Date: 9/6/25 10:16 am From: Douglas Vogus <vogeye...> Subject: [Ohio-birds] Cuyahoga Valley Towpath Census
SEPTEMBER 05, 2025 - CUYAHOGA VALLEY MONTHLY TOWPATH TRAIL CENSUS. ROUTE: Red Lock Trailhead south to Botzum Trailhead (last leg - Botzum Trailhead to Merriman Valley - unfinished due to time constraints). TIME: 6:50am - 4:30pm TIME AFIELD: 9:40 TEMP.: 53F ~ 78F ~ 76F ~ 78F COND.: Cool and calm early, warming throughout the morning and sunny with blue skies; turning mostly cloudy at 12:30pm, then cloudy and breezy with winds 5-10mph, then dying down at 4:00pm TRAIL COND.: Good - but littered with walnut and buckeye nuts, leaves, and small branches. RIVER COND.: Very low, with many rockbars and sandbars, and absolutely superb clarity. FT. MI.: 12.00 OBS.: John Henry and Douglas W. Vogus.
I. MAMMALS: 10 SPECIES, 68 TOTAL.
1. Eastern Cottontail - 4 (1 bunny) 2. Eastern Chipmunk - 32 3. Woodchuck - 2 4. Eastern Gray Squirrel - 3 (1 black morph) 5. Eastern Fox Squirrel - 1 6. Red Squirrel - 8 7. American Beaver - 1 (Fourth September Record on Census) 8. Common Muskrat - 2 (1 kit) 9. Common Raccoon - 2 (Second September Record on Census) 10. White-tailed Deer - 13 (8-pt buck,5 does,1 yearling,6 unknown)
II. BIRDS: 79 SPECIES, 1,057 TOTAL. (NOTE: m = male; f = female; ? = bird was seen but not sexed; * = bird was heard calling but not sexed)
1. Canada Goose - 62 2. Wood Duck - 41 (16m,25f) 3. Mallard - 1 (m) 4. Rock Pigeon - 2 5. Mourning Dove - 15 6. Common Nighthawk - 9 (Third September Record on Census) 7. Chimney Swift - 71 8. Ruby-throated Hummingbird - 15 (1m,9f,5?) (New Census High - previous was 7 on 09/2020, 08/2023 & 09/2024) 9. Virginia Rail - 4 (at Ira Beaver Marsh - one seen and three others calling - Second September Record on Census & New Census High - previous was 3 on 05/2025) 10. Killdeer - 3 11. Spotted Sandpiper - 1 12. Double-crested Cormorant - 2 13. Green Heron - 7 (2 adult,4 immature,1 calling) (one adult caught a bluegill & one immature caught a Central Mudminnow) 14. Great Blue Heron - 8 15. Turkey Vulture - 11 16. Cooper's Hawk - 1 (immature m) 17. Bald Eagle - 2 (adult) 18. Broad-winged Hawk - 1 (immature) (at Deep Lock - Fourth September Record on Census) 19. Red-tailed Hawk - 2 20. Eastern Screech-Owl - 1 (calling - Fourth September Record on Census) 21. Belted Kingfisher - 2 (?) 22. Red-headed Woodpecker - 1 23. Red-bellied Woodpecker - 14 (1m,1 immature m,1f,1 immature f,2?,8*) 24. Downy Woodpecker - 7 (2m,1f,1?,3*) 25. Hairy Woodpecker - 7 (3m,1?,3*) 26. Northern Flicker - 4 (1f,3?) 27. Pileated Woodpecker - 4 (1?,2*,1 drumming) 28. Merlin - 1 (m) (at Ira Beaver Marsh - tried to catch a hummingbird then did back and forth chases with 1 Northern Flicker and 5 Blue Jays - Second September Record on Census) 29. Peregrine Falcon - 1 (m) (still hanging around the Ohio Turnpike bridge) 30. Great Crested Flycatcher - 1 (Fourth September Record on Census) 31. Eastern Wood-Pewee - 4 32. Acadian Flycatcher - 3 (one adult feeding two juveniles) 33. Willow Flycatcher - 1 (Second September Record on Census) 34. Least Flycatcher - 3 35. Eastern Phoebe - 4 (one bird landed on my arm and after a few seconds of eye contact, it pecked at my wedding ring) 36. White-eyed Vireo - 1 (Fifth September Record on Census) 37. Blue-headed Vireo - 1 (First September Record on Census) 38. Philadelphia Vireo - 1 (Fourth September Record on Census & Tied Census High from 09/2012, 10/2015, 09/2016, 05/2019, 09/2020 & 09/2024) 39. Warbling Vireo - 7 40. Red-eyed Vireo - 4 41. Blue Jay - 24 42. American Crow - 16 43. Black-capped Chickadee - 16 44. Tufted Titmouse - 11 45. Cedar Waxwing - 38 46. White-breasted Nuthatch - 12 (7m,2f,3*) 47. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 1 (f) 48. Carolina Wren - 11 49. Northern House Wren - 1 50. Gray Catbird - 26 51. European Starling - 44 52. Eastern Bluebird - 3 (1f,2*) 53. Veery - 1 (Fourth September Record on Census) 54. Wood Thrush - 1 (Second September Record on Census) 55. American Robin - 57 56. House Sparrow - 46 57. House Finch - 8 (3m,4?,1*) 58. American Goldfinch - 27 (10m,8f,9*) 59. Chipping Sparrow - 1 60. Song Sparrow - 14 61. Swamp Sparrow - 5 62. Red-winged Blackbird - 38 (6m,2f,30?) 