Warblers of the Underwater World

When I first began my career, I had the good fortune to make many trips afield with Ted Cavender and Dan Rice, two of the top fish guys in Ohio. Once they saw I was truly interested in stream ecology and fish, they let me serve as labor on fields trip far and wide. In the process, I got to see nearly all of Ohio's fish, and learn them pretty well.

But that's been a while, and circumstances haven't let me look for fish in a serious way for a long time. For a few years, though, I've been threatening to make concrete plans with Mac Albin, another true fish guru, to work some riffles in Big Darby Creek. Finally, today was the day, and we couldn't have picked a better one. Warm air temperatures and low water levels made conditions for catching fish just perfect. And we're not talking Smallmouth Bass or Bluegill - oh, no, much more interesting piscine targets than those were our goal.

Our main quarry were darters. These are tiny members of the perch family, and they mostly lack air bladders and thus can't float. So one doesn't often notice darters, and you've pretty much got to make a special effort to find them. And darters truly are the warblers of the depths. At this time of year, males brighten up and their colors rival just about anything one might find in aquaria. Reds, oranges, blues, greens, you name it - darters are a rainbow palette of showiness.

Big Darby Creek, in Battelle-Darby Metropark. This 8,000-acre park protects large swaths of the Big and Little Darby Creeks, one of North America's standout river systems, and one of Ohio's most significant natural resources. More species of fish occur in these waters than any other Ohio stream, including many very rare ones.

For our subjects, we're going to have to go underwater, into rapidly flowing riffles like the one above. You see, most darters are torrent specialists, uniquely equipped to negotiate the unending rush of chutes and rapids. In some places, it is nearly impossible to find purchase and remain erect and holding a seine, so forceful is the sweep of the water. But if you can, there will be darters down there.

Mac Albin, left, aquatic ecologist for Franklin County Metroparks, and Anthony Sasson, freshwater conservation coordinator for The Nature Conservancy. They may be the two most knowledgeable people around whan it comes to the Darby Creeks, and it was a treat to spend time in the water with them. We spent about three hours working just one riffle and some assoicated habitats, and scored big time. In all, we got ten species of darters, most in good numbers. This would be like finding 30 species of warblers in one day in Ohio. For those darter listers among you, we had: Rainbow Darter, Bluebreast Darter, Spotted Darter, Tippecanoe Darter, Greenside Darter, Orangethroat Darter, Banded Darter, Johnny Darter, Variegate Darter, and Logperch.

Of course, a healthy stream has much more than darters. We dredged up this robust hellgrammite, which is the larval form of the dobsonfly. Fishermen love 'em for bait. They've got a decent pair of pinchers, and this one gave Anthony a good nip. Wish I had caught that on film!

Stonerollers, Campostoma anomalum. Fish are not easy to observe, and concerted efforts have to be made to check them out. Thus, most people don't know much about what lurks under water. These Stonerollers are males in their breeding finery. Just like birds, the males of many fish take on brighter colors and a gaudier appearance for a short while during the breeding period, which for many stream species is right now. Stonerollers are bottom-dwelling minnows, and normally don't look like much. But for a few weeks, the male's dorsal fin becomes infused with bright color, bluish-white warts known as tubercles appear on the head, and even the eye color seems to get brighter. In essence, they become real showstoppers.

Darters are aptly named. This is a Rainbow Darter, Etheostoma caeruleum, in habitat. They lack air bladders, and thus don't float. But this serves them well, and helps darters to anchor themselves to the cobble of stream bottoms in swiftly flowing riffles. There, they dart about with quick, abrupt movements, capturing an array of tiny macroinvertebrates and other stream life. Their stiff pectoral fins - fanned out to the sides in the above shot - are used as props, and help to hold the darter in place.

It isn't difficult to see how this species got the name Rainbow Darter. Breeding males are absolutely striking, enriched with bold greens, blues, and reddish-orange.

Although they appear exotic, like something that should be in a saltwater aquarium, Rainbow Darters can be quite common in appropriate habitat. Mac and Anthony seined up about 400 of them today.

Part of a male Variegate Darter, Etheostoma variatum, in breeding condition. The transition to breeding condition is triggered by water temperature. I think Mac told me that Variegates come into color when water temperatures hit about 48 degrees. This is another common species, and one that gets fairly large by Etheostoma darters standards. A whopper might stretch the tape to three or four inches. This is an extremely colorful darter; almost makes you blink and rub your eyes! Variegates are found only in Ohio River drainages in Ohio.

