Notes from the Field

Special Delivery

Thu, 6 May 2010 14:56:11 -0400

In this quick photo by Kim Hinkle, the male eagle is carrying a fish for the female to tear apart and feed the youngster waiting in the nest. The eaglet is still quite small, but fish are plentiful in the Rocky River and if fishing is good, the little guy is likely to survive.

The nest is quite difficult to find, and the expanding clouds of leaves are covering the one place where these photos were taken. Check out the Cleveland Metroparks Facebook page for information on the Brecksville Reservation eagle nest and how to view it from the Towpath Trail of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

I’ve been concentrating more on Cleveland Metroparks Facebook posts lately, finding that I can post good photos and a little text there much faster and more efficiently than here. What’s your opinion? Should the blog continue, or should I move my efforts to Facebook?

Drop me a note at rdh@clevelandmetroparks.com and let me know!

Cheers... Bob

Woof !

Mon, 3 May 2010 14:02:25 -0400

Wheezer, pictured here, is my near-constant park companion. Dogs live in a world not of sight, but of smells, and like most puppies in the park, Wheezer seeks the “dog news” at every tree and post she finds. In Cleveland Metroparks, the dog news is always good, for it contains traces of strange dogs, humans of all ages and kinds, and wildlife galore. Of particular interest are deer, raccoons, opossums and skunks, whose otherwise seldom encountered odors rate “front page” status on the daily dog news.

Naturalist Debra Shankland started doing interpretive programs for well-socialized dogs and their owners several years ago in the Rocky River Reservation. Now in Brecksville, Debra continues her walks for canines and companions in several reservations. The programs are always fun, and full.

In bygone days there was “country” everywhere, and it was second nature to let dogs slip the leash and run and play. Unfortunately, those days are long past in Cuyahoga County, where open space is largely limited to Cleveland Metroparks reservations. With several million visitor use days recorded each year, dogs like Wheezer must always be leashed, lest a playful groundhog chase results in a fierce and bloody bite on the dog’s nose, or a quick detour to the other side of the parkway becomes tragedy as an auto rounds the turn and sees Fido too late to stop. Then too, in today’s odd world, many people are either afraid of dogs or allergic to them, and no matter how friendly our pups might be, chaos results from the other person’s reaction to our dog.

The issue of pet waste needs little mention, but there are those who still leave doggie-doo right where it dropped, which is usually either on the Cleveland Metroparks trail, or off on the grass where the barefooted child finds it the unpleasant way. Every plastic grocery bag is a poop scoop, and they’re free. Carry a few along when you’re in the park with your pup. Everyone and everything will thank you for it.

Our nature centers are “pet-friendly” too... you can now bring your dog on leash into any nature center at any time. Certain areas, like places where food is consumed, are still off-limits. Your understanding of that is appreciated.

So.... if you need an excuse for a hike, there’s nothing like a dog to suggest and encourage you. Wheezer and I can often be found in South Chagrin’s Jackson Field, and sometimes at Garfield Park as well. There’s “dog news” everywhere -- share the sights and scents of the park district with your pooch this weekend!

Cheers... Bob

Buzzard Buddies

Mon, 12 Apr 2010 10:29:02 -0400

Buzzard Sunday is a special event for Cleveland Metroparks and the village of Hinckley Ohio. The Sunday following March 15, the traditional “return of the buzzards” has been celebrated as Buzzard Sunday for over 50 years! 
This year, over 6,000 visitors stopped by to spot their own buzzards with the “official buzzard spotter” - me - on the left and were aided by naturalists Sharon Hosko and Debra Shankland (Brecksville Nature Center staff) and others. The large buzzard second from left is Kim Hinkle, frequent park volunteer and nature photographer.

It was a fun day !

Cheers... Bob

Spring’s Here ! (part 1)

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 14:12:36 -0500

Every morning just before dawn the chorus starts... Male cardinals all across the neighborhood, singing loudly from the highest perch, then the next, then the next, all along the edge of his claimed territory. I’ve seen pitched battles at times these mornings, as one cardinal’s territory abuts that of another, and firm lines between them remain in dispute. The large orange-red beak can be very persuasive however, and the loser soon flies off to other parts of his turf, perhaps mentally redrawing the map of his domain.