63. Common Grackle - 219 64. Tennessee Warbler - 1 (m) 65. Nashville Warbler - 2 (f) (Fifth September Record on Census) 66. Common Yellowthroat - 8 (2m,1f,5*) 67. Hooded Warbler - 2 (1m,1*) 68. American Redstart - 2 (f) 69. Northern Parula - 2 (1f,1 juvenile) (female still being followed by juvenile bird - Second September Record on Census) 70. Magnolia Warbler - 8 (f) 71. Bay-breasted Warbler - 2 (m) (Fourth September Record on Census) 72. Blackburnian Warbler - 1 (f) 73. Yellow Warbler - 2 (?) (chasing each other - Third September Record on Census) 74. Blackpoll Warbler - 3 (2m,1?) 75. Wilson's Warbler - 1 (m) (Third Record on Census & First September Record on Census) 76. Scarlet Tanager - 2 (1m,1f) 77. Northern Cardinal - 35 (11m,1 immature m,8f,3 immature f,8*,4 immature*) 78. Rose-breasted Grosbeak - 1 (f) 79. Indigo Bunting - 4 (3f,1 immature)
1. Common Snapping Turtle - 10 (two hatchlings) 2. Red-eared Turtle - 3 3. Midland Painted Turtle - 262 4. Northern Water Snake - 2 (Third September Record on Census)
IV. AMPHIBIANS: 4 SPECIES, 18 TOTAL.
1. American Toad - 1 (calling - plus one dead - trail casualty) 2. Northern Spring Peeper - 4 (heard only) 3. American Bullfrog - 3 4. Green Frog - 10
V. FISHES: 11 SPECIES, 425 TOTAL.
1. Central Mudminnow - 9 2. Common Carp - 4 3. Golden Shiner - 2 (Fifth September Record on Census) 4. Creek Chub - 33 5. Common Shiner - 16 (First September Record on Census) 6. Bluntnose Minnow - 341 (Fourth September Record on Census) 7. Northern Hog Sucker - 4 (Fourth September Record on Census) 8. Largemouth Bass - 1 9. Smallmouth Bass - 3 (Third September Record on Census) 10. Bluegill - 8 11. Pumpkinseed - 4
VI. CRUSTACEANS: 1 SPECIES, 2 TOTAL.
1. Crayfish - 2 (Fourth September Record on Census)
VII. BUTTERFLIES: 8 SPECIES, 29 TOTAL.
1. Spicebush Swallowtail - 1 (First September Record on Census) 2. Cabbage Butterfly - 8 3. Clouded Sulphur - 2 4. Summer Azure - 4 5. Pearl Crescent - 4 6. Red-spotted Purple - 1 (Fourth September Record on Census) 7. Northern Pearly Eye - 4 (First September Record on Census) 8. Monarch - 5
VIII. MOTHS/CATERPILLARS: 8 SPECIES, (5 FIRST OF CENSUS), 9 TOTAL.
1. Sod Webworm Moth - 1 (New Species on Census - currently at 50 Moth/Caterpillar Species since 01/2010) 2. Large Maple Spanworm Moth - 1 (Third Record on Census, Second September Record on Census & Tied Census High from 09/2016 & 07/2023) 3. Giant Leopard Moth (caterpillar) - 1 (Second Record on Census & First September Record on Census) 4. Crocus Geometer - 1 (New Species on Census - currently at 51 Moth/Caterpillar Species since 01/2010) 5. White-striped Black Moth - 1 (Third Record on Census & First September Record on Census) 6. Pale Beauty - 1 (New Species on Census - currently at 52 Moth/Caterpillar Species since 01/2010) 7. Yellow Woolly Bear Moth (caterpillars) - 2 (New Species on Census - currently at 53 Moth/Caterpillar Species since 01/2010) 8. Gold-striped Leaftier - 1 (New Species on Census - currently at 54 Moth/Caterpillar Species since 01/2010)
IX. DRAGONFLIES & DAMSELFLIES: 7 SPECIES, 12 TOTAL.
1. Shadow Darner - 1 2. Twelve-spotted Skimmer - 2 (First September Record on Census) 3. Blue Dasher - 1 (Third September Record on Census) 4. Blue-fronted Dancer - 1 (Fifth September Record on Census) 5. Powdered Dancer - 3 (Third September Record on Census & Tied Census High from 07/2022) 6. Fragile Forktail - 1 (Second Record on Census & First September Record on Census) 7. Eastern Forktail - 3 (Third September Record on Census)
Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.
You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: listserv.miamioh.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: <listowner...>
