Field Trips

 

Our new website has a new Field trip and Second Saturday Bird Walk page. Go to these links.

Field Trips

Second Saturday Bird Walks

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

*Field Trips are subject to change

Christmas Bird Count, Click here

Carbon Offset Project

Second Saturday Bird Walk at RRNC

 

Date
Click on link below for trip description

Day of Week

Time

Place
Click on link below for Map/Directions

Leader

Target Species
September 12, 2015 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
September 27, 2015 Sunday 8:00 am Lake Erie Nature & Science Center Tim Jasinski Migrating Warblers
October 10, 2015 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
October 18, 2015 Sunday 9:30 am West Creek Kurt Grenig Fall Migrants
November 14, 2015 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
November 21, 2015 Saturday 8:30 am Bradstreet Landing Rich & Karen Kassouf Scoters, Waterfowl, Gulls
December 12, 2015 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
December 27, 2015 Sunday Contact area leader Christmas Bird Count, WCAS Nancy Howell, compiler Winter residents
January 9, 2016 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
January 31, 2015 Sunday 8:30 am Lake Erie Nature & Science Center Tim Jasinski Gulls & waterfowl
February 13, 2016 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
February 13, 2016 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Great Backyard Bird Count
March 12, 2016 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
March 13, 2016 Sunday 9:00 am Wellington Upground Reservoir
the reservoir is across the street from Wellington Reservation
Erik Bruder Migrating waterfowl
April 9, 2016 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
April 10 -May 15, 2016 Sundays 7:30 am Audubon Spring Walks Various Spring migrants
April 17, 2016 Sunday 7:30 am Lake Isaac Nancy Howell Spring migrants
May 14, 2016 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
May 18, 2016 Wednesday 6:00 pm Lake Erie Nature & Science Center Tim Jasinski Barred Owl & Warblers
June 11, 2016 Saturday 9:00 am Rocky River Nature

Bill Deininger, Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper Second Saturday Bird Walk
           
           
December 30, 2016 Friday Contact area leader Christmas Bird Count, WCAS Nancy Howell, compiler Winter residents

Highlights for this Field Trip Season.

 

WCAS Sponsors Second Saturday Bird Walk at RRNC
 
Second Saturday Bird Walk sponsored by Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society.  Ken Gober, Dave Graskemper and Bill Deininger will lead walks on the second Saturday of each month at 9 a.m. on the trails around the Cleveland Metroparks Rocky River Nature Center.
 
This is a great opportunity to see the birds of the Rocky River Important Bird Area. New to birding? Grab some binoculars and join us. You will be amazed how fast you can learn to find birds by sight and sound.
Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society invites birders of all skill levels to our "Second Saturday" bird walk.  Learn the birds of the Rocky River Important Bird Area.

What can be seen here? Check out eBird 
 
Meet in the parking lot of the Rocky River Nature Center, 24000 Valley Parkway, North Olmsted, OH 44070.
 
Map and directions at:  http://www.wcasohio.org/Rocky_River_Nature_Center.htm

  
Upcoming dates for Second Saturday
Bird Walk

Every second Saturday of the month.

Enjoy a walk  along wetlands and through forest. Rocky River Nature Center is located at 24000 Valley Parkway in Rocky River Reservation, north of Cedar Point Road in North Olmsted, Ohio 44070

Sunday, September 27, 2015 at 8 a.m.

Field Trip to Lake Erie Nature and Science Center

Leader:  Tim Jasinski (LENSC) and (WCAS)

Target Species:  Migrating warblers

Birds are migrating south from Canada to their wintering grounds in Central and South America.  The woods along Porter Creek are a welcome stopover after a flight across Lake Erie.  We will begin this walk at Lake Erie Nature and Science Center, go to Lake Erie, and return.

Lake Erie Nature and Science Center is located at 28728 Wolf Road, Bay Village, OH  44140. 

Map and directions are at: http://www.wcasohio.org/Lake_Erie_Nature_and_Science_Center.htm

Sunday, October 18, 2015 at 9:30 a.m.

