Don’t miss Cleveland’s peak time for bird watching: Here’s where to go now to see beautiful songbirds

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The spring bird migration is in full swing with songbirds returning to nest in Northeast Ohio or simply stopping by to refuel before traversing Lake Erie on their way to Canada.

And it’s not over, yet. There is still time to enjoy some of the best bird watching of the year.

For 90 years, the chance to see colorful, chirping songbirds such as the stunning black-and-orange Baltimore oriole or the flitting blue-gray gnatcatcher has been made easier by a series of coordinated bird walks.

“May is the best time if you want to see a little variety,” said Julie West, who leads one of the Sunday morning walks at the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes in Shaker Heights.

The “Spring Bird Walk Series” as the walks have come to be known, are timed to coincide with the spring migration, which for the most part begins in mid-April and continues through mid-May.

“This has just been a staple of spring,” said Jen Brumfield, a naturalist at Cleveland Metroparks Rocky River Nature Center.

Most of the walks kick off at 7:30 a.m. They areohosted by a variety of groups that include the Cleveland Metroparks, the Geauga Park District and a number of other organizations. Drop-ins are welcome at the 18 different Sunday morning locations across several counties, and at a 19th walk is held Saturday morning in Medina County. Participants are urged to bring their own binoculars.

The Sunday morning walks at the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes have been averaging about 20 people, said West, who has a handful of binoculars available for those who don’t bring their own.

Last Sunday, birders positioned on the boardwalk were treated to a Baltimore oriole high up in the treetops and a solitary sandpiper down along the North Branch of Doan Brook, which joins the south branch within the nature center. Sandpipers are not songbirds, West said, but they still participate in the Spring migration.

Also making appearances were warblers, including the yellow-rumped and palm varieties.

Most warblers tend to be found high up in the trees where they move around a lot, West said, which can put strain on those peering upwards for extended periods of time.

“We call it warbler neck,” she said.

But for many people, it’s a hummingbird or oriole sighting that lets them know spring has arrived, Brumfield said.

The orioles are among the more dramatic visitors. “They’re big. They’re bright. They’re very vocal,” she said. But there are many other varieties to look for, including warblers, tanagers, thrushes and flycatchers to name but a few.

Becky Donaldson, naturalist with the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, leads a Sunday morning walk at Mentor Marsh, and one of the more entertaining species that has made an appearance is the blue-gray gnatcatcher.

“They never stop moving and have this squeaky little wheezy call,” Donaldson said.

One thing Brumfield has noticed over the years has been the unfortunate decline in some species, something she attributes to habitat loss, along the flyways that direct the birds to the region as well as in Northeast Ohio. The emergence of invasive plant species has also displaced the nesting areas of some birds.

Nancy Howell, a board member of the Western Cuyahoga Audubon Society, also said the warming that comes with climate change has prompted insect-attracting vegetation to leaf out earlier, before many birds make their arrival. And that means the birds “miss the chance to feed on the most energy efficient foods,” she said

“You don’t want to say, ‘Oh, it’s terrible,’ ” Howell said of the spring bird-watching experience. “It’s still lovely.”

One thing Howell would like to see is more young people get involved in bird watching, which tends to skew toward the over-40 crowd, that way they can become walk leaders and carry on the spring tradition for another 90 years.

Although Howell, who is 67 and leads a Sunday morning walk at Lake Isaac in Cleveland Metroparks’ Big Creek Reservation, is not about to give up yet.

“I feel very young,” she said. “And I get jazzed up when the birds are here.”

Birding locations

Locations for the 2023 Spring Bird Walk Series. Start times are 7:30 a.m. unless otherwise noted. For more details. use this link.

Sunday locations

• Cleveland Metroparks reservations – Bedford, Big Creek, Brecksville, Hinckley, North Chagrin, Ohio & Erie Canal, and Rocky River
• Elywood Park (Lorain County Metro Parks) – 8:30 a.m. start
• Vermillion River Reservation (Lorain County Metro Parks) – 8:30 a.m. start
• Lake Erie Bluffs (Lake Metroparks)
• Mentor Marsh (Cleveland Museum of Natural History)
• Aurora Sanctuary (Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland)
• Novak Sanctuary (Audubon Society of Greater Cleveland)
• Nature Center at Shaker Lakes
• Holden Arboretum
• Hiram (James H. Barrow Field Station at Hiram College)
• Geauga Park District (different location each week)
• Gates Mills area (different location each week)

Saturday location

• River Styx Park (Medina County Park District)

Peter Krouse covers the environment for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.