  That meant I had lots of gaps in that state list too.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get my plans together early enough to make the trip in 2023, but there was always next year.

As Summer 2024 progressed I started to plan my KY and OH trip in earnest.  First of all, I scheduled my trip for the third week of August which historically was the week with the greatest number of targets for me at the Falls of the Ohio (based on eBird bar charts).  Then with the help of several local KY experts and lots of hours on eBird, I found 16 potential KY state birds in the region.  My eBird research revealed 7 reasonable targets on OH, 4 of which were late breeders, while the others were either waders or shorebirds.  But in order to pursue several of them I’d have to drive almost all the way north to Columbus, which was farther than my original plans. 

Planning the trip around the late summer peak times at the Falls of the Ohio meant that local breeders might be difficult to find so late in the breeding season.  But with recent reports for most of the breeders, I tried to stay optimistic. 

Given the timing of the trip for the breeders, I hoped for perhaps 9 new KY state birds plus 3 new birds in OH.  Though maybe I was being too optimistic.

This blog post summarizes the OH portion of my August 2024 trip, starting with Day 4 of the trip.  My previous post summarized the KY part of the trip.

Day 4 – August 23

I started the day birding in Louisville, KY, with my last stop being the Falls of the Ohio.  But since the Falls were quite slow, I didn’t stay there long and as a result, I finished the KY portion of my day earlier than expected.  So with extra time on my hands, I changed my strategy for that afternoon to bird a couple spots on tomorrow’s OH itinerary.  If I was able to find my targets, that would give me more time tomorrow for other stops.  And if I missed those target birds today, I could always come back for a second try tomorrow.

My first OH stop of the day was the GilmoreMetroPark in the northern Cincinnati suburbs where an adult and 2 juvenile Yellow-crowned Night Herons had been reported for some time.  Plus just the day before an Olive-sided Flycatcher was reported at the park, giving me a second target to pursue.  I arrived at the park mid-afternoon and after a short walk reached the overlook at the South Pond where the Herons were most often reported.  I had a Green Heron there on the far side of the pond, but no Night Herons.  I birded along nearly the entire edge of the pond finding 4 more Green Herons, but not my target.  I guess I’d have to come back the next day for a second try for this one.

Next I headed to nearby Cattail Marsh at the park to try for yesterday’s Olive-sided.  On my way I passed by an extensive brushy area that was bathed in the hot afternoon sun so I quickly made my way through the area.  That is until I heard a song that I instantly recognized as one I had played the previous day in KY – Bell’s Vireo.  That’s a really rare bird in OH, and one that had not popped up on any of my OH Needs Alerts.  The bird kept singing so I taped it for ID purposes using the Merlin app.  However, Merlin was calling it a Blue Grosbeak.  I know Blue Grosbeak songs well and this bird wasn’t a Blue Grosbeak.  Perhaps since Merlin knew my location it wasn’t even considering Bell’s Vireo as an option since it would be a rarity.  My tape of the bird in question is in my Bird checklist here –   ebird.org/checklist/S192514134    I was certain of my ID and very excited to have found a rarity.  Here’s a picture of the extensive brushy area where the Bell’s Vireo was calling from.

After hearing the Bell’s Vireo for several minutes I moved onto Cattail Marsh to look for the Olive-sided.  There were lots of tall dead trees and snags surrounding the marsh but unfortunately no perched Olive-sided.  I then turned my attention to the marsh which was nearly dry, exposing a broad mud flat that looked great for species like Baird’s and Buff-breasted Sandpipers.  I tallied 54 Killdeer, plus some Leasts and one Semi Sand, but nothing better.  Although I missed my 2 targets for the park, at least I found a Bell’s Vireo.

Next it was off to Ceasar Creek State Park in the southeast suburbs of Dayton where a Little Blue Heron had been reported for a couple weeks.  And to sweeten the pot, a Snowy Egret was found at the same spot the day before.  The birds were being seen from 2 different sides of Ceasar Creek - from Young Road which ends at a boat ramp to the west, and Mound Road to the east.  They seemed to be more easily seen from Young Road so I decided to go there first.

As I pulled up to the Young Road boat ramp I saw a couple birders with their scope trained on the wetlands to the north.  I scurried on over to them hoping that they had my targets but no such luck – they too were looking for those white waders unsuccessfully so far.  But then one birder mentioned that the eBird hotspot was not at the boat ramp but a short distance to the south.  Maybe we needed to search from there.  I found a trail through the woods and took a short walk to the south where the trail ended at the waters edge.  And due east, about a quarter mile across the river, was a small marsh and mudflat that appeared to be the Mound Road hotspot. 

I started to scan the area and quickly spotted a medium-sized white wader.  Even at that distance I could see the all dark bill, dark legs, and yellow feet of a Snowy Egret (OH state bird #1).  It’s barely visible on the left of the above picture.  And with a bit more scanning I noticed another white wader, a bit slighter than the Snowy.  And with a dark-tipped pale bill and green legs I confirmed it as a Little Blue Heron (OH statebird #2).