West Creek Field Trip

Leader: Kurt Grenig

Target Species:  Late Fall Migrants

 

West Creek Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks has varied terrain and habitat.  The Field Trip Leader will be Kurt Grenig, who birds West Creek and is also the founder of the new Southern Cuyahoga Christmas Bird Count Circle.  Mid-October is a transitional time, when winter residents are arriving and late-migrating warblers and sparrows are passing through Northeast Ohio.

Meet in the parking lot by the Watershed Stewardship Center.  The address is 2277 West Ridgewood Dr., Parma OH 44134

Directions from Cleveland:

Take Broadview Rd south to Ridgewood Dr. Turn right (west) on Ridgewood Dr. The entrance to West Creek is on the left side (south side) of West Ridgewood Dr. approximately one-half mile from Broadview Rd.

Directions from I-480: From I-480 exit at State Road and proceed south approximately two miles to West Ridgewood Drive. Turn left on West Ridgewood, proceed approximately one mile to the entrance of the reservation.

A map is at:  http://www.wcasohio.org/west_creek.htm

 

Saturday, November 21, 2015 at 8:30 a.m.

Field trip to Bradstreet Landing (note location has been changed due to contruction at Rocky River Park)

Target Species:  Scoters and other Waterfowl, plus Gulls

Leaders: Rich and Karen Kassouf

 

Waterfowl migration can be an exciting time on the shores of Lake Erie.  Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society will bird with Kirtland Bird Club at Bradstreet Landing, Rocky River OH.  We will possibly explore other hotspots along Lake Erie as well.

Bradstreet's Landing is at 22400 Lake Road, Rocky River, Ohio.

 

Directions:  Exit I-90 at Columbia Rd.  Go north on Columbia a short distance to Sperry Rd.  Turn right (east) on Sperry Rd.  to Clague Rd.  Go left (north) on Clague Rd.  Follow Clague north to Lake Rd.

Or, if you prefer, when you exit at Columbia, go north toward Lake Rd.  Turn right (east) on Lake Rd.

 

 A map of the area is at: http://www.wcasohio.org/Bradstreet_Landing.htm

 

Sunday, December 27, 2015 is the date of our chapter’s Christmas Bird Count.
116th CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT for Western Cuyahoga Audubon, west side of Cuyahoga County 

“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas …” gaah, another Christmas carol in my head. Not because of the upcoming holidays, but because of the CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT. Leaves are just barely turning color, yet I am thinking ahead to the Christmas Bird Count for the west side of Cleveland which will be held on Sunday, December 27. This is also known as the Lakewood Count since the center point of our count circle is located in Lakewood.

For those familiar or unfamiliar with what a Christmas Bird Count is, it is the longest running “citizen science” project with over 100 years of data. Data collected goes to the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology’s database giving researchers a glimpse of bird species that are around at the end of December. Each year is different but when data over many years is analyzed trends begin to appear and questions raised. Are the birds hanging around in the winter because the weather has gotten milder? Is food more prevalent? Are species seen where they have not been seen before? Are we just better birders?

Last year the Lakewood Christmas Bird Count tallied 78 species on count day with 2 additional species during count week. I know we can do great things for 2015!

It is NOT too early to sign up to participate in the Christmas Bird Count The portion of the west side this count takes in a lot of the western lakefront going slightly into Lorain County around the Avon Lake, Avon and North Ridgeville, south to the northern border of Strongsville and east to Brooklyn and some of Parma Hts. The WCAS website, http://www.wcasohio.org/christmas_bird_count1.htm shows the count circle and a list of areas needing coverage.  We can ALWAYS have people walk around their neighborhoods, small parks, cemeteries and any other place to count birds as long as it is within the circle. 

Some groups or individuals choose to be out early in the morning, some a little later. Some individuals go “owling” in the pre-dawn hours or later that evening. All species as well as individual birds are counted, yes this does include House Sparrows, Rock Pigeons and European Starlings. Some groups and individuals walk in areas, others drive from spot to spot. No matter what mode of transportation, it is great to get as much of our count circle covered as possible. There is even the opportunity to tally the birds at your feeder that day … but remember it HAS to be within our count circle.  As a participant you may consider being out part of the day or all day.