This beautiful image, photographed last Friday afternoon near North Chagrin Nature Center by Cheryl Warner, shows the male cardinal in his most resplendent wedding coat. Soon, he will be tenderly offering his prospective mate your sunflower seeds, one by one, until she decides that he’s a good provider and takes him for her own.

The spectacle continues daily throughout Cleveland Metroparks, but also in your neighborhood, perhaps in your back yard. Watch the magic... spring’s here!

...Cheers.... Bob

The Daylight Beaver

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 10:54:23 -0500

At North Chagrin Nature Center, a pair of beavers has been making rare afternoon appearances this week. Probably youngsters and late to move in, they’re occupying the old lodge in Sanctuary Marsh behind the nature center. The staff thinks perhaps they were too inexperienced to set aside enough food for winter, and their reserves are depleted. Hunger is forcing them to seek more food, away from the marsh.

This fellow is bulldozing his way across the deep snow near the Nature Education Building, just west of the nature center. He was photographed as he headed for a stand of young maple and willow trees, both nutritious energy sources for beavers at any time of year. Another beaver was seen near him on Friday afternoon, so he apparently has a mate or at least a friend, possibly another of his siblings.

You’re welcome to come out to Cleveland Metroparks North Chagrin Reservation and try your luck at seeing a beaver in the daytime. The staff at the front desk will have information about the most recent sightings, or you can call (440) 473-3370 any day between 9:30 am and 5:00 pm for information. Remember to keep a safe and respectful distance from the beavers, and please NO DOGS. The beavers are already under great stress and are perhaps weakened from lack of food, and it is likely to take until late April for them to gain normal weight back to the point where they are healthy. Additionally, if one is a female, she may well be pregnant with young and needs no more stressors in her life either.

Since these photos were taken last Friday, spring is appearing more and more certain. The temperature hovered near 70 degrees yesterday, March 11, and today is expected to be almost as warm. Rains tonight may melt the remaining snow, and open the ponds and marshes of Cleveland Metroparks over 21,000 acres of natural areas. Come out and find spring for yourself in these special places!

Cheers...Bob

Most Miserable Place Indeed?

Tue, 9 Mar 2010 11:20:17 -0500

So Forbes Magazine has declared the Cleveland region as the most miserable place in America?? Scandalous ! Did anyone from Forbes actually VISIT the Cleveland region, or just take a cheap potshot from their corporate perch in New York? I wonder...

I used to live in Vermont. Teaching at the university level and engaged in wildlife research, I came to Cleveland to be part of a nationally-respected park district and for the tremendous range of cultural, recreational and educational opportunities the area offered.

As a wildlife biologist, friends would ask “Why did you move to Cleveland?” The answer was easy - want wildlife? Cleveland has it. A lakefront where hundreds of thousands of waterfowl of all species migrate through or overwinter, like the mergansers shown above. Deer? Beaver? Wild Turkeys? Neighborhoods with nesting Red-shouldered hawks? A world-class steelhead trout fishery less than 10 miles from downtown? A Great Lake where walleyes can be caught right off downtown piers? An annual spring migration of neotropical songbirds which rivals the famed Point Pelee Provincial Park in Ontario?

And I won’t even begin to talk about the history in this region. NASA? Ohio and Erie Canal - the first that opened the Ohio-Mississippi River watershed to the Great Lakes and commerce from the Atlantic Ocean? Automotive history? Aviation history? Cleveland Air Races? The list goes on and on....

An accurate list of “most miserable places” shouldn’t have to include anyplace in the Unites States. Try Afghanistan today, or Somalia, or any one of a dozen or more places lacking the fresh water, fertile soil, transportation, commerce and human resources of this fabulous region in which we live. The vast majority of the populations of many nations would give anything to live in Cleveland, Akron, Canton, or any of the thriving suburbs here. We are greatly blessed, with natural and cultural and educational resources and most importantly perhaps, with each other.