My state bird maps for Snowy Egret and Little Blue Heron are inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen these species in their regular range.  The cross-hatched states are those in their regular ranges where I’ve yet to see them.  The purple-shaded states are those where I’ve seen these species as a rarity.

 

Just before leaving the site we found a Philadelphia Vireo foraging in the brush.  A nice bird but not a new one for OH.

That evening I checked on eBird and found to my surprise that my sighting and ID of the Bell’s Vireo had been quickly accepted - based solely on the song.  (Boy was Merlin wrong!)  Not only that, but it was reported from the same spot earlier in the day.  And with a bit more research I found that 1 or 2 Bell’s Vireos had actually been at this same location since May.  Although I wasn’t the first person to find it, at least it would be an unexpected new bird for my OH list.  But then I started to wonder why it hadn’t popped up on any of my OH Needs Alerts.  A couple clicks later I found out that I actually already had Bell’s Vireo on my OH list from a sighting back in June 2011.  It was still exciting to almost discover it that day.

Day 5 – August 24, 2024

My first stop of the day was at the Huffman Prairie Flying Field at the edge of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base northeast of Dayton.  This field was used by the Wright brothers in the early 1900’s to perfect their flying machine.  A portion of this field is now managed as a natural prairie, and was home for 2 of my targets – Sedge Wren and Henslow’s Sparrow.  I reached out to local birder Steve Bell who had recently posted observations of both breeding species on eBird to get some advice for finding my targets.  Steve provided great tips on birding the site and excellent maps where he had seen them recently.  So although it was getting late in the year, now with Steve’s help, I was optimistic I’d be able to find my targets. 

Here’s a shot of the prairie when I arrived with the sun rising over the foggy fields.  The one-mile loop trail I would take through the prairie is barely visible in this shot beyond the information kiosk. 

Soon thereafter the fog lifted revealing this lush prairie vegetation.

A short distance down the trail I reached one of the locations Steve had recommended for Sedge Wren.  I stopped and listened for these typically vocal birds, and soon heard a set of chattering calls I didn’t quite recognize.  Merlin identified it as Sedge Wren.  Never one to rely on Merlin, especially given the Blue Grosbeak/Bell’s Vireo issue the day before, I waited a bit longer and one bird eventually came in close to me.  Finally, I had visuals of a Sedge Wren (OH state bird #3). 

I continued around the loop now especially listening for Henslow’s Sparrow.  Along the way I had single Sedge Wrens at two other spots in the prairie, again giving those chatter calls that I don’t think I’ve ever heard from Sedge Wrens.  A couple times I spished up single Savannah Sparrows that briefly got me excited, but they were just Savannahs.  Then finally I heard several “songs” of a Henslow’s not too far from one of the spots Steve had had them (OH state bird #4).  Although I’m happy to now have Henslow’s in 14 states, I still have a long way to go to find this elusive and declining species throughout its regular range.

I had several other possible stops for Sedge Wren nearby, but since I was successful with them at Huffman Prairie I could skip those other stops.  And that gave me extra time to head to the hotspot named “Battelle Darby Creek – Wet Prairie Restoration” close to Columbus.  Although there were no likely new state birds for me there now, the spot formerly had several that would have been new for me, like Common Gallinule, American Bittern, and Buff-breasted Sandpiper.  Maybe I’d get lucky with one of these or find something else.  Again, I reached out to Steve Bell for advice on this new spot, and once again his advice was most detailed and proved to be very helpful.

After a 40-minute drive I reached the parking lot for this hotspot and took the short walk to the wetlands.  It was a nice mudflat surrounded by cattails, and it was full of shorebirds.  There was a nice mix of the regular species there, but no rarities.  I had just found one in the distance that I was trying to make into a Baird’s when all the shorebirds took off.  I looked up and there was a Peregrine passing by.  I waited a while for the shorebirds to return but after 10 minutes the mudflats were still bare.  It was time to move on.  It was a nice stop, but as expected, nothing new.

Next I turned to searches for Eurasian Collared-Doves.  I had 2 possible stops for this species, and even though the reports at both sites weren’t very recent, I was still optimistic.  In my experience with ECDs, once they are discovered at a given location they often stick around for quite a while.  My first stop was in South Charleston where they were reported at grain elevators at the south end of town.  I’ve often found ECDs at grain elevators, so I liked my chances at this spot.

I drove up to the area of the most recent report and found several sets of grain elevators.  Where to start?  

I pulled into the parking lot between two sets of silos and immediately flushed a Collared-Dove from the lot (OH state bird #5).  That was easy.  I’ve seen this species throughout its regular range, and now OH is the 8th Midwest and northeast state where I’ve seen it as a rarity.

My look at the bird as it flushed was pretty brief, so I was hoping to get some better views.  I parked along Woodward Street which ran along the north side of the industrial complex and had numerous shade trees that looked like good perches for the Doves.  Within a few minutes another ECD flew up from the parking lot and landed in one of the tall trees.  But it disappeared in the leaves.  Just then I heard a Dove singing, and eventually located it perched on top of a nearby telephone pole.  Here's a couple digi-binned shots of this cooperative bird.

