MAY 05,2022 - CUYAHOGA VALLEY MONTHLY TOWPATH TRAIL CENSUS.
ROUTE: Red Lock Trailhead south to Bath Rd. (route cut short - didn't do Bath Rd. to Merriman Valley due to time constraints).
TIME: 6:15am - 4:55pm  TEMP.: 47F ~ 63F  COND.: Mostly cloudy all day with a few breaks of partly sunny.
TRAIL COND.: Good.  RIVER COND.: Slightly above normal due to rain earlier in the week.
FT. MI.: 11.0  OBS.: Katie Clink, John Henry, Douglas W. Vogus.

I. MAMMALS: 8 SPECIES, 1 DEAD.
  1. Eastern Chipmunk - 28
  2. Eastern Gray Squirrel - 9 (4 black morph)
  3. Red Squirrel - 29
  4. American Beaver - 1  (Fourth May Record on Census)
  5. Common Muskrat - 3
  6. Mink - 1  (Second May Record on Census)
  7. Northern River Otter - 1  (First May Record on Census & Tied Census High from 10/2016)
  8. White-tailed Deer - 6 (2 does, 4 yearlings)
X. Northern Short-tailed Shrew - 1 (dead)

II. BIRDS: 102 SPECIES, (4 SPECIES NEW TO CENSUS), 1,011 TOTAL BIRDS.
(NOTE: m = male; f = female; ? = bird was seen but not sexed; * = bird was heard calling but not sexed)
  1. Canada Goose - 47 (7 goslings, two active nests)
  2. Wood Duck - 10 (6m,4f)
  3. Mallard - 6 (m)
  4. Common Merganser - 2  (fly-over of one female & 1 unknown - Fourth May Record on Census)
  5. Wild Turkey - 1 (?)
  6. Rock Pigeon - 1
  7. Mourning Dove - 28
  8. Chimney Swift - 22
  9. Virginia Rail - 1  (calling at Ira Beaver Marsh)
  10. Sora - 2  (calling back and forth at Stumpy Basin - Second Record on Census & New Census High - previous was one on 05/2014)
  11. Killdeer - 4
  12. Wilson's Snipe - 2  (winnowing display at Ira Beaver Marsh - New Species on Census List)
  13. Spotted Sandpiper - 5
  14. Solitary Sandpiper - 1  (in flooded section of one of Szalay's northern corn fields)
  15. Lesser Yellowlegs - 20  (in Szalay's unplowed corn field along Bolanz Rd. - birds flew north in one group - New Species on Census List)
  16. Double-crested Cormorant - 2  (single fly-overs)
  17. Least Bittern - 1  (calling from cattail marsh north of "Johnnycake Lock" near Everett Ranger Station - New Species on Census List)
  18. Great Blue Heron - 14
  19. Green Heron - 2
  20. Turkey Vulture - 15
  21. Osprey - 1  (flying over Ira Beaver Marsh)
  22. Sharp-shinned Hawk - 1 (?)  (soaring in a kettle with four Turkey Vultures - First May Record on Census)
  23. Bald Eagle - 2 (1 adult, 1 immature)
  24. Broad-winged Hawk - 3
  25. Red-tailed Hawk - 8 (1 immature)
  26. Belted Kingfisher - 3 (2m,1*)
  27. Red-headed Woodpecker - 3
  28. Red-bellied Woodpecker - 10 (5m,2f,3*)
  29. Downy Woodpecker - 8 (2m,2f,1?,3*)
  30. Hairy Woodpecker - 2 (1f,1*)
  31. Northern Flicker - 6 (1m,1f,4*)  one nest in a sycamore snag)
  32. Pileated Woodpecker - 4 (2m,1f,1*)
  33. Peregrine Falcon - 2 (1m,1f)
  34. Great Crested Flycatcher - 1
  35. Eastern Kingbird - 1
  36. Eastern Phoebe - 10
  37. White-eyed Vireo - 2
  38. Yellow-throated Vireo - 3
  39. Blue-headed Vireo - 2  (Tied Census High from 10/2016 & 05/2017)
  40. Warbling Vireo - 17
  41. Red-eyed Vireo - 1
  42. Blue Jay - 20
  43. American Crow - 14
  44. Bank Swallow - 5
  45. Tree Swallow - 13
  46. Northern Rough-winged Swallow - 6
  47. Barn Swallow - 56
  48. Cliff Swallow - 2  (at Ira Beaver Marsh - New Species on Census List)
  49. Black-capped Chickadee - 21
  50. Tufted Titmouse - 14
  51. White-breasted Nuthatch - 6 (1m,3?,2*)
  52. House Wren - 8
  53. Carolina Wren - 15
  54. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 13 (2m,2f,5?,4*)  (two nests under construction - one in a cottonwood tree and one in an elm tree)
  55. Ruby-crowned Kinglet - 18 (2m,1f,14?,1*)  (New Census High - previous was 9 on 05/2018 & 05/2020)
  56. Eastern Bluebird - 3 (2m,1f)
  57. Veery - 3
  58. Swainson's Thrush - 2  (Fifth May Record on Census)
  59. Wood Thrush - 2
  60. American Robin - 26  (two nests under construction - one in a locust tree and one in a sycamore tree)
  61. Gray Catbird - 12
  62. Brown Thrasher - 2  (Third May Record on Census)
  63. European Starling - 6
  64. House Sparrow - 11
  65. House Finch - 6 (3m,1f,2*)
  66. American Goldfinch - 13 (5m,3f,3?,2*)
  67. Chipping Sparrow - 4
  68. Clay-colored Sparrow - 1  (notes at end - Second Record on Census & Tied Census High from 05/2019)
  69. White-crowned Sparrow - 1
  70. White-throated Sparrow - 21
  71. Savannah Sparrow - 2  (Szalay's unplowed corn field east of "Johnnycake Lock" - Second Record on Census & New Census High - previous was 1 on 05/2020)
  72. Song Sparrow - 42
  73. Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
  74. Swamp Sparrow - 11
  75. Eastern Towhee - 6 (5m,1f)
  76. Orchard Oriole - 5 (m)
  77. Baltimore Oriole - 13 (m)
  78. Red-winged Blackbird - 45 (29m,16f)
  79. Brown-headed Cowbird - 18 (12m,6f)
  80. Rusty Blackbird - 1 (m)  (Third May Record on Census)
  81. Common Grackle - 18  (one nest in a hole in a snag at Ira Beaver Marsh)
  82. Louisiana Waterthrush - 5  (Tied Census High from 05/2019)
  83. Northern Waterthrush - 3
  84. Blue-winged Warbler - 3 (m)
  85. Black-and-white Warbler - 2 (m)
  86. Nashville Warbler - 2 (m)
  87. Common Yellowthroat - 18 (m)
  88. Hooded Warbler - 4 (m)
  89. American Redstart - 2 (m)
  90. Cerulean Warbler - 1 (m)
  91. Northern Parula - 2 (m)
  92. Magnolia Warbler - 1 (m)
  93. Blackburnian Warbler - 2 (m)
  94. Yellow Warbler - 30 (26m,4f)
  95. Black-throated Blue Warbler - 2 (m)
  96. Palm Warbler - 48  (New Census High - previous was 19 on 05/2020)
  97. Yellow-rumped Warbler - 59 (42m,17f)
  98. Yellow-throated Warbler - 6 (m)
  99. Black-throated Green Warbler - 4 (m)
  100. Northern Cardinal - 41 (34m,6f,1*)
  101. Rose-breasted Grosbeak - 8 (7m,1f)
  102. Indigo Bunting - 1 (m)
Unidentified Raptor - 1  (too far away to obtain any fieldmarks)
Unidentified Warbler Species - 1  (fleeting glimpse and never re-found)
Unidentified Passerines - 3

