Winter Bird Walk at Winton Woods

Theme: Winter Bird Walk

Location: Winton Woods (Great Parks of Hamilton County)

Date: Saturday, January 20, 2024

Meet: At 8:30 AM in the Winton Woods Camp Ground Parking Lot. See directions below.

Leader: Luke Thies, (937) 733-9325, thiesluke997@gmail.com

The focus of this trip will be to find Red Crossbills, an irruptive winter finch. There has been at least one flock of these birds present at Winton Woods for the past month.

Red Crossbills are very rare winter visitors in our region of the country. They are absent most years. They are northern (Canada boreal forests) and western (montane pines) residents that generally stay “home” during most winters, where they subsist on pine cone seeds which are usually available to them all winter. Their “crossed” bills are adaptations for gleaning seeds from pine cones. These crossbills, and other similar species, are dependent on the seeds from these cones. Every few years or so, these cone “crops” fail, or don’t otherwise provide enough seeds to last through the winter. When this happens these birds become nomadic and move great distances in search of better food sources. Northern boreal birds usually head south into the northern US and sometimes as far south as southern Ohio. Western montane birds may head to the eastern US, which is thought to be the case this season. These winter movements are defined by the terms “cyclic” or “irruptive”.

This happens to be one of those irruptive years. This winter movement was predicted and there have been many reports of Red Crossbills throughout the eastern US this winter. There are at least three regional locations where they have been publicly reported. Winton Woods is one of those places. At least one flock, consisting of 18-20 Red Crossbills, has been consistently found and photographed at Winton over the past month. We feel there is a good chance we will find these birds, as they are rather noisy and their flight calls are distinctive. But, as with any birds, there is never a guarantee

Everyone should be on the lookout for these rare birds this winter. They could show up anywhere the habitat is good and a food source is available. In addition to pine groves, they are fond of sweet gums and will visit feeders.

While we have not heard of any Pine Siskin reports yet, these northern winter visitors have also been predicted to “erupt” this winter. Red-breasted Nuthatches, another winter cyclic species, but much more common than the crossbills, may also be found. This has been a below average year for Red-breasted Nuthatches, but there were a couple found on the recent Christmas Count at Winton.  Of course we will have our eyes and ears open for all the resident and seasonal birds, of which we expect to find many species during the morning walk

Our trip leader, Luke Thies, is a skilled birder and naturalist. Luke is also a valued board member of our Audubon Society Luke has been following the Winton crossbills and has seen and heard them several times, so we are in good hands. Luke’s priority, obviously, is to locate the Red Crossbills. He will start the morning walk at the expected locations, and if time permits, check out a few ther locations in the Park.

This trip will consist mostly of walking, but over mostly level ground and at a birders pace as we look for birds. It is January, so be prepared for cold temperatures and possible snow. There are restrooms available at Winton Woods. Severe weather will cancel this trip. If you are unsure or have any questions’ feel free to contact Luke.

A Motor Vehicle Permit (MVP) is required at all Hamilton County Parks. The cost for a daily MVP is $5 resident & $8 non-resident. An annual MVP is $10 resident & $16 non-resident.

Directions: Winton Woods address is 10245 Winton Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45231. The Park entrance is located on Winton Road, 3 miles south of I-275 or 3 miles north of Ronald Reagan Cross-County Highway. The Winton Road Campground and Parking Lot is located east of Winton Road. From Winton Road, turn east onto park road Lakeview Drive and go about .6 of a mile to the Campgrounds entrance. Turn right into the campgrounds and the visitor Parking Lot is immediately on your right.

The Winton Woods website link follows:

https://www.greatparks.org/parks/winton-woods

(Contributed by Jay Stenger)