My last stop of the day was back at Gilmore MetroPark for a second try at the Yellow-crowned Night Herons.  After my failed attempt the previous afternoon (in the heat), I did some more research on eBird and noticed that most of the recent reports were either in the early morning or late evening.  So I checked into my hotel early that afternoon and delayed my try for the Herons till after dinner. 

I had a nice picnic dinner at a shaded picnic table at the park, then started my walk to South Pond at 6:15.  As I got to the overlook I noticed a wader perched on the far side.  Did I have my bird, or was it another Green Heron?  Then with a quick binocular view it was easy to see I had the adult YCNH.  Delaying my search until late in the day must have done the trick.  Check out the Wood Ducks photo-bombing this shot of the Heron.

Day 6 – August 25, 2024

I had just one target for the last day of the trip – Broad-winged Hawk.  There were reports of nesting Broad-wings at numerous sites around greater Cincinnati earlier in the summer, though in most locations there were just one or two sightings.  The exception seemed to be an area in the southwest corner of OH called Shawnee Overlook, where there were numerous reports going back to the spring at a couple trails.  I chose to hike the Little Turtle Trail since it had the most July and and August reports this year.  Though with just 3 reports the last 2 months you couldn’t exactly say that Broad-wings were common there.  Ironically, during my working days, I had a project site just a couple miles from Shawnee Overlook which I visited many times though didn’t bird at the Overlook.

The Little Turtle Trail made a 2-mile loop through nice mature deciduous woodlands.  About a mile along the trail I very fittingly found this little (box) turtle crossing the path. 

Another half mile along I started to hear a number of species typical of dense deciduous forests including Pileated Woodpecker, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and multiple Acadian Flycatchers.  I said to myself that the only species I was missing was the Broad-wing.  And just a couple minutes later I heard the first of several high-pitched calls of a Broad-winged Hawk (OH state bird #7).  I just need this species in 4 more states in its regular range.

It’s always great to end your trip by finding your last target!

That gave me 7 new OH state birds – an excellent result given that I expected just 3.  And that brings my OH total to 235.   

Now a bit of a postscript regarding the significance and context of my OH total –

Early in my birding career I set a goal to see at least half of the birds on the official state lists of each state in the Lower 48 and DC.  The genesis of this goal comes from the American Birding Association (ABA).  Back in the day, the ABA would publish your state totals but only if you had observed at least half of the total ever recorded in that state.  The ABA last published birders’ totals in this way in 2011.  Later they went to a digital format where all your totals would be published without any threshold.  And of course, eBird has taken that approach as well.  But my goal remained – to be able to meet the ABA reportable threshold in each state.  And in 2023, with a birding trip to Oregon, I reached my lifelong goal of being reportable in each of the Lower 48 states plus DC. 

As of 2011 the ABA reporting threshold for OH was 211, meaning the total state list was twice that total or 422.  I had 228 on my OH list at the time so I was safe at 17 over the threshold.  Or was I?  You see as new birds are added to a state list, the threshold increases as well.  As of December 2023 (the most recent update on the internet), the official OH state list had increased by a whopping 28 birds in just 12 years, bringing the total now to 450 (http://ohiobirds.org/resources/official-ohio-ornithological-society-bird-checklist/).  Though it’s not clear if that total includes hypothetical species that are typically excluded from these calculations.  That means the threshold has increased by 14 to 225.  And before this year’s trip I had dropped to being just 3 over the new threshold.  At least my new OH total of 235 is now 10 over that latest threshold.  Though if OH continues to add new birds at their recent pace that may not keep me above threshold for long. 

Kentucky Trip Nets 11 State Birds, Plus one in Indiana – August 20-23, 2024

My Kentucky list has been stuck at 204 since my last trip to the state in 2006.  So now that I’m living in the southeast I’ve been looking for an excuse to get back to KY to fill some gaps in my state list.  Then in late summer of 2023 I began to notice lots of good birds being reported at the Falls of the Ohio - a wetlands area in the Ohio River near Cincinnati.  At one point there were 8 species there that would have been new for my KY list.  I had my excuse to go birding in KY!   And although birding at the Falls could be my prime reason to return to KY, I could always try for other new state birds en route or nearby.  Plus while I’m in the area I could cross over into Ohio and bird the southwest part of that state as well.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get my plans together early enough to make the trip in 2023, but there was always next year.

As Summer 2024 progressed I started to plan my KY and OH trip in earnest.  First of all, I scheduled my trip for the third week of August which historically was the week with the greatest number of targets for me at the Falls of the Ohio (based on eBird bar charts).  Then I reached out to former KY birder Teresa Noel, whom I met this past year.  She gave me lots of advice for my targets, and also connected me with local KY birder Dave Svetich.  Dave was helpful as well, and in turn put me in touch with another local birder, Katey Buster, who gave me more tips.

