SPORTS

Bird watching an industry that continues to grow

Dick Martin
Outdoors

Most outdoorsmen pay little attention to bird watching, being more interested in the "manly" sports of deer and turkey hunting, bass fishing, and similar pursuits.

But the binocular and bird book folk are out there too, and most are as passionate about their activity as dyed in the wool deer chasers. They're outdoorsmen and women who thrill as much at seeing a Baltimore Oriole as a tree stander does when a 10-point buck comes by. And they add as much to the economy as hunters and fishermen, maybe more.

A green heron looks for food along the water at Magee Marsh.

Studies have shown that bird watchers and just plain bird lovers spend an average of $5 billion a year on everything from bird seed to bird feeders and bird baths. About 46.7 million Americans consider themselves bird watchers, and the activity is growing faster than mountain biking, skiing and some other outdoor oriented sports. Ohio has its full share (1.6 million), enough that the Columbus tourism people estimate they spend about $26 million along Lake Erie alone.

It goes without saying that I'm a bird watcher, too, though not in a class with many who can tell one species of warbler from another, even on the wing, and I keep my three bird feeders full each winter so on gloomy days when I'm trapped inside I can still enjoy the antics of saucy cardinals, aggressive bluejays, house finches, mourning doves, and a host of others quarreling over a meal of seeds.

But I suspect almost everyone loves or at least likes the little feathered creatures. Ornithologist John Fitzpatrick once said "You don't need to know a thing about them to enjoy them. They enjoyed birds in the days of the ancient Egyptians and probably in cave man days, too."

Readers new to the sport might wonder where are the best places to see birds, and there's little question that Lake Erie is tops, especially in the fall when birds with their new young are migrating south.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Ohio Sea Grant have released the Lake Erie Birding Trail Guidebook, a 232-page compilation of 88 popular and less well-known birding locations along Lake Erie from Ashtabula to Toledo. In addition to locations of parks and other birding spots, the book lists commonly sighted species and noteworthy rarities, park amenities, and online resources for visitors.

The Trail has more than 80 primary birding sites divided into seven loops where nearly 400 species of birds have been sighted.  One of those loops is the Western Lake Erie Marshes Loop, which coves places like the Touissant State Wildlife Area and Magee Marsh.

The Marsh is becoming famous as one of the best birding spots in the nation, written up in more than one magazine as a top 10 place to go. It lies west of Port Clinton and is closed off and on right now to allow waterfowl hunters to enjoy their sport, but at other times it's a great location to see everything from eagles to many species of waterfowl and shore birds. The Guidebook is available online through Ohio Sea Grant for $13.

Another good spot is the Killbuck Marsh Wildlife Area, 5,671 acres of wetlands south of Wooster.  It's a prime mecca for unusual shore birds and other migrants that stop for a quick bite and some rest. Hocking Hills with its often unusual microhabitats draws some rare birds each fall, and the dozens of nature preserves are worth a look, too.

It adds up to a fun fall sport that will cost you little more than the toll for a pair of good binoculars and a bird book available at any book store. A small price for a great day in Ohio's woods and fields.

Dick Martin is a retired biology teacher who has been writing outdoor columns for 30 years. You can reach him at richmart@neo.rr.com.