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Magee Marsh Boardwalk Guided Walks
Date:
Daily from May 4 – 13
Time: 8 a.m. AND 11 a.m.
Where: West end of the Magee Marsh
Wildlife Area Boardwalk
Fee: Just show your BIGGEST WEEK name
badge to participate!
The Magee Marsh Boardwalk has been dubbed “The
Warbler Capital of the World” by Kenn Kaufman,
and with just a brief visit anytime in mid-May
you will soon learn why. Warblers drip from the
trees, many dangling invitingly at eye level in
front of appreciative birders gathered on this
well-maintained boardwalk, just off the southern
shore of Lake Erie. Every day during the event, a
number of experienced guides will be leading
walks from the west entrance of the
boardwalk. Every day at 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. a number of
guides will be waiting there to show you the
delights within!
Ottawa NWR
Guided Shorebird Walk
Date:
Daily from May 4 – 13
Time:
3 p.m. – 5 p.m.
Where:
Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge – Meet in
the Refuge parking lot
Fee: Just show your BIGGEST WEEK name
badge to participate!
For those who feel intimidated by those
confusing brown “peeps” or those mysterious gray
sandpipers, these field trips will focus on the
wetland and shorebirds within Ottawa NWR. This
impressive refuge contains massive marshes,
a multitude of dikes and swampy areas, and is a
haven for waterbirds of all shapes and sizes.
Shorebirds recorded during previous festivals
included Marbled Godwit; White-rumped, Stilt,
and Upland Sandpipers; Black-bellied and
American Golden Plovers; Ruff; Red-necked and
Wilson’s Phalarope and countless more! The
dikes will also play host to large waterbirds
and ducks such as Great Egrets, Great Blue
Herons, dapper Wood Ducks, or maybe even a regal Sandhill Crane.
Family Bird Walk
Sponsored by Birds and Blooms Magazine!
Date: Sunday, May 6
Time: 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Where: Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge –
Meet in the ONWR parking lot.
Fee: FREE and open to anyone!
Gather up the kids and join us for a family
nature walk. We’ll provide binoculars, field
guides, and the birds, you simply provide
enthusiastic families. After a short equipment
lesson we will be exploring the woodlots and
scanning the marshes of Ottawa National Wildlife
Refuge for migratory birds this area is famous
for. This trip will be led by leaders of Young
Birders Clubs from around the country, and can
be the first step in igniting a life-long
appreciation for nature.
Woodcock Extravaganza:
Witness The Sky Dance
Sponsored by Birds & Blooms Magazine!
Date: May 5,6,7,8, & 9
Time:
8:15 p.m. – 9:15 p.m.
Where: Black Swamp Bird Observatory
Fee: $5
Registration required
The Black Swamp Bird Observatory lies slap bang
in the middle of a core area for American
Woodcocks, and more importantly, is located
within a known site for seeing their incredible
courtship rituals. Participants on this walk are
in for an evening of fun-filled fascination as
we look into the bizarre lifestyle of these
wonderful birds. We’ll split into two groups
(limited to 10 people per group) and make the
short walk to the territories of these
shorebirds; then, we'll wait quietly to listen for
their strange croaking calls. We’ll listen for
the sound of the male's whirring wings as he
takes to the skies above and rides the dusk sky
in a ritual known as The Sky Dance.
 Magee
Marsh Bird Sits
Date:
May 7 & 9
Time: 9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Where: Magee Marsh Wildlife Area (Near the
west end of the boardwalk. See the map (to the
left) for the exact spot indicated with a red
star.)
Fee: Just show your BIGGEST WEEK name
badge to participate!
Designed for those with limited mobility—or
those who just like to take a break and see what
birds come to you—these Bird Sits will allow you
to relax and enjoy the birds visiting the edge
of the wood lot along the boardwalk. This edge
habitat frequently offers some of the best
birding in the area and we’ll have expert guides
on hand to help you spot birds and tune your
ears in to the fine art of birding by ear, too.
We’ll post these group sit-ins in the grassy
area near the west end of the Magee Marsh
boardwalk. (See the map for the exact spot.)
Please bring your own chair, birding stool, or
blanket to sit on. This area should be fine for
those with wheelchairs or motorized carts.
Tom Bartlett’s Big Sit For Conservation - 18th
Annual!
Date: May 12 - International Migratory
Bird Day (IMBD)
Time: 5 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Where: Magee Marsh Boardwalk (near the
west end)
Fee: FREE – But we hope you’ll consider
making a donation!
Every year for the past 17 years, Tom Bartlett
has conducted a Big Sit fundraiser for Black
Swamp Bird Observatory’s (BSBO) education
programs. It’s part of our IMBD celebration!
Tom and his wonderful crew of helpers are such a
hoot to hang out with, and they’ll keep a tally
board updated with sightings all day long! So
stop by and visit, help Tom spot some birds, and
make your pledge to support BSBO’s education
programs!
Ohio Young Birders Club Guided Walk
 Date:
May
12
Time:
9 a.m. to ??
Where: Meet at the west end of the Magee Marsh
Wildlife Area Boardwalk
Fee: FREE
Young birders ages 12-18 are encouraged to join
us on the famous Magee Marsh Boardwalk and other
local birding hotspots to search for the most
recent arrival of migrants in the area.
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