On the Wing #70: Ohio Weekend

This weekend was one of the most successful and amazing birding experiences I've had in ages. I saw seven life birds, spend an inspiring and adoring, yet inappropriately limited amount of time with my love (it'll be longer in July, I promise!), and met one of America's best birders, Kenn Kaufman. The warblers alone were amazing, but what touched me the most was the variety of birders present. Young and old, big and small. Beginners with Peterson's and Sibley Guides and enthusiasts with enormous telephoto lenses! Huge crowds gathered to see feathered migratory miracles like Blackburnian (Setophaga fusca), Wilson's (Cardellina pusilla), and Chestnut-sided Warblers (S. pensylvanica) (all life birds for me by the way) and there was an overall appreciation of the wonders of bird life in the spring time. What a marvelous weekend indeed and I only hope that I can get back there as fast as possible to experience it all again. 
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus)
White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)
Trumpeter Swans (Cygnus buccinator) getting it on.
An occupied eagle's nest.
Life bird #4 came in the form of a Chestnut-sided Warbler (Setophaga pensylvanica)
Black-throated Green Warbler (S. virens)
Magnolia Warbler (S. magnolia)
American Robins (Turdus migratorius) on the nest.
American Redstarts (S. ruticilla) were everywhere!
Playing hard to get, eh?
Camouflage playing hardball.
An American Woodcock (Scolopax minor) incubates her eggs in the leaf litter near the parking lot.
Bay-breasted Warbler (S. castanea)
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea)
I'm also happy to report that with my getting treated for Lyme disease, I'm more mobile and thus more able to actively search for birds farther from home. Hopefully this will mean more interesting narratives and pictures for y'all to see on here. I look forward to showing you what I find. Have a lovely week and as always, happy birding ^_^.

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