With the help of all those local experts and lots of hours on eBird, I found 16 potential KY state birds in the region.  That included my nemesis bird for KY – House Wren.  (How could I have more than 200 species in KY and not have House Wren on my list?)  That was the good news.  The bad news was that, as the trip neared, only 2 realistic targets were being seen at the Falls of the Ohio – Peregrine Falcon and Neotropic Cormorant.  And they weren’t even being seen every day.  So even though birding at the Falls was the trigger for my trip, it looked like my potential targets there would be limited.  Plus, since most of my regional targets were local breeders, I worried that they may be difficult to find so late in the summer.  If I had known how slow it would be at the Falls I could have just made this year’s trip early in the summer for KY breeders.  And then come back another year in late summer to bird the Falls.  But when I was starting to plan the trip earlier in the summer I couldn’t have predicted how good (or not) birding at the Falls might be in late August. 

Things were looking so bleak the last couple days before the trip that I almost canceled.  But then I remembered hockey great Wayne Gretzky’s quote – “you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”  In a twisted bit of logic I applied that quote to my trip saying that I certainly won’t get any new KY birds if I don’t go at all.  So I decided to go, and at the very least learn about the birding hotspots so I could come back and be successful on a future trip. 

It was pretty much the same story in southwestern OH.  My eBird research revealed 7 reasonable targets, 4 of which were late breeders, while the others were either waders or shorebirds.  But in order to pursue several of them I’d have to drive all the way north almost to Columbus, which was farther than my original plans. 

Despite the timing of the trip for the breeders, and the lack of rarities at the Falls, I still hoped for perhaps 9 new KY state birds.  Plus 3 new birds in OH.  Though perhaps I was being too optimistic.

This blog post summarizes the KY portion of my August 2024 trip, plus a little bit of Indiana.  My next post summarizes the OH part of the trip.

Day 1 – August 20

My plan for the first day of the trip was to leave late-morning to begin a 5-hour drive to the Red River Gorge area of central KY to look for Swainson’s Warbler.  My departure was delayed a bit to pursue a Western Kingbird in my home county in NC.  Luckily that was a successful search and made the delay worthwhile.  (See my previous post for the Western Kingbird summary.) 

While driving along through southeastern KY I spotted a large Corvid right over the road in front of me.  My first thought was that it could be big enough for a Raven, which would be quite a rarity for KY in general, and especially this far west.  As I got closer, I could see the large beak and wedge-shaped tail – it was indeed a Raven (KY state bird #1).  Then I spotted a second Raven flying along with the first one.  Luckily there was no traffic on this rural road, and I was able to pull over to watch this pair continue to fly along before disappearing behind a tree line.  I opened an eBird checklist and found that I was in Owsley County.  And this was the first Raven eBird record for that county.  That wasn’t a bird I had on my radar screen at all.  What a great start to the trip!

My state bird map for Common Raven is inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species in its regular range.  The cross-hatched state (NJ) is the last state in its regular range where I still need it.  The purple-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species as a rarity - KY is now the 4th state along with KS, DE, and RI.

My first planned birding stop of the day was at the Red River Gorge area for Swainson’s Warblers.  Although the most recent report in the area was in mid-July, I often hear singing Swainson’s singing into September back home in NC.  Plus I had heard a pair of birds just the week before back home responding to tape.  So I was hopeful I would be able to find them during my KY trip.  There were quite a number of sites in the area with Swainson’s reports in eBird earlier in the year, and I chose one key area, along Nada Tunnel Road, as my birding site for the evening.  When I got to the area I was greeted by these multi-story rock formations which were just spectacular.

But unfortunately, that was the only highlight.  Despite being in seemingly good Swainson’s habitat I couldn’t scare one up.  I made numerous stops covering several miles of the road, listening and playing some tape.  Several times I heard a series of sharp chip notes but they were always Hooded Warblers.  But I wasn’t too disappointed because I had planned stops in another part of Red River Gorge the next morning just in case I missed Swainson’s that evening.  Though I was still a bit concerned that it might be too late in the year for my target at least locally.

After dinner my last stop was a try for Whip-poor-wills at Koomer Ridge Campground.  Similar to the local Swainson’s story, the most recent local report for this species was in mid-July.  But there had been several reports of Whips at this campground this summer, so I was cautiously optimistic.  But I struck out yet again – despite stops at numerous spots around the campground, and playing some tape, there were no calling Whip-poor-wills.  Now I was really getting worried about the timing of my trip so late in the breeding season.  Hopefully tomorrow would be a better day.

Day 2 – August 21

I started the day at dawn back in Red River Gorge for yet another try for Swainson’s Warbler.  This time I birded the Rock Bridge Trail, starting my hike down the trail at dawn.  The first part of the trail was in nice mature deciduous woodlands but not quite Swainson’s habitat.  And once again I picked up several more calling Hooded Warblers along the way.  Then as I neared the junction with the Swift Camp Creek Trail I got into an area with steep slopes and a thick understory of rhododendron – perfect for Swainson’s.  Here’s a picture of the valley below me.