Variegate Darter on stream bottom cobble. Darters are especially sensitive to degradation of stream systems, as they require clear waters and clean substrates. Muck the stream up with too much sediment, and darters will vanish. Big Darby remains fairly pristine, in no small measure due to the hard work of Franklin County Metroparks and The Nature Conservancy. As Columbus and surrounding areas continue to grow, it will be increasingly difficult to protect the Darby, though. Hopefully we are up to it, and decision-makers can recognize the global significance of the stream, and its value to central Ohio.

I shot off 345 photos today, and a fair number were keepers. I'll share other underwater warblers as the week progresses, including a few of the real rarities.

Psychotic Homicidal Beast Friday

I saw a Sharp-shinned Hawk the other day, tracing lazy, languid circles high in the sky. A migrant, the "sharpie" was off to parts north, and this is about as placid as you'll ever see one of these birds behaving.

This got me thinking about "Sky Watch Friday". A lovely bit of goodness, this site allows photographers to post beautiful images of fluffy clouds, tantalizing sunsets, and other awe-inspiring views of the ether.

Very nice.

But there are winged savages up there in the sky, like the above Sharp-shinned Hawk. If these feathered balls of testosterone were the size of Trumpeter Swans, we'd all be dead. They'd run us down, pluck off our extremities, and feast on our innards. The sharpie is a fitting subject for Psychotic Homicidal Beast Friday, a blogger's tribute to the week's end that is very unlikely to catch on.

Sharp-shinneds like to attack things. They seem to be utterly devoid of fear. In migration, they'll routinely strafe larger, more sluggish and mellower co-migrants like Red-tailed Hawks, just for kicks, apparently. Yes, if these boys were human, they'd be stored in rubber rooms and fed through slots.


All of the Accipiter tribe are hostile. These are the bird hawks, equipped with long rudderlike tails to facilitate quick jigs and jags, and short rounded wings, the better to accelerate in fast bursts and get through dense thickets. No songbird is safe with lurking accipters nearby.

The above silhouette is a cardinal's Grim Reaper come to life; the spector of death for small birds. A Cooper's Hawk, the bigger relative of the sharpies and every bit as aggressive. They are like Mike Tyson, Wayne Gretzky, and Ghengis Khan rolled into one: savage aggression, suberb agility, and cunning warrior skills. I have seen coops go so far as to run on foot into shrubby thickets where songbirds cowered and the vegetation was too dense to fly into. That'd be like your worst dream come true, if you were the House Sparrow in the shrub.

I photographed the above confrontation a while back. Cooper's (left) meets Sharp-shinned (right). They didn't like each other. It was a battle of Alpha versus Alpha, as the little sharpie badgered the bigger coop, who would then chase his tormentor. Kind of like two bigtime wrestlers, maybe Stone Cold Steve Austin going after Andre the Giant.

Don't get me wrong. I love these birds, and admire everything about them. A group of us stumbled across the above Sharp-shinned Hawk, just after it had killed a Brown-headed Cowbird, last year. Like an unrepentant street thug, it gave us the evil eye for daring to intrude, and held its turf. These birds really aren't intimidated by much.

It was very apropos that Attila the Hun bedecked his war helmet with the likeness of a Northern Goshawk, the largest and most savage Accipiter of them all.

If you want to learn more about raptors, or even if you don't but do want to attend a fun birding event, come to Lake Erie Wing Watch. Held on Saturday, April 4th in Port Clinton, there'll be plenty of interesting talks, capped by keynote Chuck Hagner speaking about Kirtland's Warblers. I'll be giving a program on raptors, and there'll be talks on waterfowl, bird song, shorebirds, photography, and more. Register HERE!

Red-shouldered Hawks and toxic foliage

A great paper recently was published in the esteemed Wilson Journal of Ornithology by three Ohio researchers: Cheryl Dykstra, Jeff Hays, and Melinda Simon. They've been studying red-shouldereds for years in southern Ohio, and have unearthed some fascinating behavioral traits associated with nest construction. The title of the paper is: Selection of Fresh Vegetation for Nest Lining by Red-shouldered Hawks.

Dykstra, Hays, and Simon document the preferences of the various tree foliage that these hawks, arguably our most beautiful raptors, use to rejuvenate their nests at the onset of the breeding season.

Stunning Red-shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus, captured for banding. Photo courtesy of Bill Bosstic.

Young hawklets in the nest, northeast Ohio. Photo courtesy of Jim Dolan.

