Learn Bird ID every Sunday. See Audubon Spring Walks on  Field Trips page.

Field Trips

Click on link below for Maps/Directions
(more details below chart)

*Field Trips are subject to change

Christmas Bird Count, Click here

Highlights for this Field Trip Season.

Saturday, July 14, 2007 at 8:00 AM. We will meet at Whipps Ledges parking lot in Hinckley Reservation.

Saturday, August 18, 2007 at 9:00 AM. WCAS will carpool to Ottawa NWR for their monthly driving tour. August is always a good month for migrating shorebirds. We will meet at the brand new Ottawa NWR Visitor Center. For those of you who are interested in carpooling to Ottawa, please contact Penny O'Connor at pjo@earthlink.net or call at (216) 676-4859.

Saturday, September 15, 2007 at 7:30 AM.  WCAS is having a special field trip to Dike 14. Meet at the gate to the entrance of Dike 14.

Waivers must be signed before entering Dike 14. Waivers will be available before the walk. Wear good shoes and socks, long pants. for hiking. The terrain is very rough and there are no established signage, walks or trails. We'll take it slow, but it is a wild place that almost no one has accessed yet, so be prepared. There are ticks on site. If you are concerned, you can use bug spray before the hike but that is a personal choice.. You can also tuck pants into socks and do a quick check when we are done hiking, and there should be no problem. Bathrooms are available near the site at the Cleveland Lakefront State Park office to the east of the site entrance, and immediately to the west of the site entrance. No facilities on site.

Sunday, October 14, 2007 at 8:00 AM. Join Dave Lewis and Laurie Boylan as we look for fall migrant warblers and  sparrows at Wendy Park on Whiskey Island.

Saturday, November 10, 2008 at 9:00 AM. We will join Black River Audubon to visit Wellington. We will meet at the new visitor center.

Saturday, December 29, 2007 is the date of our chapter’s Christmas Bird Count. Our count is part of a three-week, nationwide effort to monitor trends in bird populations. We cover a fifteen-mile diameter circle centered in Lakewood. If  you wish to participate in the count, contact Nancy Howell at (216) 231-4600 ext 3225 (work), (440) 891-1710 (home) or e-mail nhowell@cmnh.org.

You may also monitor you own feeders at home if your home is within the count circle. Contact Nancy Howell if you have questions about the count circle.

We will take a break for a chili feast at 12:30 PM at the Rocky River Nature Center to begin tabulating our species list. Some may choose to go out afterward to get the species we have missed.

We are looking for extra help this year to cover areas which are not always covered and to cover areas where we are short handed. Please contact Nancy Howell at (216) 231-4600 ext 3225 (work), (440) 891-1710 (home) or e-mail nhowell@cmnh.org to help out.

We are also looking for people to bring chili, desserts, etc to our dinner. Again, call Nancy.

The participant fee for the Christmas Bird Count remains the same; $5.00 per field observer aged 19 and older. Participants who pay the fee receive a personal copy of the American Birds - Christmas Bird Count after it is published next year.

The Christmas Bird Count publication is a compilation of this year's Christmas Bird Count for North and South America. This publication is a $25 value. Last year's issue can be obtained through National Audubon's website at http://www.audubon.org/bird/cbc/ if you were not a participant last year.

More information about Christmas Bird Counts, including results of all the counts done in North and South America can be found at http://www.audubon.org/bird/cbc/.

Saturday, January 26, 2008 at 8:00 AM We will have a special field trip to the Horseshoe Pond/ Tree Farm trail in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Mark Nolls from the Greater Akron Audubon Society will be our guide. This is a 2.75 mile trail. Wear sturdy boots. If we have snow the evergreen trees will be beautiful at this time of the year. Come join us.

Saturday, February 2, 2008 at 9:00 AM. "Let's hope for a blustery day" says our leader John Pogacnik. Good north winds will keep the ice frozen and the birds near the "hotwaters" near the power plants. Come join WCAS at E. 72 St. for a morning of gulling.

Sunday, February 17, 2008 at 9:00 AM. We will meet at the main entrance to the Cleveland Zoo. We will be doing a little inside birding and a little outside birding. So, come dressed for both. Stan Searles, Curator of Birds, will present a short program on some of Zoo's latest avian projects. Then we will go see some of them. This includes a walk to the Rainforest to see the new avian additions. There is a place to hang your coat in the Rainforest. Afterwards, we can eat lunch at the Rainforest Cafe and then take a brisk walk around the Zoo to see our native birds. (Northern Mockingbirds live year round at the Zoo and Brookside Park.)

