The Earliest Wildflowers

Some folks may be wondering what happened to “Central Ohio Nature” during the past two months so we thought we better post something to let everyone know we’re alive and well. Actually a little over a week ago, after a winter escape to Florida where we traveled to various state parks and explored numerous natural areas, we found ourselves back in Ohio. Two days…

Spring Wonder at Griggs Reservoir

Spring is a wonderful time of year. It seems that nature is in it’s most generous mood. “New” arrives everyday whether it’s in the form of a bird, flower, or other creature. Places that may seem ordinary later in the year are magically transformed by this new life. Even for those of us that spend large amounts of time walking in the woods or paddling along…

Drooping Trilliums In Central Ohio

This post is pretty much just about trilliums seen this spring in central Ohio. I particular Drooping Trilliums as they aren’t seen as often as their Large-flowered cousins. Perhaps because of a longer and colder than normal winter it’s been a very good year for spring wildflowers. Often seen while looking for migrating warblers or other wildlife, it’s always a treat. Hope you enjoy.   . Some…

Griggs Park Birding, April 28th & 29th

My wife and I were looking at photos and talking about all the birds we’d seen over a period of 24 hours along Griggs Reservoir and the Scioto River just below the dam. These included a first of the year Baltimore Oriole and an Eastern Kingbird. . As some of you that visit this blog on a regular basis may already realize, we tend to concentrate on several areas close to our home…

Spring Takes Flight at Prairie Oaks

We hadn’t been to Prairie Oaks for a while so we thought we’d head over to what is one of Columbus’s nicer metro parks and see how spring was progressing.  The day was breezy and cool so we weren’t sure what we’d find. Often the birds stay put on such days making locating them a challenge. But the sun did pop through the clouds periodically, and when it did, the birds, as if…

The Woods Have a New Song

Actually it’s many songs that all blend together. On resent walks we’ve enjoyed the call of the the Chipping Sparrow. A call not heard just a few weeks ago. Heard but not seen, a Northern Parula’s distant song finds it’s way around the many still leafless trees to our ear. Not to be out done, Chickadees, Cardinals, Titmouse, Nuthatches, and tree top Yellow Throated Warblers are more…

A Carnivorous Butterfly But No Warblers

During a recent trip to Georgia cooperative weather allowed us to get the canoe in the water and do some exploring on Lake Sidney Lanier. The lake is huge with  large parts heavily developed due to it’s close proximity to Atlanta. However the area we choose to explore by starting from Don Carter State Park is not as developed and as a result has many interesting coves and inlets to explore.  In…

Between The Spring Rains

The last few days have brought a lot of, sometimes very hard, rain. We wondered what condition the spring wildflowers would be in as we ventured into the woods along Griggs reservoir and the Scioto river during the few dry spells. . Below is some of what we found:   . While looking for wildflowers we were fortunate to see Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and a White Crowned sparrow…

The Fish Was Just Too Big

It’s fascinating how often something interesting happens in nature when you’re on your way to do something else. An outing recently along the Scioto below Griggs Dam was intended to be a test session after we changed some settings on my wife’s Panasonic FZ150 and Olympus E620 to improve performance in the branch infested, fast paced, world of warbler photography. click on image for a better view . Before even starting…

A Tropical Bird in Columbus

We decided to go for a walk below Griggs Reservoir Dam this morning hoping to see some migrating warblers. Usually Saturday morning is a weekly date with our tandem bicycle but the weather looked threatening so birding, where we could get back to the car quickly, seemed like the thing to do. The wind was supposed to pick up later in the day so we got an early start….