Jeff Grabmeier, Andy Sewell, Brad Sparks and I birded the northwestern 
quadrant of the state yesterday. Our first stop was in Wood County, 
where we found the WESTERN MEADOWLARK singing at Range Line and Cygnet 
Roads about six miles west of Cygnet.

At Oak Openings Metropark at the sand barrens along Girdham Road we had 
excellent luck with the Oak Openings specialties. We found a CLAY-
COLORED SPARROW near the southern end of the rail fence. It wore a 
rather dull plumage, much drabber than the specimens I’ve seen in North 
Dakota. On the western side of the road, we found a singing SUMMER 
TANAGER, a family of BLUE GROSBEAKS, LARK SPARROWS, and GRASSHOPPER 
SPARROW carrying food.

We did the driving tour at Ottawa NWR. We saw a single SNOWY EGRET, a 
surprisingly scarce showing. Along the tour route, there was shorebird 
habitat in only one moist soil unit. It held a small, but diverse, 
group of birds. These were

Spotted Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Least Sandpiper
Dunlin (2)
Short-billed Dowitcher
Wilson’s Snipe

At Pipe Creek Wildlife Area, there was shorebird habitat in one corner 
of Unit B, which also held about a dozen SNOWY EGRETS. Unit C had the 
best habitat and here we saw

Spotted Sandpiper
Lesser Yellowlegs
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Stilt Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher.

Unit D held too much water for shorebirds, but we did relocate there 
the previously reported adult LITTLE BLUE HERON.

Happy birding,



Paul Gardner
Columbus, OH

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