I spent the morning at Lake Erie Bluffs in Lake County watching the lake and walking the trails west of Lane Road. The lake was relatively quiet. There were about 1500 gulls in the area with the only one of note being a lesser black-backed gull. Not a lot of waterfowl, although a group of 42 tundra swans and 14 canvasbacks were of note.

Along the trails, songbirds were down over recent visits with only 7 robins seen. Along the trails 3 common redpolls and a gray catbird were seen. Two common ravens were observed flying east from the landfill. They briefly landed in the large meadow then onto a high tension line tower, before flying off north-northeast. They seem to fly east out of the dump heading who knows where and then come back to the landfill.

For those looking for the ravens. The landfill is not open to the public. The gravel trail leading from Lane Road and the railroad tracks are not on Lake Metroparks property. They also do not want people parking along the road near the railroad tracks on Lane Road. They have been giving people warnings. The best way is walking the loop trail west of the cul-de-sac and at the southwest corner of the trail walk south along the grass trail. When you get to the end of the property you'll see two white conduit pipes. They are just off our property.


Lake Erie Bluffs Metropark--Lane Rd., Lake, Ohio, US
Dec 4, 2018 7:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
4.0 mile(s)
Comments:     Weather was cloudy with very light flurries. Winds were north 20-25, but diminished to 10-15. Temperature was 34 degrees. I watched the lake from 7:00-9:45. From 9:45 i walked the trails until 10:30 where I was accompanied for part of the walk with two other birders. Gulls were flying east along the lake and gulls were heading west.
36 species

Tundra Swan  42
Gadwall  1
Mallard  4
American Black Duck  6
Canvasback  14
Red-breasted Merganser  337
Wild Turkey  2
Ring-billed Gull  468
Herring Gull  1045
Lesser Black-backed Gull  1     1 adult bird flew by heading west
Great Black-backed Gull  4
Common Loon  1
Double-crested Cormorant  4
Great Blue Heron  1
Turkey Vulture  1
Bald Eagle  4     2 adults and 2 immatures
Red-tailed Hawk  3
Red-bellied Woodpecker  1
Downy Woodpecker  3
Pileated Woodpecker  2
Northern Flicker  1
Blue Jay  5
American Crow  1
Common Raven  2     Two ravens were observed flying east from the landfill. They landed in the meadow briefly, then both sat on the high tension line tower briefly before heading north-northeast. Birds were all black and close to red-tailed hawk size. They had large thick bills and a wedge-shaped tail. They called with a loud croaking call. They have been present in the same area for over a week.
Black-capped Chickadee  2
Tufted Titmouse  2
Carolina Wren  1
American Robin  7
Gray Catbird  1     Feeding in a small crab apple tree.
European Starling  112
House Finch  9
Common Redpoll  3
American Goldfinch  7
American Tree Sparrow  4
White-throated Sparrow  4
Northern Cardinal  14

John Pogacnik

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