I turned onto the Swift Camp Creek Trail and continued my slow walk.  Just a couple hundred yards down the trail I heard a series of sharp chip notes that I instantly knew were coming from a Swainson’s and not the higher metallic notes of the common Hooded Warblers.  I even checked with Merlin and it agreed.  (KY state bird #2)  Maybe summer wasn’t quite over just yet after all.  Since I’ve moved to the southeast I’ve now picked-up Swainson’s Warbler in 4 states - NC, SC, TN, and now KY.  Still a few more to go though.

On my way back to the car I was serenaded by a Red-breasted Nuthatch, which turned out to be a rarity needing details in eBird.  This species is not normally a summering bird in that area.

Next I was on to the Haley Downs Road hotspot which is known in central KY for its grassland birds.  Within just a couple minutes of parking I walked towards a fallow grassy field and almost instantly had small groups of Bobolinks flying overhead (KY state bird #3).  That was easy! 

Now I focused on my 2 sparrow targets – Grasshopper and Henslow’s.  Grasshoppers were still singing now back home so I was hopeful on that one.  Henslow’s are normally reported at this hotspot most summers, but hadn’t been reported at Haley Downs this year so I wasn’t too optimistic about that one.  I listened and played tape at a number of grassy fields with no luck for either species.  Then I heard a soft call coming from a small patch of uncut taller grass that at first I didn’t recognize.  I focused my attention on the area where the call had come from and heard it again.  Was it the song of a Henslow’s?  I listened intently and heard it give 2 more of its insect-like songs – I indeed had a singing Henslow’s (KY state bird #4).  Maybe it was a pair having a late brood after a failed earlier nesting nearby.  But I had no luck with what should have been the more likely Grasshopper Sparrows.

While trying one more time for Grasshoppers I noticed a large pale bird perched in a distant tree.  A quick binocular view revealed that it was a Eurasian Collared-Dove.  It wasn’t new for my KY list, but it was a rarity for the area.  It stuck around for several days for Katey Buster and several other local birders to see.

And speaking of rarities, as I was leaving Haley Downs a Loggerhead Shrike flew over the road.  I didn’t realize it at the time but that was another rarity, with less than 20 county records, and luckily it too was re-found by another birder.  Though I would have traded both rarities for a Grasshopper Sparrow…

The next target as I continued my drive to the west toward Lexington was a Mute Swan reported from a private pond on Berea Rd in Fayette County.  The pond was a short distance off the road so access was a bit iffy, but once I figured out how to get a view of the pond the Mute Swan was quite obvious with binoculars (KY state bird #5).  The swan is circled in this cellphone picture without magnification.

The Pfeiffer Fish Hatchery northwest of Lexington was my next stop, where a Baird’s Sandpiper was found a few days earlier.  But since my drive took me through areas of grassy pastures I made several stops along the way hoping to run into Grasshopper Sparrows.  I was once again unsuccessful on all those stops.  But across the road from the field at one of those stops in Franklin County was a brushy area that looked good for Wrens.  I played a bit of House Wren calls and songs and almost instantly one responded, and then popped into the open (KY state bird #6).  Finally – House Wren in KY!  KY was the last state in the Lower 48 for me to see House Wren.  That is the 59th species that I’ve seen in all the Lower 48 states (plus DC).

Pfeiffer Fish Hatchery was full of Great Egrets and Great Blues, but the only shorebirds I could find were Killdeer.  And this long-staying Mute Swan was photogenic.

My next stop was another long shot – Peregrine Falcon in downtown Lexington.  The good news was that eBird reports gave the location of a nest box on the Central Bank building downtown.  The bad news was that there had been no sightings since June.  But I had some time, so why not give it a go.  I parked in a downtown parking lot with good views of the skyline.  I quickly found the nest box which was empty, and scanned the edges of the nearby buildings.  I only found a few Rock Pigeons which seemed to be totally at ease.  Oh well, it was worth the try.

After dinner I headed to Lexington Green Pond in the Lexington suburbs where 2 Mute Swans had been reported sporadically.  As I pulled up I saw the pair of Swans along with about 50 Mallards all being fed by shoppers.  Since the Swans are countable, they must be tame but not feral.  Interesting that Mute Swans around home in western NC that appear to be very wild are always considered to be escapees. 

The last target of the day was Common Nighthawk.  There were numerous recent Nighthawk reports throughout the central and western parts of the state as they were migrating through the region.  But there didn’t seem to be any particular spot where they might be seen reliably on any given evening.  So I decided to just find a large shopping center parking lot nearby that would provide me a full view of the sky.  And if I don’t see one passing by overhead maybe I’ll find one after dark eating the insects attracted to the parking lot lights.  I picked out a large parking lot for a grocery store a short distance from my Lexington hotel as a good candidate.  I parked in a quiet part of the lot about an hour before sunset and started my vigil.  After about 30 minutes of counting Crows, Starlings, and House Sparrows I spotted a candidate in the distance.  And with a binocular view I picked out not 1 but 2 Nighthawks flying by (KY state bird # 7).  A nice way to end the day.  I just need this species in 1 more state.

