Fall wrap up

Fall has arrived in cooler weather and a rush of Kinglets.

My camera got left behind this weekend, so I only have a few snaps from my cell phone to keep you us to date.  The weekend started off with a Friday night Saw-whet Owl banding at Lowe-Volk park in Crawford county.  Sorry to report it was a bust. (Go here if you want to see last year's owl post.)  

The Saw-whets seem to be in short supply this year, but my friend Bob Scott Placier caught a few passerines on Saturday morning.

Golden Crown Kinglet

The kinglets are here in good number now.  They make the high pitched tse-tse-tse call you might be hearing as you pass through a white pine grove.  They are a true hearing test bird, and likely one of the first bird calls "lost" when your hearing starts to go.  They come in two flavors.  The Golden-crowned Kinglet as seen in the photo above, and the Ruby-crowned Kinglet as pictured in Bob's hand below.

Golden-crowns are a bit more common in Ohio, but both species regularly occur here in October during the fall migration.

Bob Scott Placier and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Both species of frenetic feeders are impossibly small, weighing less than the standard U.S. mint's quarter. Kinglets can hover feed off the tips of pines, or bounce from limb-to limb in search of insects. They are seen as a blur as they energetically feed and fly in tree tops.  It is a rare treat to have close-up looks like these.

Thanks to Bob Scott Placier (Dendrology professor at Hocking University and long-time Flora-Quest guide) for all the fine educational and scienticific  work he does while banding birds.  I encourage you to attend his one of his programs at Lowe-Volk Park next spring. Bob is truly one of Ohio's unsung heros!  He may be on the quiet-side, but do yourself a favor and engage this man in conversation!  He has much to say on birds and books, our two favorite topics of conversation.

Shelly and Mark Goodman gearing up for a run.

 On a personal note, I shared much of this weekend with one of my favorite couples: Shelly and Mark Goodman. If you haven't heard, Shelly (Michelle) joined the U.S Army and reported for duty at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma this very morning.  Of course we wish her the very best, and Mark will have to fill in for her on all my adventures.  Sure hope he is ready to hike, bike and paddle his way around Ohio and beyond!  Actually, Mark is a very fine teacher in a Columbus school, and we are very proud of him as well.

More birding with Jim McCormac at the OOS Killdeer Plains event.

On Sunday, I joined up with my OOS friends at Killdeer Plains for birding and homemade soup.  Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so I this is the only shot I have.

As always, it was great to be teamed up with my long-time mentor and friend Jim McCormac.  And for a special treat, I hope you will click the link to his blog post to learn all about the Red-headed Woodpeckers and Rusty Blackbirds that we saw.

Special thanks to Bob Placier and Jim McCormac for all the educational work they have done throughout Ohio.  I was fortunate to serve with both on the Ohio Ornithological Society's board and for many years at Flora-Quest. Thanks to their efforts, many people in Ohio have learned more and enjoyed the beauty of our birds, trees and native plants!