The Christmas Bird Count is free, but if you would like to make a donation to National Audubon Society to help in compiling the information which will be available electronically only, you may do so at our “thank you” dinner. A catered dinner will be held at the Rocky River Nature Center beginning at 5:30 PM that Sunday were we will tally the species and initial numbers. 

Please contact Nancy Howell at 440-891-1710 (home), njh24425@hotmail.com or 216-231-4600 ext. 3225 (work) or nhowell@cmnh.org for more information, to sign up for an area and for further information about the “thank you” dinner.  Check out the WCAS website or the National Audubon website for additional information about Christmas Bird Counts – http://www.audubon.org/bird/cbc/

Sunday, January 31, 2016 at 8:30 a.m.

Field Trip to Lake Erie Nature and Science Center
Leader:  Tim Jasinski

Winter at Huntington Reservation can be surprisingly birdy.  We will bird the woods and fields near Lake Erie Nature and Science Center, and work our way to Lake Erie.  A variety of waterfowl and gulls are a good possibility on the lake shore.  Bring a scope if you have one.

Lake Erie Nature and Science Center is located at 28728 Wolf Road, Bay Village Ohio 44140.

 Map and directions are at:  http://www.wcasohio.org/Lake_Erie_Nature_and_Science_Center.htm

Saturday, February 13, 2016 at 9:00 a.m.

The trails around the Cleveland Metroparks Rocky River Nature Center lead to woodland and wetland habitats.  Three expert leaders will guide us as we observe winter resident birds.  An irruption of winter finches is predicted for this winter and these will be the target species. 

This will be our field trip for February. The Great Backyard Bird Count is this weekend, and we will enter the results to be part of that.

The Rocky River Nature Center is located at 24000 Valley Parkway, North Olmsted, OH 44070.  For a map and directions visit:  http://www.wcasohio.org/Rocky_River_Nature_Center.htm

Sunday, March 13, 2016 at 9 a.m.

Field Trip to Wellington Upground Reservoir

Leader:  Erik Bruder
Target Species:  Migrating waterfowl.

The Wellington Upground Reservoir is a great waterfowl stopover.  Flocks of ducks, grebes, mergansers and scaup can be seen on the right day.  There is easy viewing for all as vehicles with handicapped tags can park next to the water. Bring a scope if you have one. The reservoir is across the road from the Lorain Metroparks Wellington Reservation, with restrooms and acres of bird habitat.

From the Cleveland area take I-480 west.  It becomes Route 10.  Follow Route 10 west to Route 58.  Go south on Route 58.  You will pass through the town of Wellington.  Just south of town, turn right on Jones Road.  Watch for an archway on the right leading to the reservoir.  If you reach the Wellington Reservation (on left) you have gone too far. The address of Wellington Reservation is 535 Jones Rd. Wellington, OH 44090

A map can be found here for Wellington Reservation, use the directions above to get to the reservoir.

 

In April & May,

Audubon Spring Bird Walks (The Spring Bird Walks will occur on the last three Sundays in April and the first 3 Sundays in May)

See the spring migrants during the Audubon spring bird walks. The walks will be held each Sunday from April 12 to May 17, 2015, at 7:30 a.m. A full list of  locations can be found on our web site:  www.wcasohio.org/spring_bird_walks.htm

The following is a partial list of local walks: Lake Isaac in Middleburg Hts. Hinckley Reservation at bridge on State Rd. CanalWay Center in Cuyahoga Hts. Rocky River Nature Center, North Olmsted, Station Rd. Bridge Trailhead, Brecksville. To see a complete listing of all the walks click on this link. Sunday Audubon bird walks.

For all birders, this is a wonderful opportunity to sample the waves of birds moving through some of the top birding spots around Cleveland. New birders, be sure to be out on each of these six Sundays.  It is a great way to start birding.

Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland conducts these walks in cooperation with the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, local park districts and the Holden Arboretum.  Walks are led by expert volunteersm from Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society and other local birding groups. The walks are free to all. 

Sunday, April 17, 2016 7:30 a.m.

Field Trip to Lake Isaac

Leader:  Nancy Howell
Target Species: Waterfowl, woodpeckers, raptors

WCAS birders will join in on one of the Audubon Spring Bird Walks for our April field trip.  A variety of habitats around Lake Isaac includes forest and fields as well as Lake Isaac. 