Saturday, March 15, 2008 at 5:30 PM. Meet us a Sandy Ridge Reservation in Lorain County for a special evening hike to search for woodcocks, owls and ducks. Tim Fairweather will be our guide.

In April & May, Be sure to join Audubon Spring Bird Walks. See above. To see a complete listing of all the walks click on this link. Sunday Audubon bird walks. The Spring Bird Walks will occur on the last three Sundays in April and the first 3 Sundays in May.

Saturday, April 26, 2008 at 8:00 AM

Chris Grames, Chief of Natural Resources in Lorain County Metroparks and our own Terri Martincic will be our field trip leaders.

Saturday, May 17, 2008 at 8:00 AM

WCAS and The Western Reserve Land Conservancy (Medina Chapter) will discover together spring birding in Hinckley on both public and private land. We will park at the Top O' Ledges parking area in Hinckley Reservation and walk to nearby private land that the WRLC has a conservation easement. Join our leaders Bill Jordan and Peg Bobel as we look for spring migrants and early nesters and learn about WRLC land conservation efforts.

Tuesday, June 3 at 6:00 PM, location Royalview Picnic Area, Mill Stream Run Reservation.

Join us  for our Summer Picnic, Bird walk and Plant exchange. . Bring your own dinner. WCAS will provide the charcoal fire for cooking. We will follow the dinner with a bird walk. For a map to Royalview click here.

Picnic at Royalview Picnic Area.  Also our annual plant exchange.  Bring any orphan plants, seeds, bulbs, cuttings – outdoor or indoor plants are welcome – to share with others.  

Saturday, June 14, meet at Rocky River Nature Center or Rising Valley Park (in Hinckley).

Join Ken Gober, Dave Dvoroak and Terri Martincic for a fun bird walk. Data from these birdwalks will be submitted to the Ohio Breeding Bird Atlas II. Come to the walks and find out what the OBBA II is all about. After the Atlassing we will meet back at Rocky River Nature Center for a potluck lunch at Noon.

Twenty years ago WCAS participated in the first Ohio Breeding Bird Atlas (OBBA) in the Rocky River area.  The tradition continues with the OBBA II.  Our forest bird point counts in the Rocky River Important Bird Area (IBA) have contributed sightings to 10 blocks.

On Saturday, June 14th we will spread out in small groups in the IBA including Rocky River, Mill Stream Run and Hinckley Reservations looking for nesting behaviors:

*adult carrying material for nest
*nest building
*distraction display/behavior; broken wing display or dive-bombing humans
*carrying food or fecal sac
*occupied nest 

Swallows will also receive special attention, as they are under represented in our forest breeding bird survey.

Cleveland Metroparks will participate with two 8 AM hikes, one at Rocky River Nature Center and one at the newly acquired Rising Valley Park near Hinckley Reservation. 

Individuals wishing to volunteer for their favorite birding trail are encouraged to sign up in advance to help spread folks out and minimize double coverage.  This is open to birders of all levels and everyone is encouraged to participate.  Let Terri know of any nesting birds found, or enter the observations into the database at:

www.ohiobirds.org/obba2/

 Join us for a potluck lunch at 12:00 at the Rocky River Nature Center (bring a dish to share), and learn what nesting birds are found in the Rocky River Important Bird Area.  To register for this, contact:

Before May 15:
Terri Martincic
Cell 440-759-8220
Email Naturenut@wowway.com

After May 15:
Rocky River Nature Center
Phone 440-734-6660

 For those interested in entering data on the OBBA II website, the Rocky River Important Bird Area blocks include:

Rocky River Reservation:  40A4NW, 40A4CW, 40A4SW, 40A3SE

Mill Stream Run:  40B4NW, 40B4CW, 41B4CE

Hinckley Reservation:  41C5NW, 41C5CW, 41C5CE

You are also encouraged to survey your favorite areas and then come to the potluck lunch.

Saturday, July 12, 2008 10:00 am - 4:00 PM meet at the Wilds.

We have booked a trip to the Wilds http://www.thewilds.org/

We will have birding and a Safari tour in a Wilds bus.
There will be a charge for this field trip is $20.

No restaurants in the area. Please bring your lunch or you can buy your lunch at the Wilds Cafe.

Pre-registration is necessary. Please contact Penny at (216) 676-4859 or pjo@earthlink.net to register

For details of past field trips click on Pictures & Reports.

To a person uninstructed in natural history, his country or seaside stroll is a walk through a gallery filled with wonderful works, nine-tenths of which have their faces turned to the wall.-T.H. Huxley

 

Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society, 4310 Bush Ave, Cleveland, OH 44109 info@wcasohio.org