Of the twenty species of trees documented in the Dykstra et al paper as being added to nests, one stands head and shoulders above the rest in popularity amongst the red-shouldered crowd. Black Cherry, Prunus serotina, was found in over 80% of the ninety-eight nests studied in Hamilton and Hocking counties. And to me, this cherry/red-shouldered relationship is the most interesting facet of their research.

So enamored are the hawks with cherry that they'll go out of their way to get the plant. Dykstra and company meticulously quantified all trees within reasonable reach of the nests, and cherry were only found close at hand in a bit more than half the cases. Of course, powerful flyers like Red-shouldered Hawks are not going to be overly put out flying halfway across the county if they wish, but the research does suggest they covet this foliage enough to travel out of their way to get it. The ability of these raptors to recognize the plant means that they are also adept amateur botanists: rapto-botanists, or perhaps buteoflorists.

Why? The answer surely lies in the chemical composition of Prunus serotina. The foliage is rich in toxic nasties such as hydrogen cyanide, acetone, and a natural ant-repellant, benzaldehyde. By adorning their nests with sprigs of fresh cherry, the hawks are effectively playing the part of the Orkin Man. No pesky ants for Junior Red-shouldered! Very clever, these rust-shouldered beauties.

White-marked Tussock Moth, Orgyia leucostigma. These little bags of heavily furred goo are real stunners, but I wouldn't recommend eating one. Not that you would, but I'm just sayin'. Birds probably shun them to some degree, too. In part perhaps because these tussocks feast on... Black Cherry. Just as the Red-shouldered Hawks decorate their abodes with cherry foliage for pest management purposes, an enormous number of caterpillar species chow on cherry, probably because they have evolved to process the nasty chemicals. And thus, become unpalatable themselves. Douglas Tallamy, entomologist at the University of Delaware, has found that Black Cherry supports far more species of moth and butterfly larvae (caterpillars) than any other species of tree, including oaks.

It's a war out there. Plants don't like to be eaten. So they evolve toxins to ward off the insects. Insects evolve faster, and some cope with the poisons. They win, because then birds and other predators go "ugh", make faces and spit them out when they try for a snack. And theoretically don't try again. Then along comes some superior life form, like a Red-shouldered Hawk, and figures out how to put all of this to work. Nature is perennially fascinating.

The Dykstra, Hays, and Simon paper is a short, interesting read, and for those of you not subscribed to the Wilson Journal of Ornithology, I've posted it below (sans Table 1, which wouldn't translate from the PDF file).

THE WILSON JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGY • Vol. 121, No. 1, January 2009

Selection of Fresh Vegetation for Nest Lining by Red-shouldered Hawks

Cheryl R. Dykstra, Jeffrey L. Hays, and Melinda M. Simon

ABSTRACT.—Red-shouldered Hawks (Buteo lineatus) typically line their nests with fresh branches of coniferous and deciduous trees. We recorded all species of green material present in 63 nests from 2003 to 2005 in suburban Cincinnati in southwestern Ohio, and in 35 nests in Hocking Hills in southeastern Ohio, United States. We identified all trees within 0.08-ha plots at 33 nest sites in southwestern Ohio and 30 in Hocking Hills. Red-shouldered Hawks in southwestern Ohio and Hocking Hills used black cherry (Prunus serotina) branches as a nest lining more frequently than expected, based on Bailey’s 95% confidence intervals. Black cherry was found in _80% of nests but present in only 57–58% of the vegetation plots, and composed only 4–5% of the trees in the forests of the study areas. White pine (Pinus strobus), red pine (P. resinosa), and eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) also were used more than expected in both study areas.

Black cherry is a cyanogenic species and may provide an advantage to nesting Red-shouldered Hawks by functioning as a natural pesticide.

Received 26 February 2008. Accepted 1 July 2008.

Many raptors line their nests with fresh green vegetation consisting primarily of
branches or sprigs of trees (hereafter ‘‘greenery’’) (Preston and Beane 1993, England et al. 1997, Buehler 2000, Ferguson-Lees and Christie 2001). The purpose of the lining has
not been definitively shown. However, it has been suggested that vegetation brought to the nest might serve a signaling function, indicating the occupancy status of the nest to con-specifics and others (Newton 1979), or a nest sanitation function, covering prey remains and waste (Newton 1979).

Red-shouldered Hawks (Buteo lineatus) line their nests with branches of fresh vegetation
(Dykstra et al. 2008). They begin bringing greenery during the nest-building phase (early Feb in southern Ohio; Dykstra et al. 2008) and continue to add fresh vegetation throughout the incubation and nestling phases. Red-shouldered Hawks in southern Ohio,
United States, bring only coniferous greenery from February through mid-April, but after
leaves appear on deciduous trees, they carry both deciduous and coniferous branches to the nests (C. R. Dykstra and J. L. Hays, unpubl. data). The objective of our study was to examine if Red-shouldered Hawks selectively used particular species of green vegetation to line their nests.