Day 3 – August 22

The first stop of the day was at the Talon Winery south of Lexington.  No, I wasn’t going there to attend a wine tasting event.  Instead, I was there to look for grassland species that regularly breed around the winery grounds.  Specifically, I was hoping to see Henslow’s Sparrows reported as recently as the previous afternoon, and to hope for Grasshopper Sparrows that bred there this year but hadn’t been seen for a couple weeks. 

When I arrived, I went right to the area of the uncut field where both sparrows were reported.  But I couldn’t find the field.  I rechecked with Katey Buster and I had the right spot.  It turns out the field had just been cut – literally in the last 18 hours since the eBird report the previous afternoon.  I could not find a single sparrow in the area, though there were at least 20 Meadowlarks walking through the now short vegetation, perhaps lamenting that they had lost their nests.  If only they had delayed cutting the field by a day.  Luckily, I had a Henslow’s the day before at my other stop, but Grasshopper Sparrow would have to go down as one I missed because my trip was so late in the summer.

Next I was off to Henderson County in western KY just across the river from Evansville, IN.  It was a long drive but I had 3 key targets there not easily found elsewhere in the state.  The first was a flock of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks that were being seen for some time at the Industrial Park Pond hotspot.  Some reports made it look like you would just drive up to the pond and they’d be right in front of you.  Then again there were other reports where the BBWDs were not found at all.  I was one of the luckier birders, because the instant I pulled up to the pond I could see a flock of brown ducks on the far bank – with a quick binocular view I confirmed I had 7 BBWDs (KY statebird #8).  I was just giving myself a high five when I noticed 2 sleeping BBWDs practically right in front of me.  Here are digi-bin pictures of both the distant flock and the pair right next to my car.

My next target was Bell’s Vireo, which is a regular nester in the area.  There had been several reports in the area recently, but the one that sounded most promising was at the Diamond Island Boat Ramp hotspot where 2 had been reported less than a week earlier.  When I arrived at the boat ramp I found a large brushy area near the water that seemed like the right habitat.  I played some tape at several stops before I caught a glimpse of a candidate low in the vegetation.  Eventually it popped out and gave good looks – it was indeed a Bell’s Vireo (KY state bird #9).  Little did I now that listening to recordings of its song would prove to be helpful the next day in the OH portion of my trip.  I just need this species in 4 more states in its regular range.

My last stop in the county was at the Horseshoe Road Slough where a Baird’s Sandpiper had been spotted recently, along with a Buff-breasted the week before, and always with a nice mix of other shorebirds and waders.  It took me a while, but I finally found the slough tucked into a sea of soybean plants.  I found lots of waders but the only shorebirds I found were 1 Killdeer and 2 Spotted’s.  Little did I know that a Red-necked Phalarope was found at a nearby slough that same day.  If only I had checked my KY Needs Alert before leaving the area…

My original plans included a nighttime stop to try for Chuck-will’s-widows and Whip-poor-wills south of Louisville.  But given all the driving I did that day, the lack of recent goatsucker reports, and my lack of success with Whips earlier in the trip, I decided to pass on these nocturnal birds.

Day 4 – August 23

I started Day 4 of the trip at Turkey Run Park in the Louisville suburbs in hopes of finding a Prothonotary Warbler.  This was another late summer breeder which initially I wasn’t too optimistic about, but it had been reported several times recently from the park so maybe I’d be successful after all.  My first stop was near the entrance where 1 had been reported earlier in the week.  I found some good riparian habitat along Turkey Run, but a calling Screech Owl and a perched adult Bald Eagle were the only notable birds.  Next, I headed to Squire Boone Bottoms where there had not only been a recent report, but also reports of a likely nesting pair earlier in the summer.  A mile and a half loop trail took me down through the bottoms area which had some excellent riparian habitat along the river.  It looked like a great spot for Prothonotary’s!  I slowly walked along the river playing some tape hoping for a response.  The area was quite birdy, but I couldn’t find my target.  But then finally I heard a Prothonotary sing, undoubtedly in response to my tape (KY state bird #10).  Just 2 more states to go in this species’ regular range.

The next stop was in a small residential neighborhood in Louisville to look for Yellow-Crowned Night Herons.  There had been several reports of 1 or maybe 2 nests in this area in the spring and early summer but I figured surely those birds would fledge and move on before my late August trip.  So this species wasn’t one of my initial targets.  But then there were a couple reports in early August from the same spot.  And again, a nest with juveniles was reported.  It must be a second brood – I didn’t know that YCNH’s have multiple broods.  With a bit of help from my KY contacts I found out that the nest was in a tree in front of the house at 3542 Ramona Ave.  As I pulled onto Ramona Ave. I saw very large deciduous trees planted in the front yards of each house.  I got to 3542 and stepped out of the car.  With a quick scan I found a dense area of twigs and sticks that must have been the nest.  And with a closer binocular view I could pick out at least 3 juveniles at the nest (KY state bird #11).    

That was 2 for 2 for the morning so far.  But now it was on to the Falls of the Ohio where my opportunities were likely to be pretty limited.  In the previous couple weeks there had been just 2 possible targets being seen there – a Peregrine reported on maybe a third of the checklists, and a long-staying Neotropic Cormorant.  But the Cormorant had not been seen for 2 days so maybe it had moved on.  Like I said, it was looking pretty bleak.