Lake Isaac is located in Middleburg Heights, on Big Creek Parkway, just south of Fowles Road.  Take I-71 south from Cleveland to Pearl Rd. (Rte. 42). Go north on Pearl Road and watch for Fowles Road, a short distance.  Turn left on Fowles Road.  Follow Fowles to Big Creek Parkway and turn left.  The parking lot for Lake Isaac is on the right.

A map and directions are here:  http://www.wcasohio.org/lake_isaac.htm

 

Wednesday, May 18, 2016 at 6 p.m.

Early Evening Bird Walk

at Lake Erie Nature and Science Center

Leader:  Tim Jasinski

Target Species:  Barred Owl and Warblers!

Migrating warblers stop to rest and feed before crossing Lake Erie on the way to nesting grounds in Canada.  Huntington Reservation, around Lake Erie Nature and Science Center, is a great spot to view them.  In addition, Barred Owls have nested in the area for many years running.  Chances are good to see them.  Wildlife rehabber Tim Jasinski leads our walk. 

Lake Erie Nature and Science Center is located at 28728 Wolf Rd. Bay Village, OH 44140.  A map is at http://www.wcasohio.org/Lake_Erie_Nature_and_

 

Annual Picnic and Plant exchange

Tuesday, June 7, 2016 at 6:00 PM
Picnic and plant exchange - NOT at
Rocky River Nature Center – held outdoors at a picnic shelter

The final meeting of the 2015-2016 year is the WCAS picnic and plant exchange. We will meet at TBA.  Bring yourself, family, friends and your dinner.  A charcoal grill will be lit if you would like to cook something.  This is a relaxing evening with fellow members, family and friends. Wait, wait there’s more!  Bring your orphan indoor or outdoor plants, seeds, bulbs, transplants, cuttings and whatever plants you would like to find a home for.  This plant exchange has been tremendously successful.  If you don’t have any plants to bring, that’s fine … but we hope you can take some home.   Bring your binoculars too since we have a birdwalk along the Rocky River.  See you there, rain or shine.

 

 

 

 

Carbon Offset WCAS Project

Carbon Offset logoIt has been said that if you drive 100 miles to see a rare bird, and you can actually identify that bird, you are a true birder!  Since we love traveling to look for birds, but at the same time, we care about our environment, Western Cuyahoga Audubon offers a way to offset the carbon impact of some of this driving. It is the Carbon Offset WCAS Project, modeled on the effort launched at the 2011 Midwest Birding Symposium.

Here is how it works: Any time we have a field trip where more than 100 miles of travel may be involved (Think Killdeer Plains or Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge) participants may voluntarily contribute to a fund, based on mileage.  Monies generated by carbon offset will go toward habitat preservation in our Rocky River Important Bird Area, or in another area of local interest.

While there are many carbon offset models and calculators, we offer a simple formula.

 

Compact car: driver only - 10 cents per mile, additional passengers 5 cents each per mile. Multiply these amounts by the total miles and divide by 10.

Mid-sized car: driver only - 20 cents per mile, additional passengers 10 cents per mile. Multiply these amounts by the total miles and divide by 10.

Truck or larger van: driver only - 25 cents per mile, additional passengers 15 cents per mile. Multiply these amounts by the total miles and divide by 10.

For example, if I drive to Killdeer Plains, the round trip will be 250 miles. I usually have two passengers, so I will figure 10 plus 5 plus 5 cents per mile for a total of 20 cents per mile. Twenty times 250 divided by 10 equals 500, so I will put in $5.00 for carbon offset.  Note that rounding to the nearest 50 miles when calculating your trip distance may produce an easier payment amount.

This is completely voluntarily, just another way to help, and of course any donation to the fund is welcome.

You may use this handy form to accompany your donation.

 

CARBON OFFSET PROJECT UPDATE

Our special funds for the Carbon Offset Bird Project has seen a bit of a boost. Some of our members checked off the Carbon Offset funds on their application when renewing or becoming a new member. These funds will be used to assist in purchasing property for the protection of habitat, plants and wildlife within our WCAS area. Thank you.

 Fund total as of April 1, 2015                     $ 755.20

 

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