METHODS
Study Areas.—We studied Red-shouldered Hawks nesting in two regions of southern
Ohio. The southwest Ohio study area (SWOH) in Hamilton, Clermont, and Warren
counties in the suburbs of Cincinnati, is composed of residences surrounded by lawns and
non-native plantings, interspersed with small areas of natural forest dominated by second-growth mixed mesophytic, oak-hickory (Quercus spp., Carya spp.) and beech-maple
(Fagus grandifolia, Acer saccharum) associations. The Hocking Hills study area (HH) in
southeastern Ohio is composed of portions of Wayne National Forest, Hocking State Forest, Zaleski State Forest, and associated private lands in Athens, Hocking, Vinton, and Perry counties. The predominant forest type is oak-hickory with plantations of white pine (Pinus strobus) and red pine (P. resinosa).

Green Vegetation Used in Nests.—Red-shouldered Hawk nest locations and breeding
areas were previously known to us (Dykstra et al. 2000, 2004). We climbed to all accessible nests containing nestlings between 4 May and 13 June, 2003–2005 to document greenery and to band nestlings. We identified all branches or sprigs of fresh green vegetation in the nests to species or species-group, and recorded the presence/absence of each species. We identified only fresh greenery; it is likely this vegetation was collected by hawks after deciduous leaves had emerged in mid-April.

Tree Species Available in the Study Areas.
We recorded tree species and diameter at breast height (dbh) of trees _8 cm dbh to provide a sample for trees available near Red-shouldered Hawk nest sites in the SWOH and HH study areas in 1997–1998 (Dykstra et al. 2000). We centered a 0.04-ha circular plot (James and Shugart 1970) on each nest tree (n _ 33 in SWOH, n _ 30 in HH) and located a paired random plot at a distance of 75–200 m in a random direction from the nest. All trees within the plots were identified and measured (Dykstra et al. 2000). We combined data from each nest plot with that from its paired random plot to create a combination vegetation plot of 0.08 ha. Nests for which we identified trees in circular plots in 1997–1998 were not the same as those where we identified green vegetation in nests in 2003–2005; however, plots and nests were well distributed throughout the same study areas. This study design necessitated a pooled statistical analysis.

Statistical Analyses.—We recorded nest lining vegetation at some breeding areas in 2 or
3 years during 2003–2005. We randomly selected 1 year of data for inclusion in the data
set for these breeding areas to avoid pseudoreplication associated with individual pairs of
birds or territories, leaving 63 independent nests in SWOH and 35 in HH. We limited our
analyses to the 10 species of greenery most commonly found in nests. We used Bailey’s
95% CI (following Boal et al. 2005) constructed following a _2 goodness-of-fit test
(with Systat 8.0). The CIs for the proportion of nests using a particular species for nest lining were compared to the proportion of vegetation plots containing at least one tree of
that species (availability). If the proportion of plots containing the species was below or
above the 95% CI, we considered the nesting Red-shouldered Hawks had used that species as a lining more or less than expected, respectively.

We also recorded the number of trees of each species in the combination plots
and reported the sum as a percentage of total trees in all plots combined.

RESULTS
Red-shouldered Hawks in both study areas used black cherry (Prunus serotina) branches
as a nest lining more frequently than expected (Table 1). Black cherry was found in _80%
of nests but present in only 57–58% of the 0.08-ha vegetation plots (Table 1), and composed only 4–5% of the trees in the forests of the study areas (i.e., in the vegetation plots). The 95% CI assessment indicated white pine, red pine, and eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) were used as nest-lining material more than expected based on availability in both SWOH and HH (Table 1). Red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) was used more than expected in SWOH. The remaining species were used in proportion to their availability or less often than expected (Table 1). The average number of species of greenery was 4.3 _ 0.2 (SE) per nest in SWOH and 3.5 _ 0.2 per nest in HH. However, the amount of greenery in nests varied widely, from a few small sprigs in the center of the nest cup to many large branches that covered the entire nest (C. R. Dykstra and J. L. Hays, unpubl. data). The average number of trees per 0.08-ha plot was 32.7 _ 2.5 in SWOH and 33.4 _ 2.5 in HH. Totals of 1,079 and 1,001 trees were identified in circular plots in SWOH and HH, respectively.

