At home, during the covid-19 lockdown here in northeast Ohio, I can't gather with my (human) friends for a cup of coffee (or a mug of cocoa, my preferred beverage). So this morning I turned to my backyard friends for entertainment, and the pileated woodpeckers didn't let me down. They flew in, and hung around …
Correct me…
If I'm wrong, please correct me, but I'm guessing this is a male American Redstart. I found a hot-spot for migratory birds along the trail today, and this colorful bird was among the crowd. A later spring migrant in northeast Ohio, redstarts arrive around mid-May. It is a medium-sized bird with bright orange patches on …
Chilly morning in Chagrin River Park
Spring is here! The red-winged blackbird has been announcing if for the last few weeks. Still, you couldn't prove it by today's temperature which hovered around 42 degrees when we set out for our morning walk. Nevertheless, cold or not, Mabel was ready for her walk, so there we were, Bob, Mabel, and I trotting …
Another morning trail walk
Today's first discovery showed up before we reached the park when I spotted this bluebird in the backyard. He appears pretty regularly in the morning, right about breakfast time. Often I don't see him again until the next morning, but it is still a treat to get a daily visit. In the park, I was …
Wet and windy!
The windy, wet, 38 degree day is definitely not what drew me outside for a trail walk in Chagrin River Park this morning. No Way! What got me out was what I have written about in previous blog posts: my intention to be more active and my determination to increase my stamina and energy. So …
An early Spring morning
Join me for a little early morning birding on the first truly beautiful spring day. The morning dawned cool and hazy and got better as the day went on. By evening, under sunny skies, the park was filled with people...and birds... enjoying our first real taste of spring. I don't have anything else to say. …
Not much to see…
As I walked the trails in Chagrin River Park this week, I didn't see too many signs of spring; however, I am remaining true to the intentions I wrote about several weeks ago in this blog post. The most interesting thing I spotted today was this bird ... The towhee is not a rare bird, …
Photowalking
Before I headed to the park for a trail walk today, I glanced out my kitchen window and was pleased to see bluebirds in the back yard. The little fellow pictured above, looks somewhat unhappy. I wonder if he is upset because the starlings and grackles have been overly aggressive, and taken over the backyard …
Heads down, tails up!
Walking in the park today, I saw a lot of mallard ducks, both male and female. The males, like the handsome fellow pictured above, were at times swimming sedately in the river and, at other times, diving down for a treat. Comically waving their orange-colored feet in the air, they scrambled around underwater, searching for …
New year’s resolution???
My intention for 2019 is to create a blog post at least twice each week. As you can see from my record so far this year, I haven't been very successful despite my good intentions. As I post this, on March 14th, we are much closer to April Fool's Day than to New Year's Eve. …
SEEN ALONG THE TRAIL 