III. REPTILES: 6 SPECIES.
  1. Common Snapping Turtle - 8
  2. Red-eared Turtle - 13
  3. Midland Painted Turtle - 468  (New Census High - previous was 426 on 04/2019)
  4. Eastern Spiny Softshell - 6
  5. Northern Water Snake - 1
  6. Eastern Garter Snake - 1  (Fourth May Record on Census)

IV. AMPHIBIANS: 3 SPECIES.
  1. Northern Spring Peeper - 2  (heard only)
  2. Gray Treefrog - 4  (heard only)
  3. Green Frog - 3

V. FISHES: 3 SPECIES.
  1. Central Mudminnow - 5  (Fourth May Record on Census)
  2. Creek Chub - 7
  3. Channel Catfish - 1  (caught by a Great Blue Heron along Cuyahoga River in Peninsula - Second Record on Census & First May Record on Census)

VI. BUTTERFLIES: 2 SPECIES.
  1. Cabbage Butterfly - 7
  2. Red Admiral - 1  (Fifth May Record on Census)

   The Clay-colored Sparrow was found along the Towpath Trail south of Red Lock at Stanford Swamp where the electric wire clear-cut is, so south of
Lock 33 and north of the Stanford Hostel Connector Trail, feeding along edge where dandelions are. Bird later seen by many and photos obtained.

   As for the New Species added to the Census List, we have now eclipsed the 200 Species mark on this monthly census that started in January 2010.
Just when I feel there is nothing more to add, along come some species that one would think would have been found by now. Timeline-wise, the birds
added were: #199 - Least Bittern; #200 - Wilson's Snipe; #201 - Lesser Yellowlegs; and #202 - Cliff Swallow.

Compiler:  Douglas W. Vogus - Akron, Ohio.
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