When I arrived at the hotspot I was truly taken aback by the scenery and the enormity of the site.  Here’s a scenery shot of the lower falls and fossil beds, taken from the observation deck at the Falls of the Ohio Foundation on the Indiana bank of the Ohio River.

And here’s a shot of the upper falls with a distant railroad trestle which was apparently the Peregrine’s favorite perch.

One of the first birds I saw when I got there was the long-staying American White Pelican, which unfortunately was not a new state bird for me in KY.  The bird was in flight over the Falls, and since basically the entire river and the Falls are in KY, the Pelican was squarely in KY airspace.  But as the bird circled it slowly drifted northward, and eventually it slipped out of sight into Indiana – a bonus Indiana state bird for me!  That was unexpected.  As shown in my White Pelican state bird map I’ve now seen this species as a rarity in 10 Midwest and northeast states.

Now it was time to get to work on my KY targets.  The Neotropic Cormorant liked to perch with Double-crested’s on a distant concrete wall nearly a half mile away.  But thanks to a 50X scope I could see the cormorant flock quite well.  Despite lots of searching, unfortunately I couldn’t pick out the diminutive southern cousin among the 85 Double-crested’s.  Here’s a shot of a portion of the flock.

Next I focused on the railroad trestle for the Peregrine.  But again I came up empty.  At one point a train went across the trestle and I hoped it might flush the raptor but to no avail.

Back to the Falls I was able to find Little Blue Herons and a Snowy Egret, both somewhat unusual for the site, but not new for my KY list.  Ironically, I need both of those species for my IN list, but these waders were definitely inside KY, albeit within a quarter mile of the state line.  I also scoured the wetlands and fossil beds for rarer shorebirds but just came up with 13 Killdeer.  A pair of Caspian Terns and a Black-crowned Night Heron were nice as well.  After about 2 and a half hours of scanning (and hoping) I decided to give up on the Falls of the Ohio and the KY leg of my trip, and head into OH. 

Ironically the key trigger for my trip, a visit to the Falls of the Ohio, didn’t yield any new KY state birds.  But if it hadn’t been for that hotspot, I wouldn’t have made the trip to KY at all, and wouldn’t have added 11 new birds to my KY state list.  That’s still a nice tally compared to my expectation of adding 9 new birds.  That brings my new KY total to 215.  And now I have good locations for Grasshopper Sparrow, Chuck-will’s widow, and Whip-poor-will should I come back on a future summer trip.  Plus I can’t forget the 1 new bird in IN which brings that state list to 233. 

And now a bit of a postscript regarding the significance of my 215 total in KY –

Early in my birding career I set a goal to see at least half of the birds on the official state lists of each state in the Lower 48 and DC.  The genesis of this goal comes from the American Birding Association (ABA).  Back in the day, the ABA would publish your state and Canadian province totals but only if you had observed at least half of the total ever recorded in that state/province.  So my goal was to be able to report my totals in each of the Lower 48 states and DC.  The ABA last published birders’ totals in this way in 2011.  Later they went to a digital format where all your totals would be published without any threshold.  And of course, eBird has taken that approach as well.  But my goal remained – to be able to meet the ABA reportable threshold in each state.  And in 2023, with a birding trip to Oregon, I reached my lifelong goal of being reportable in each of the Lower 48 states plus DC. 

As of 2011 the ABA reporting threshold for KY was 194, meaning the total state list was twice that total or 388.  I had 204 on my KY list at the time so I was safe at 10 over the threshold.  Or was I?  You see as new birds are added to a state list, the threshold increases as well.  As of January 2023 (the most recent update on the internet), the official KY statelist had increased to 396 (www.birdky.org/kbrc.php).  That means the threshold has increased to 198.  My new KY total of 215 is 17 over that new threshold – that should hold me for a while.

Red-cockaded Woodpecker, W. G. Jones State Forest, TX, February, 2017

With my next monthly trip to Houston I had yet another opportunity to try to check off a couple more birds for my TX state list.  As with previous trips I would be short on free time so my search distance would be limited.  As usual there didn’t appear to be any possible statebirds in Harris County which surrounds Houston.  So I expanded my review of the eBird Needs Alert reports to include Galveston County to the south, but there were no possibilities there either.

Then my search focused on Henslow’s Sparrow – a species I added to my Louisiana list earlier that month and a bird I still needed in TX.  There were a couple recent reports about 90 minutes to the northeast in the Big Thicket in Hardin County.  A bit far away, but possible on my last evening in the area given that my hotel that night would be on the north side of the city close to the airport.  So that was one target to aim for at the end of my trip.  As I continued my research I noticed that several of the checklists with Henslow’s also had Red-cockaded Woodpeckers.  I haven’t seen Red-cockaded anywhere in a number of years, and hadn’t even thought about that species as a possible target in TX.  It had been many years since I had birded its habitat in the “piney woods” of east TX and had no idea if I had this endangered species on my TX list.  With a quick search of my lists I realized Red-cockaded was indeed a bird I still needed in TX.  Unfortunately the locations with both Henslow’s and Red-cockaded were too far away for this trip, so going to one spot for both was out of the question.

