Magee boardwalk April 30 and coming days

The area of Magee Marsh had unsettled (and cold!) weather this week, which did not seem to produce any big arrivals of birds. But not many departed, either. On the boardwalk at Magee Marsh many of the same birds from Sunday and Monday were still there today, Wednesday, April 30, creating a satisfying amount of action for the birders who were there. At least 16 species of warblers were seen on the boardwalk today, with some of the notables being at least two Worm-eating Warblers (between numbers 5 and 10 on the boardwalk -- Hugh Rose reports that the birds were singing and easily seen during the morning), Yellow-breasted Chat (near number 30), a very cooperative Hooded Warbler (around no. 5), two active singing N. Parulas (no. 3 to 7), and a male Pine Warbler (no. 21). White-throated Sparrows and Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers were still abundant, Swamp Sparrow numbers were increasing, and a couple of White-eyed Vireos were singing and foraging conspicuously near numbers 4-8 on the boardwalk. Some individual Swainson's and Wood Thrushes and Veeries appear to have been in exactly the same spots since Sunday.

Tonight (Wednesday night) the winds locally are mostly from the east, but the larger weather maps show that there is a major air flow out of the south coming from far to the south of us and into this general area. This overall flow looks like it will continue through Friday at least. I'm predicting that a lot of birds will be riding this system and will move into the general area of northwest Ohio over the next few days, but it's hard to say whether the biggest migration day will be Thursday, Friday, or Saturday (May 1, 2, or 3). They might all be good days. A lot will depend on what happens with local rain and where the migrants get put down by inclement weather. Scattered showers are predicted for Friday and Saturday but I don't think they'll prevent the migrants from getting here.

If you're in the area on Saturday, don't forget that there will be a free bird-banding demonstration at the BSBO nature center (just north of Rt. 2 at the entrance to Crane Creek / Magee Marsh) starting at 10 a.m. and running until 11:30. And the BSBO hotdog stand and snack bar will be open during the middle of the day, in case you need to pause and refuel during your own migration!