April: Following Nature's Ups and Downs

April's annual weather roller coaster was marked with record highs -- with the better part of a week pushing into the 80s (even upper 80s) -- and then near record lows (with 6" of snowfall on April 20/21 in southern portions of Erie County). But things stayed plenty active on and around the marsh.

The stately parental pair of "our eagles" standing guard on their bayfront nest.

Roy witnessed a very unusual drama playing out at our eagle nest on our Sandusky Bay shoreline. It all started the afternoon after an arctic blast interrupted what was starting to feel like early summer. While the marsh itself did not get any accumulating snow (due to the lake and bay warming into the 50s), the abrupt change may have upset the balance at the eagle nursery in the sky. 

An unexpected intruder to the nest on April 21.

Even if it wasn't the weather, it was a third eagle (above) that tipped us off that something was amiss. While the proud parents were reluctant to do so, Roy watched as they relented to the persistent intruder, ultimately giving up their rightful spots on the nest to take up agitated perches on a nearby cottonwood tree. Roy's first instinct was that he might be witnessing a rare golden eagle predating on fledgling bald eagle chicks.

A close-up of the intruder's heavy bill helped to confirm its identity.

But with the help of a telephoto lens (even in strong bayside winds) we could confirm that Roy was looking at a two- or maybe more likely three-year-old immature baldie. And its presence did not bode well for the welfare of the young eaglets.

While it is difficult to make out what the immature eagle was scavenging on, we feared the worst for the success of the eagle nest -- one of three at the marsh at present.

A lack of activity on the nest since a day or two after the "invasion" makes it clear that this particular brood was unsuccessful. Since bald eagles aren't known (to our knowledge) to predate on their own nests, its our hunch that the eaglets simply perished, perhaps due to bad timing of weather extremes. And is nature is prone to do, the immature eagle (very possibly the offspring of the nesting adults) was just making sure nothing went to waste.

More green in the Rest Pond -- largely broadleaf cattail and soft-stemmed bulrush -- is an indication that things are at least
trending toward warmer and brighter.

New growth through last year's decay.

Roy could only manage to scramble for his smartphone to capture this passing group of nearly three dozen American white pelicans.
Since I first wrote about them in May of 2017, we've seen them sporadically, each spring. It's fun every time.

April wasn't all just wildlife watching -- it also marked the beginning of Roy's labor intensive and relentless annual assault on invasive species.
First target victim: poison hemlock.

March 2020: Life Marches On

Management and wildlife highlights this month included the following:

Due to the solitary nature of the research, Bowling Green State University was able to continue its multi-year investigation into northern pike reproduction and the top predator's dependency on coastal wetlands as critical spawning habitat.

The 40-acre Rest Pond was intentionally drawn down over several pumping events to move relatively warm marsh water from within the wetland into the (comparably cold) adjacent bay to coincide with ice-out. Bay water was then allowed to flow freely back into the marsh, inundating desirable spawning habitat (note deep water canal above and emergent vegetation below). This carefully timed water movement through Standing Rush's "fish-friendly" Structure 1 was intended to encourage pike passage into the marsh just as they and their future offspring would benefit from its refuge.

A Fyke net (aka fish trap) set by BGSU researcher Nate Stott just inside Standing Rush's West Marsh (see black framed structure highlighted by the red arrow in the left channel of the Rest Pond).

Two male northern pike trapped in the estuary off of Sandusky Bay immediately adjacent to Standing Rush's Structure 1.

A major goal of this year's research is to fit individual adult northern pike with small radio transmitters that can be harmlessly inserted into the abdomen to track future movements in and around the wetland, the bay, and broader Lake Erie over the next 2-3 years.

A true sign of spring -- one of three nesting pairs of "our eagles" -- birds that have set up residence on or immediately adjacent to Standing Rush.

How many bald eagles can you count in one willow tree? Many of these birds are juveniles, likely offspring of "our eagles."

Trail camera images retrieved late this month demonstrate why I may not have seen many deer the couple times I got in the stand this past season.

Our inability to secure a trapper this spring (due to the pandemic) has direct consequences in the marsh. The badly injured muskrat immediately above -- aside a healthy specimen for comparison -- shows the outcome of finite food and space availability, especially during the spring breeding season. It is not unusual for muskrats to battle to the death as populations grow and competition for mates escalates.

Beaver activity just north of our Tower Woods -- while SO COOL to see on one hand, a bit ominous on the other; these water-loving structural engineers are persistent and can be very destructive!

West Marsh Water Conveyance: Project Update #12 (Eagles & the Channel Crossing)

At first blush, I just missed the perfect image here; but the more I look at it, the more I think that this might be one of my favorites taken on the property thus far (be sure to click to enlarge to check out the detail in the talons and wings)

The weather held for us late last week and for much of the weekend, with afternoon lows staying above freezing -- which in this particular case, was a good thing. The crew still put heat around the newly poured crossing over our new structure, and the curing concrete was wrapped in plastic ahead of Saturday's rain.

Construction oversight

Roy and I thought we were overseeing the day's progress, but as we left for the afternoon, it became clear who the real "pour supervisors" (Roy's term) were that day. This pair of mature bald eagles stood at attention for a good minute on the sturdy limb of a nearby cottonwood, basking in the near 50-degree weather and penetrating late afternoon sunshine. Conditions -- and a successful day's work -- seemed to put everyone in a good mood.

It was fitting that eagles presented themselves on the other end of my camera lens. I don't think I'd be exaggerating to say that I saw 50 individual birds over a 5-6 hour period. Many were sunning themselves or riding warm southerly breezes on my drive to and from the property. But I'd say an equal number were cruising over or past the West Marsh. Lots of mature birds, but lots of juveniles, too. They really love patrolling our bayfront dikes, especially when dead fish are washed or frozen near shore.

The photo series below captures what ended up being an uneventfully smooth (pun intended) concrete pour. Again, this is a milestone for the project, because this is what we (and our contractor) promised we'd have finished by the end of the calendar year. Now, it's a push to see if we can wrap up the project before the New Year. As is so often the case, it will ultimately come down to weather.

By the time we got ourselves in position with a camera, most of the mixer truck's contents were more-or-less where
they were going to be; the rest of the work was finishing and babysitting

Floating and troweling took less than an hour; these guys have done this before!

Finishing touches before the smooth surface was "broomed" to add an anti-slip texture (we didn't stick around for that);
then it was just left to cure for a long weekend

These two, who remind me of the old guys from The Muppets, ultimately seemed content that their work was done
and they took off for the day just about the time we did