DISCUSSION
Use of Coniferous Species as Nest Lining.— Red-shouldered Hawks in both study areas apparently used red pine, white pine, and eastern hemlock more than expected based on availability. Both pines are non-native in the study areas and are nonrandomly distributed (i.e., planted primarily in plantations or in residential areas); it is possible that our vegetation plots may not have adequately sampled the distribution of pines in the habitat. Hemlock is native in the Hocking Hills region, growing primarily in north-facing ravines and along streams. It is not native to southwestern Ohio although it is planted in some residential areas. Red cedar, used more than expected in SWOH but not in HH, is native to both study areas. It is much more common in SWOH than in HH, probably because the species’ nature as a scrubby, early-colonizer makes it more suited to the developed habitats of SWOH than to the heavily forested HH. Red-shouldered Hawks also carry significant amounts of these conifers to their nests before deciduous leaf-out (C. R. Dykstra and J. L. Hays, unpubl. data).

Use of Deciduous Species as Nest Lining.
Red-shouldered Hawks in both study areas used black cherry more than expected based
on availability: more than 80% of nests we studied contained this species as a nest lining.
Black cherry, a medium-sized tree native to both study areas, is present in small numbers
in most forest types throughout the region. Black cherry is a cyanogenic species, releasing volatile hydrogen cyanide (HCN) from its leaves when they wilt or become damaged by herbivory (Conn 1979). The cyanogenesis reaction, in addition to HCN, also releases other volatile compounds such as acetone, 2-butanone and benzaldehyde, the last of which has been shown to repel ants (Formicidae) (Peterson et al. 1987). We suggest the black cherry used by Red-shouldered Hawks may provide an advantage to the nesting birds by functioning as a bactericide, insecticide, or insect repellent. Clark (1991) suggests that greenery some passerines add to their nests may release volatile compounds having insecticidal properties. The addition of yarrow (Achillea millefolium) to Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) nest boxes reduced flea abundance (Shutler and Campbell 2007), and removal of greenery from nests of European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) resulted in an increase in mite populations (Clark 1991). It would be interesting to examine the relationship between microbe and insect abundance, and presence of black cherry in hawk nests, to learn if black cherry has a positive effect on reproductive success. It would also be interesting to learn if Red-shouldered Hawks in other regions selectively line their nests with black cherry or any other species.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We are grateful to Ann Wegman and Sandra Stone for assistance with field work. We thank the many landowners in southwestern Ohio and Hocking Hills who allowed access to private property. D. E. Andersen kindly reviewed an earlier version of this manuscript.
This research was supported in part by RAPTOR, Inc., Martin and Julie Wiltz, Brad and Marsha Lindner, and the Ohio Biological Survey.

LITERATURE CITED
BOAL, C. W., D. E. ANDERSEN, AND P. L. KENNEDY.
2005. Foraging and nest habitat of breeding male Northern Goshawks in the Laurentian mixed forest province, Minnesota. Journal of Wildlife Management 69:1516–1527.

BUEHLER, D. A. 2000. Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). The birds of North America. Number 506.

CLARK, L. 1991. The nest protection hypothesis: the adaptive use of plant secondary compounds by European Starlings. Pages 205–221 in Bird-parasite interactions: ecology, evolution and behaviour (J. E. Loye and M. Zuk, Editors). Oxford University Press, Oxford, United Kingdom.

CONN, E. E. 1979 Biosynthesis of cyanogenic glycosides. Naturwissenschaften 66:28–34.

DYKSTRA, C. R., J. L. HAYS, AND S. C. CROCOLL. 2008. Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus). The birds of North America. Number 107.

DYKSTRA, C. R., J. L. HAYS, F. B. DANIEL, AND M. M. SIMON. 2000. Nest site selection and productivity of suburban Red-shouldered Hawks in southern
Ohio. Condor 102:401–408.

DYKSTRA, C. R., J. L. HAYS, M. M. SIMON, J. B. HOLT JR., G. R. AUSTING, AND F. B. DANIEL. 2004. Dispersal and mortality of Red-shouldered Hawks banded in Ohio. Journal of Raptor Research 38: 304–311.

ENGLAND, A. S., M. J. BECHARD, AND C. S. HOUSTON. 1997. Swainson’s Hawk (Buteo swainsoni). The birds of North America. Number 265.

FERGUSON-LEES, J. AND D. A. CHRISTIE. 2001. Raptors of the world. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, USA.

JAMES, F. C. AND H. H. SHUGART JR. 1970. A quantitative method of habitat description. Audubon Field Notes 24:727–736.