I am blessed with circumstances which would allow me to live in a number of places across this country, but for 28 years I’ve been proud to say “I’m a Clevelander”. I love it here. And here’s where I’ll stay.

 Bob Hinkle
Chief, Division of Outdoor Education
Cleveland Metroparks

The Robins are Back (and they’re not very happy about it)

Mon, 1 Mar 2010 14:22:24 -0500

Cleveland Metroparks Fisheries Biologist and fellow blogger Mike Durkalec sent this photo of a half-dozen American robins searching for worms on a bare spot of grass in his back yard. I’m not sure what they might have found, but I doubt that worms were a large part of their menu that day.

Robins often overwinter in northeast Ohio, changing their diet to fruits and berries, often plentiful on ornamental shrubs and trees in the area. Enough starches and sugars exist in those foods to allow the robins to maintain, or perhaps even gain a little winter weight and survive through the cold months. Many others migrate in the fall after gathering in large “staging flocks” - here one day, gone the next. When I visited Florida in mid-February, the local television media there was talking about the sudden large influx of robins, and it did indeed seem as if robins were everywhere. This unusual winter in the southland will probably keep early migrants like robins back for a few more weeks, but Mike is expecting that as soon as his yard turns green again, there will be robins there to greet him.

Cheers...Bob

Snowy January Photos

Wed, 3 Feb 2010 09:52:23 -0500

Above: Curious white-tailed deer at Brecksville

Naturalist Jen Brumfield is never far from her camera, and she sent a few photos over to share with you.

Below: Merlin (a larger, faster version of our more common Kestrel) seen for several months at Calvary Cemetery in Garfield Heights. Merlins usually nest much farther north in summer.

Below: Red shouldered hawk, a species becoming more common in suburbs with many large trees or a forest nearby.

Though it’s been cold and blustery, with lots of snow early in January, life goes on each and every day.

Thanks for the great photos, Jen !

Cheers...Bob

Come and Get Your Deer!

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 11:17:51 -0500

About this time of year, when the snow gets deep, white-tailed deer are seen fairly commonly throughout Cuyahoga County. They were there all the time, of course, but the snow tends to concentrate them among the tasty shrubs and bushes both in the park, and in the yards of suburban homes.

This doe, crossing a neighbor’s back yard, paused for a look at the photographer before casually moving on to a tasty viburnum nearby. Sometimes the park district gets calls when this happens, and the caller says “Come and get your deer! It’s eating my shrubs!”.

Wildlife is a mobile resource. Whether equipped with legs or wings, they move freely among our places and lives, and cannot be herded, fenced or trained. In the mid-1980s the nation’s first urban deer radio-tracking study was done in the Rocky River, Mill Stream and Big Creek Reservations. Among other findings, it was discovered that a number of deer tagged or collared would travel tens of miles away from their capture site over the period of several weeks. This contradicted most scientific literature of the day, which indicated that deer rarely traveled more than 2 miles from the place they were born. The record distance recorded was 52 miles, when one unlucky white-tailed buck was killed by a car on Interstate 80 next to the Huron River valley. Obviously, there is no way a deer can “belong” to a park, or a person, or a backyard.

For as long as human populations continue to increase, wildlife species will be forced to adapt or die out. There is no “somewhere else” for them to go. Healthy populations reproduce to fill the limit of the ability of the land to support them, and any excess above that fluctuating number will die, by one force or another. It is only when a suitable habitat exists and has somehow not been occupied by a suitable species that translocation of a species of wildlife might succeed.

We are all fellow passengers on boat with limited space. It is unfortunate that as human populations increase, wildlife dies out. There is no place left to go.

Snowy Weekend - Part III

Sun, 10 Jan 2010 15:51:47 -0500

Hand feed a chickadee - or Tufted titmouse, or White-breasted nuthatch, or even a Downy woodpecker - at the Brecksville Nature Center every Saturday and Sunday in January and February from 10:00 a.m. to noon. The staff provides the sunflower seeds, you provide the patience and the friendly hand. The birds do the rest! The program is free....

Come on out and try it yourself !

Call 440-526-1012 for information or for directions to the Brecksville Nature Center, in the Brecksville Reservation of Cleveland Metroparks.