Early Spring Bird Walk
Theme: Early Spring Bird Walk
Location: Otto Armleder Memorial Park and Environs
Date: Saturday, Saturday April 4th, 2026
Meet: At 8:00 AM at the Main Pavilion Parking Lot at Armleder Park (See directions below)
Leader: Lisa Conner, (765) 337-4669, lmconner14@gmail.com
Armleder Park is jointly managed by the Hamilton County Great Parks and the Cincinnati City Parks. This 305 acre park has developed an excellent birding reputation, mostly due to its unique habitats. The park lies in a flood plain along the west bank of the Little Miami River, about a mile north of its confluence with the Ohio River. The park is prone to flooding, which can be good for water birds but difficult to access at those times. The park also has a sizeable amount of open space, including grassland and weedy fields, an uncommon habitat in the Greater Cincinnati area. This in turn attracts many open country and grassland species. The wooded riparian corridor and sandbars along the Little Miami are very attractive to a number of resident and migrant birds. Brushy woodland edges, athletic fields and abandoned gravel pits, at least one which is permanently filled with water, round out the habitats. All of this attracts a great diversity of species throughout the various seasons. Many trails meander through the park.
Our trip leader, Lisa Conner, is a skilled birder and naturalist and is also a current board member of our Audubon Society. Lisa’s plan is to walk the trails through the diverse habitats this Park has to offer and then visit another nearby site to end our day. On this trip we expect to find an abundance of early spring migrants and resident birds. A variety of a diverse seasonal birds should be seen. Bald Eagles (a pair nests nearby which we could visit) are also likely. While birds will be our main focus, Lisa will not ignore any other aspects of nature we find along the way. So come on out with us and join Lisa for what should be an interesting morning walk in a unique park. If time permits, Lisa may take a short side trip to another nearby birding hotspot, depending upon birding reports closer to the date.
Virtually all of this trip will be on foot, but walking will be easy to moderate and at a birders pace over mostly level terrain. As always, be prepared for muddy spots, especially if conditions have been wet. We hope for a mild day but prepare for cold temperatures and dress accordingly. Good footwear will make your walk more enjoyable. Bring water. It should go without saying that binoculars are necessary for seeing birds well. Restrooms are available at Armleder. This field trip will end sometime around noon. If you have any questions about this trip feel free to contact Lisa at her contacts listed above.
Directions:
Otto Armleder Park is located at 5057 Wooster Pike, Cincinnati, OH 45226. It is directly north of Lunken Airport and Beechmont Avenue, but can only be accessed from Wooster Pike. You can access Wooster Pike and Armleder Park from Columbia Parkway (US 50), and Red Bank Road from the north or Beechmont Avenue (Rt. 125) or Wilmer Avenue from the south. From Wooster Pike, turn into Otto Armleder Park and follow the Park road straight to the stop sign at the T intersection. Then go straight ahead, into the main Pavilion Parking lot where we will meet.
Otto Armleder Website (Includes Google Directions & Park Map)
(Contributed by Jay Stenger)