NEWTON, I. 1979. Population ecology of raptors. T. and A. D. Poyser Ltd., London, United Kingdom.

PETERSON, S. C., N. D. JOHNSON, AND J. L. LEGUYADER. 1987. Defensive regurgitation of allelochemicals derived from host cyanogenesis by eastern tent
caterpillars. Ecology 68:1268–1272.

PRESTON, C. R. AND R. D. BEANE. 1993. Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis). The birds of North America. Number 52.

SHUTLER, D. AND A. A. CAMPBELL. 2007. Experimental addition of greenery reduces flea loads in nests of a non-greenery using species, the Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor. Journal of Avian Biology 38: 7–12.

Peeps and Rasps

It's not only the birds that are possessed of silky voices and interesting vocalizations, you know.

Anyone who is spending much time outside these warming days will have noticed other sounds - sounds from the amphibian world. If you are interested in learning about bird calls, you'll want to know about the above critter. It's a Spring Peeper, Pseudacris crucifer. These are tiny tree frogs, distinguished by that (more or less) X marks the spot on the back.

Peepers do just that - they PEEP, and at deafening decibels. Their "song" is created by the male, who inflates a sac of loose skin at the throat to herculean proportions, and lets loose. The resultant notes are rather bird-like, and if one manages to get themselves surrounded by a managerie of calling peepers, the chorus almost hurts the ears.

This time of year, Spring Peepers gravitate to wetlands to breed and lay eggs. Almost any little bathtub-sized wet spot will do, really. Here's what they sound like. I bet you recognize that!

The other loud, conspicuous frog that is calling now is the Western Chorus Frog, Pseudacris triseriata. They are abundant, and often mixed in with Spring Peepers. These miniature tree frogs sound like someone running their finger down the teeth of a comb, but boosted by a stack of Marshall amps. Or perhaps a maniacal infant feverishly cranking the handle of a wind-up toy. LISTEN!

Enjoy the amphibious symphony will you can. It doesn't last long.

Furry Sausage with Legs

After spending yesterday sequestered inside, finishing off various things WHICH MUST BE DONE, today was ripe for an escape. And that I did, on a big blue sky day, warm and balmy. At least by early spring Ohio standards. Signs of winter's end were everywhere and very much in my face. Tallied singing Western Chorus Frogs, Northern Leopard Frogs, Spring Peepers, and noted Green Frogs leaping desperately from the bank as the giant humanoid approached. Even some Painted Turtles basked on sun-soaked logs. A real treat was hearing the sweet lilting whistled songs of American Tree Sparrows, tuning up before they strike out for the land of Midnight Sun and Polar Bears. I also saw a few Tree Swallows, bold scouts back before the mobs of their brethren arrive.

Destination: Big Island Wildlife Area. This place sometimes gets overshadowed by the better known Killdeer Plains, seven miles to the north, but Big Island is even better. I had scads of birds here today, especially waterfowl, which were my main targets. At least seventeen species, and several thousand birds in all. Nothing unexpected, but this'll be a good place to watch for rarities such as Eurasian Wigeon in the coming week or so. There were plenty of American Wigeon, and it's in with those that the Eurasian will likely be. There were also a few hundred Green-winged Teal, and I knocked myself out looking for a Common Teal, to no avail. Gotta try, though, and definitely spend time looking through teal flocks for one with a horizontal rather than vertical white bar.

I noted my first Eastern Garter Snake of the year; a couple of sluggish baskers on one of the dikes. These chaps really need to shed those skins. When they do, they'll be bright and shiny as a new penny. Still looks pretty good, though - unless you are ophidiophobic.

I made time to stop by a Snow Trillium site scattered along rocky limestone woods buffering the Scioto River. Still a bit early for Trillium nivale; another two weeks and their creamy-white three-parted blooms will carpet this place. I did find one early bird jutting from the leaf litter and in bud.

It always pays to abandon the auto and head out on foot. One sees so much more. I made about a two mile loop around the dikes at Big Island, and was delighted to find this Lilliputian beast. Unfortunately, it was dead, but this Meadow Vole's misfortune becomes our learning experience. Small rodents like this are very high-strung, with a metabolism that whirs like a Lamborghini going flat out. I wonder if he saw me and I gave him a heart attack. The body still felt warm; he couldn't have perished more than a few minutes before I arrived on the scene.

