Date: 2/6/26 9:36 am From: Douglas Vogus <vogeye...> Subject: [Ohio-birds] Cuyahoga Valley Towpath Census
FEBRUARY 05, 2026 - CUYAHOGA VALLEY MONTHLY TOWPATH TRAIL CENSUS. ROUTE: Red Lock Trailhead south to Merriman Valley, with a stop at Hunt Farm Visitor Center with a packed lunch. TIME: 7:05am - 3:40pm TIME AFIELD: 8:35 TEMP.: 0F ~ 22F COND.: Frigid with light snow ending at 7:55am; turning partly sunny until 9:35am, then cloudy with hazy sun until 11:30am, then cloudy for the remainder of the census. TRAIL COND.: A single rut of hard-packed snow from Red Lock Trailhead to Ira Rd.; difficult walking from Ira Rd. to Merriman Valley - less traveled with plenty of snow left (6 to 9 inches) from Winter Storm Fern. RIVER COND.: Normal; recent cold spell (over two weeks of below freezing) has even the mighty Cuyahoga River in its grips, with some slower sections completely iced-over; other sections were just a strip of open water; deeper sections were open as well as sections with rapids (ducks galore with Lake Erie frozen), but much of the river was skirted with ice-shelves; all creeks and runs frozen; Ira Beaver Marsh was completely frozen except for the usual strip along the north shore where it is spring-fed. FT. MI.: 14.60 OBS.: Douglas W. Vogus.
I. MAMMALS: 6 SPECIES, 17 TOTAL.
1. Eastern Cottontail - 2 (Second February Record on Census) 2. Eastern Gray Squirrel - 3 (1 black morph) 3. Red Squirrel - 5 4. Common Raccoon - 1 (Second February Record on Census) 5. American Mink - 1 (caught a small fish at open section of Ira Beaver Marsh - First February Record on Census) 6. White-tailed Deer - 6 (4 does,2 unknown)
II. BIRDS: 52 SPECIES, (1 ESCAPE), 2,172 TOTAL. (NOTE: m = male; f = female; ? = bird was seen but not sexed; * = bird was heard calling but not sexed)
E. Domestic "Barnyard" Goose - 1 (with Canada Geese at Stumpy Basin and able to fly)
1. Canada Goose - 213 2. Tundra Swan - 2 (heard a distant flock "baying" northeast of Boston - at least two, but probably more - First February Record on Census) 3. Wood Duck - 3 (2m,1f) (east bank of the Cuyahoga River just north of the Akron Water Pollution Control Station's warm-water outflow - Second February Record on Census) 4. Gadwall - 4 (1m,3f) (at the big bend in the river at Stumpy Basin - Second February Record on Census) 5. American Wigeon - 1 (m) (preening on the east bank next to the Wood Ducks - Fourth Record on Census & First February Record on Census) 6. American Black Duck - 27 (13m,14f) 7. Mallard - 100 (54m,46f) 8. Canvasback - 3 (2m,1f) (one drake at Bolanz Rd. and a pair at the big bend at Stumpy Basin - Second Record on Census & First February Record on Census) 9. Redhead - 12 (10m,2f) (First February Record on Census) 10. Greater Scaup - 6 (1m,5f) (in the river at Lock 25 - Second Record on Census, First February Record on Census & New Census High - previous was 2 on 03/2015) 11. Lesser Scaup - 2 (m) (one at the Peninsula trestle and one at Deep Lock Trestle - Second February Record on Census) 12. Bufflehead - 2 (m) (just north of the Peninsula Aqueduct footbridge - First February Record on Census) 13. Common Goldeneye - 94 (15m,79f) (Fifth February Record on Census & New Census High - previous was 35 on 03/2015) 14. Hooded Merganser - 17 (8m,9f) (Fifth February Record on Census) 15. Common Merganser - 56 (one drake resting on an ice-shelf hacked up a partially digested Common White Sucker every bit of a foot in length!) 16. Red-breasted Merganser - 4 (1m,3f) (one female at Stumpy Basin, two females at Bolanz Rd. and male at Ira Rd. - Fifth Record on Census & Second February Record on Census) 17. Mourning Dove - 26 18. Ring-billed Gull - 424 (early morning flights started with Ring-billed Gulls then switched over to the majority being American Herring Gulls with a few ring-billeds mixed in) 19. American Herring Gull - 478 (large v-formations headed south to Tuscarawas County landfill - New Census High - previous was 211 on 03/2015) 20. Great Black-backed Gull - 1 (immature) (mixed in with a flock of herring gulls - Fourth Record on Census & Second February Record on Census) 21. Great Blue Heron - 5 22. Bald Eagle - 8 (5 adult,3 immature) 23. Red-tailed Hawk - 6 24. Belted Kingfisher - 2 (m) 25. Red-bellied Woodpecker - 24 (8m,2f,3?,11*) 26. Downy Woodpecker - 15 (8m,3f,4*) 27. Hairy Woodpecker - 7 (2f,1?,4*) 28. Northern Flicker - 4 (3m,1?) 29. Pileated Woodpecker - 4 (2*,2 drumming) 30. Blue Jay - 46 31. American Crow - 57 32. Black-capped Chickadee - 14 33. Tufted Titmouse - 9 34. Golden-crowned Kinglet - 3 (1m,2?) 35. White-breasted Nuthatch - 17 (2m,1f,2?,12*) 36. Carolina Wren - 7 37. European Starling - 23 38. American Robin - 174 (most feeding on the only berries left - European privet) 39. House Sparrow - 26 40. House Finch - 4 (2m,2f) 41. American Goldfinch - 32 42. Fox Sparrow - 2 (Third February Record on Census) 43. American Tree Sparrow - 8 44. Dark-eyed Junco - 3 (2m,1f) 45. White-throated Sparrow - 10 46. Song Sparrow - 4 47. Swamp Sparrow - 1 48. Red-winged Blackbird - 4 (m) 49. Brown-headed Cowbird - 17 (12m,5f) 50. Rusty Blackbird - 94 (39m,5f,50 mixed flock) (Third February Record on Census) 51. Common Grackle - 4 52. Northern Cardinal - 59 (38m,17f,4*)
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