So next I modified my search to just look for Red-cockaded and amazingly found recent reports just 30 minutes north of Houston’s Bush (IAH) Airport.  The location was W.G. Jones State Forest, and there were actually quite a number of reports in the area going back several years.  (How did I overlook this on all my many Houston trips?)  With some research on the Forest’s Facebook page I found that the area was being managed for the woodpecker, and there were several colonies successfully breeding there.  Recent sightings were especially focused on the area north of SR1488 close to the State Forest headquarters.  And although specific locations were absent on most sightings (not atypical for eBird), one sighting mentioned up to 2 pairs along the northern edge of the forest.  And another older sighting from last fall mentioned the intersection of the main trail and the Lookout Trail.  I felt like I had enough to go on, even though I was partially relying on a 5-month old sighting.  Given the short distance from the airport I would still have enough time to make a quick 1 to 1 ½ hour stop there right after I arrived at IAH before heading to my meetings on the first day.

My plans were set – a try for the Red-cockaded Woodpecker the day arrived in Houston, and an attempt for Henslow’s Sparrows the evening before I left.

My flight to IAH was right on time, the weather was good, and after my short drive to W. G. Jones State Forest I was ready for my woodpecker search.  I parked at the Forest headquarters and went inside to ask for more specific directions.  They mentioned one spot where birds nested last summer, which was just a couple hundred yards from the area I was heading to, so it looked like my researched location was accurate.  Five minutes later I was on the main trail and quickly found the marked trees where the Red-cockaded’s nested last year.  But February was too early for them to be starting their 2017 nesting activities, and there were no birds at this spot.  Then I walked north up the main trail and found several trees where the state forest had installed nest holes for the woodpeckers, but again no activity.  The habitat in the area seemed excellent, with the pine forest filled with Pine Warbler songs and Brown-headed Nuthatch calls.  So it looked like I would have to run into birds foraging somewhere in the pines rather than near potential nest sites.

I continued walking slowly north on the main trail toward the locations mentioned in the eBird posts.  Soon I passed by a sign for the Red-cockaded Woodpecker Trail heading off to the west – hmmm, that one sounded like it had potential.  But I passed it by in favor of the eBird locations.  Next I reached the intersection with the Lookout Trail, and heard distant Red-bellied and Downy Woodpeckers, but not my target.  Then I made a loop near the northern edge of the park, but again came up empty. 

Now I was back at the Lookout Trail, and decided to head west for a brief attempt in that area.  I was now running out of time but I wasn’t too disappointed that today’s search was likeIy to be unsuccessful.  After all, now that I was familiar with this area, and since these birds are present year-round, I could come back to this spot in just a couple months during nesting season and most probably find them rather quickly.  Not a minute after I resigned myself to coming up empty on this trip I heard a couple faint calls in the distance that sounded a bit like the “skeet” calls of my target bird.  Or was I just trying too hard?  Luckily the calls continued, and as I neared the bird I could now clearly hear the calls of a Red-cockaded Woodpecker.  Success!  It was at that point that I noticed I was right at the west end of the Red-cockaded Woodpecker Trail – looks like the State Forest folks were telling me where to look all along.

 Although my time was up and I needed to head back to the car, I really wanted to see this bird.  So I kept getting closer to the calling bird, and finally saw it fly into a nearby tree.  I spent about 5 minutes getting excellent views as it foraged from tree to tree.  Though I didn’t have a camera, at least I was able to get this recording of the Red-cockaded’s call notes posted on my Flickr page -

https://www.flickr.com/photos/84823168@N07/32666694324/in/dateposted-public/

The Red-cockaded Woodpecker was #435 for my TX list, and my 6th state for this endangered species.  Though my statebird map below shows I still need it in a few southeastern states within its range. 

 
But the birding part of my trip wasn’t over – I still planned a try for Henslow’s Sparrow on my last evening in the area.  My meetings that day finished on time and I made the late afternoon drive to the north east to the Big Thicket.  There were quite detailed directions for these birds in a wet field just east of the headquarters.  And fresh off my successful search for this species in Louisiana, I was pretty optimistic.  Unfortunately it was not to be – despite close to 2 hours of walking through nice habitat I found only 1 sparrow, which with just a quick look I was 98% sure was just a Swamp Sparrow.  I ran into numerous Sedge Wrens, but couldn’t flush up a Henslow’s.  But now that I know about this potential target I’m hopeful I can give it another try on a future Houston trip – though likely not until next winter.

And now a post script –

In researching both the Henslow’s Sparrow and the Red-cockaded Woodpecker, I found nearby locations for 2 other possible TX statebirds – Bachman’s Sparrow and Swainson’s Warbler.  All 4 are birds of the TX piney woods - looks like I've needed to do more birding in that region for some time.  And something to look forward to on an upcoming spring trip to Houston.