Meadow Voles, Microtus pensylvanicus, are mice-like and probably often thought to be mice, as a flash of tiny brown fur is generally all one sees as they scamper through the grass. They are considerably heftier than our two species of deer mice, Peromyscus, though, weighing nearly double. Voles truly are furry sausages, and that's probably how raptors think of them. This is a very common prey item for Northern Harriers, Rough-legged Hawks, Short-eared Owls, and other birds of prey that hunt open fields. Like most small mammals, Meadow Voles have boom and bust years, and their peaks and dips have a direct effect on how many wintering raptors are present in a given area in winter.

Cute little buggers. Unlike White-footed Mice (now known as North American Deer Mouse), voles have tiny eyes and appear earless. You see any ears on this guy?

Now you can. The ears are actually quite large, but covered by dense fur. I imagine voles hear quite well.

Meadow Voles also have stubby little tails, unlike the longer appendages of mice.

Voles are primarily herbivores, eating grass, clover, and other succulent greenery. Those incisors look pretty impressive, but you are seeing both the upper and lower set almost straight on.

Meadow Voles make exensive runways, which are tunnels through the grass. I knew a runway had to be close at hand when I saw the vole, and sure enough, there was. So I posed the vole within, and if he were alive, you'd pretty much just see a flash of fur as he booked along, partially concealed by the grasses. This is what those harriers and other raptors are looking for as they quarter over the meadows. Studies have shown that vole urine produces chemicals that are visible deep into the ultraviolet zone, and that birds of prey can thus see the trails left by voles. Therefore, raptors can quickly ascertain if many or few voles are present in an area, without having to see the actual animals.

By the way, if you'd like to learn more about mammals, I highly recommend Kenn Kaufman's field guide, Mammals of North America. It's the best, most up to date book out there. I'm just sayin'...

Swamp Monster!

I've written about these beasts before, and I'll no doubt do so again. After all, what's not to love about Snapping Turtles? Chelydra serpentina is our largest, surliest, most dangerous turtle, and coming across one is always a treat. And we had the good fortune to encounter a monstrous example last Tuesday night while patrolling for salamanders. Read on. This post may not make you love snappers, but you'll probably find them interesting.

We found a Tiger Salamander along the roadway by this pool, so we all radiated out looking for more. Next thing I know, Greg Lipps is wallowing back to land carrying something a bit bigger than a salamander! Snapping Turtle! I knew some good photo ops would be in store.

Here's the burly bruiser, and he ain't happy! This one probably weighed about sixteen-seventeen pounds, but they can get a lot bigger. Wild ones can tip the scales at 35 pounds, and captives have been known to reach 75 pounds! The real whoppers might have shells measureing nearly two feet in length. Like most turtles, snappers are long-lived and might have a life span of 30 years or more.

A short vid I made, featuring the Snapping Turtle living up to its name. These reptiles are not overly endowed with social graces. Note the Spring Peepers and Western Chorus Frogs "singing" in the background.

Greg holding the snapper in such a way that you can really get a feel for the size of the beast. Note those feet and claws! These turtles are very primitive and almost dinosaur-like.

The business end. Anyone fiddling around with one of these would be wise to take pains to avoid getting any body parts near those jaws. While stories of broom handles being snapped in two by irate turtles are over-exaggerations, you'd get a painful bite and a deep nasty wound. As can be seen from the video above, they lunge that neck out a good distance, and shockingly fast, too.

I love the feet. On big individuals such as this, they can be nearly hand-sized. Check the size of those claws! He could probably give one a good thrashing with those, too. Fortunately, snappers are surprisingly docile when in the water - their normal haunts. They usually only leave ponds and wetlands during breeding season, when they seek sites to dig burrows for their eggs. Out of water, they are quite nasty and belligerent, and best admired from a safe distance.

An angle one doesn't often see. We tipped the turtle over for some photos, and you can see how reduced in size the plastron (lower shell) is. Check the size of those legs. They are very powerful and can make holding one of these turtles all the more difficult, as they kick and squirm in an effort to dislodge their holder. The skin is incredible - thick, leathery, and covered with bumps.

The upper shell, or carapace, of a Snapping Turtle is not a thing of beauty. It is often slimy and algae-coated. Worse yet, snappers often have legions of leeches attached, and if you look closely at the above photo, you can see some attached to the shell. Turtle soup, of which this species is often used for, may taste good but some eaters might lose their appetites if they saw the turtle beforehand.

Ohio Botanical Symposium

One last reminder for those of you with a botanical bent...

2009 Ohio Botanical SymposiumFriday, April 3, 2009

9:15 am to 4 pm Registration begins at 8 am

Symposium Brochure & Registration Form Register Online

Where: Villa Milano 1630 Schrock Road Columbus, Ohio, 43229

Registration: $25 (includes continental breakfast, lunch buffet (menu), refreshments, six presentations, media show, materials, exhibits, vendors and parking). Additional $10 after March 31. Download the registration form and agenda here.

