Common Yellowthroats at Clear Creek Metro Park in Hocking Hills

Birding Hocking Hills in Southeastern Ohio
...continued from the Strouds Run State Park post.
A friend emailed me this morning recommending I visit Clear Creek Metro Park for spectacular birding, and WOW! am I glad I did. Within minutes of leaving the parking lot and starting down the Creekside Meadows trail I heard the first of at least 25 male Common Yellowthroats. I know Common Yellowthroats are one of Ohio’s most abundant breeding warblers, but I’ve never seen so many in one place. On top of that it was my first sighting of the year, so I was very happy.

Common Yellowthroats were all over the Creekside Meadows 

Trail at Clear Creek Metro Park singing and calling.

This fellow was singing in the meadow among Joe Pye Weeds.

I can see why Joe Pye Weed is sometimes called 

Queen-of-the-meadow. It rises above most of the other 

wildflowers. The Common Yellowthroats liked climbing 

up their sturdy stems and perching and singing at the top.

"Camera lady...are you quite through yet?"

The Creekside Meadows trail is beautiful (and easy to walk, which was good for my foot). To the left of the trail is a gorgeous meadow full of wildflowers and butterflies and to the right is Clear Creek itself (and it really is a clear creek). It didn’t matter where I was on the trail, the Common Yellowthroat’s loud call of “witchety—witchety —witchety—woo” was everywhere. I would hear it in the brushy edge and trees between the trail and the creek and again in the meadow. At first I just heard the male’s song, but on the return loop I started hearing the fairly harsh call notes of the male and female. They would call from the meadow and from lower in the brush, and all I had to do was stand still, listen, and watch, and magically they would start appearing. One after another popped into view. Females were in the brushy edges hidden in the bushes and grapevine tangles, and males were mixed in with them coming out into the open far more frequently, but as often the males would call from the meadow, and I would see them hop from the bottom of the stalks of larger and stronger wildflowers to the top like they were climbing a ladder. 

"Finally I made it to the top. 

I'm King of the Queen-of-the-meadow!"

While I was watching one female moving in and out of the dense cover of the grapevines, what should appear but a Hooded Warbler! (One of my target species…and a life bird for me!) I nearly fell over. He was not singing, just sitting there, hiding in the tangle. His eyes looked enormous and the black feathers framing his yellow face were beautiful. I knew if I dropped my binocs and went for the camera he would fly, so I just watched him for a few more seconds until he ducked deeper into the vines and flew out the other side.

Clear Creak Metro Park is Ohio's largest dedicated nature preserve. It is in the Hocking Hills region and part of the Unglaciated Allegheny Plateau. Characterized by deep gorges and hemlock-laced ravines, the Hocking Hills region offers wonderful birding. Although the glaciers didn't come through this area, their runoff carved the gorges and deposited plants from northern climes. When the glaciers retreated, the northern species continued to thrive in the cooler environment of the the gorges. This microclimate adds up to cool birding. Hermit Thrushes, which head north in the summer, nest in the cooler ravines in Hocking Hills. Heather and I heard and saw Hermit Thrushes on Tuesday while we birded Old Man's Cave and Cedar Falls. I'll write more about that trip and the "winter birds" in the coming days. 

I saw so many birds at Clear Creek today…two Veerys near a small bridge, a Hermit Thrush, two Blue birds, Catbirds (naturally they were eating blackberries), Song Sparrows, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, a very loud and entertaining Belted Kingfisher, even Red made an appearance, and sooooo many more. I will be going back to Clear Creek Metro Park tomorrow…my target species, a Cerulean Warbler and a Canada Warbler.