Symposium sponsored by: Ohio Division of Natural Areas & Preserves, The Cleveland Museum of Natural History, The Nature Conservancy and The Ohio State University Herbarium.Additional support provided by: Arc of Appalachia Preserve System, Cincinnati Wildflower Preservation Society, Flora-Quest, Mohican Native Plant Society, Native Plant Society of Northeastern Ohio, Naturally Native Nursery, Ohio Prairie Nursery and Scioto Gardens.

Meet our keynote speaker:
Award winning and world renowned botanist and conservationist, Dr. W. Hardy Eshbaugh will present the keynote address “The Challenges to Biodiversity Conservation in the 21st Century: Where does Ohio fit in the Equation?” Dr. Eshbaugh is Professor Emeritus of Botany, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio and Research Associate, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis. He has received numerous awards including the Peter H. Raven award from the American Society of Plant Taxonomists, the Great Egret award from the National Audubon Society, the Outstanding Communicator award from the Ohio Ornithological Society,and the Osborn award from the Ohio Biological Survey. Dr. Eshbaugh has extensive international experience having taught and led field natural history courses and trips in the Bahamas, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, Amazonian Peru, Costa Rica and Uganda. He has traveled and consulted on trips to Greenland and the high Canadian Arctic, and the Antarctic. His research on the origin and evolution of chili peppers has taken him throughout Latin America, the Amazon, and Andean South America. He has travelled to East Africa and South Africa conducting research and as a participant in several international meetings on the botany of sub-Sahara Africa. More recently, Dr. Eshbaugh has devoted his energies to various conservation issues and in particular on ecotourism as a tool for effective conservation especially in the developing world.

Other Presentations:
Restoration and Pollinators: Patterns of Diversity and Abundance of Pollinator Communities
Dr. Karen Goodell, The Ohio State University

Fern Allies of Ohio
Dr. R. James Hickey, Miami University

A Media Show: Nature’s Beauty in Southern Ohio 2009 John Howard

Woodland Fungi: The Destructive, the Deadly and the Delicious
Dr. Landon Rhodes, The Ohio State University

Best Plant Finds of 2008
Greg Schneider, Ohio Division of Natural Areas and Preserves

Conservation & Restoration Efforts of the Metro Parks
John Watts, Columbus & Franklin County Metro Parks

Exhibitors: Beech Creek Arboretum and Nature Preserve, Chadwick Arboretum, Cincinnati Wildflower Preservation Society, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks, Flora-Quest, Friends of the Ravines, Lake Erie Islands Chapter of the Black Swamp Conservancy, Metroparks of the Toledo Area, Mohican Native Plant Society, Native Plant Society of Northeastern Ohio, Ohio Division of Natural Areas & Preserves, Ohio Invasive Plants Council, Ohio Mushroom Society, Ohio Prairie Association, Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center, The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Forest Service, West Virginia University, and Wild Ones.Vendors: Fouke Woodworking, Heart by Nature Retreats, McDonald & Woodward Publishing, Naturally Native Nursery, Ohio Prairie Nursery, Pike County Farm, and Scioto Gardens.

Ohio Botanical Symposium
The Ohio Botanical Symposium was first held in 2001 by the Ohio Division of Natural Areas and Preserves to bring botanists, naturalists, and nature enthusiasts together to network, provide professional enrichment and view posters and displays on Ohio’s native flora, natural areas and rare plants. The Nature Conservancy joined as a co-sponsor of the symposium in 2003 and the Ohio State University Herbarium joined as a co-sponsor in 2006. This year we are proud to have the Cleveland Museum of Natural History as a new co-sponsor. In addition to at least six presentations, attendees have a chance to visit with exhibitors and vendors. Exhibitors include non-profit environmental and conservation groups, park districts, federal and state agencies, and universities. In the past, vendors have included book sellers, nature craftsmen and nature education/lodging. The symposium has attracted leading experts in the fields of botany and conservation including Jim Amon Ph. D., Jim Bissell Ph. D, Fred Case, Allison Cusick, Michael Homoya, Anton Reznicek, Ph. D., and Ed Voss, Ph. D. Last year, the symposium was held at the Fawcett Center on The Ohio State University campus. For the second year in a row, a near capacity crowd came to hear experts from Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio on a variety of topics relating to Ohio’s flora and natural communities. We look forward to meeting you at the 2009 Ohio Botanical Symposium