MENTOR MARSH: FLASH!! FIRST OSPREY NEST IN LAKE COUNTY

Stock photo of an Osprey, aka Fish Hawk.  You can tell them from Bald Eagles because Ospreys are smaller and present white undersides when in flight.

This great news just in from an excited Becky Donaldson, Mentor Marsh Naturalist:

Osprey news, in case you haven’t heard: For about the past week, we’ve seen at least one osprey and sometimes two at that cell tower at the SE corner of SR 44 and 283 (Lakeshore Blvd) with nesting material in the tower that’s further NE, too. Woo-hoo! I first saw one carrying a stick last Thursday while on a field trip at the Wake Robin boardwalk. Saw one again on Friday AM on a field trip and scoped the cell phone towers Friday afternoon and saw two birds on the tower and flying around the cell towers.

I spoke with Jason Keller, Lake Co. Wildlife Officer and he says he does think that this is 1st nest (finger crossed that they actually do nest here) in Lake County.

And don’t forget about our Bald Eagle Fest, Sunday, May 5:

All are invited to celebrate the magnificent bald eagle with activities at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 5185 Corduroy Road on Sunday, May 5 from 12-5 p.m. Visit mini-stations to learn more about eagles and take part in hands-on and interactive activities –build a mock-eagle nest, hold a replica skull and talons in your hands, learn more about bald eagles and bird biology. Special guests include Smokey Bear and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s live animal ambassadors! No registration is required to attend open house activities at the Nature Center.

Register for one of three guided hikes to overlook the bald eagle nest from our trails at 12:30, 2 and 3:30 p.m. This two mile hike is on a rustic and sometimes muddy trail and is not recommended for young children. Spotting scopes will be provided. Bring your own binoculars or we will also have binoculars to lend. Meet for the hike at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center before your reserved hike time. Registration for hikes is required. Space is limited for hikes, so register soon! For questions or to make a reservation for a bald eagle viewing hike, please contact the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 440-257-0777 or rdonalds@cmnh.org or on the Mentor Marsh Facebook page.

Becky Donaldson

Mentor Marsh Naturalist

Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center

5185 Corduroy Road

Mentor, Ohio 44060

(440) 257-0777 Direct

 

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History

1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle

Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1767

www.cmnh.org

216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg.

800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.

Check us out on Facebook!

 

 

MENTOR MARSH BALD EAGLE FESTIVAL, MAY 5, 2013

Mentor Marsh Bald Eagle, 2012  © Carole Clement

Mentor, OH–All are invited to celebrate the magnificent bald eagle with activities at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 5185 Corduroy Road on Sunday, May 5 from 12-5 p.m. Visit mini-stations to learn more about eagles and take part in hands-on and interactive activities –build a mock-eagle nest, hold a replica skull and talons in your hands, learn more about bald eagles and bird biology. Special guests include Smokey Bear and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s live animal ambassadors! No registration is required to attend open house activities at the Nature Center.

Register for one of three guided hikes to overlook the bald eagle nest from our trails at 12:30, 2 and 3:30 p.m. This two mile hike is on a rustic and sometimes muddy trail and is not recommended for young children. Spotting scopes will be provided. Bring your own binoculars or we will also have binoculars to lend. Meet for the hike at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center before your reserved hike time. Registration for hikes is required. Space is limited for hikes, so register soon! For questions or to make a reservation for a bald eagle viewing hike, please contact the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 440-257-0777 or rdonalds@cmnh.org or on the Mentor Marsh Facebook page.

The Mentor Marsh State Nature Preserve’s mission promotes stewardship of Mentor Marsh for its environmental and aesthetic value and provides educational, scientific and recreational opportunities for visitors to the unique ecosystem and interactive nature preserve. Visit the Mentor Marsh State Nature Preserve web site at www.cmnh.org, search for Mentor Marsh.

–Becky Donaldson

Mentor Marsh Naturalist

Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center

5185 Corduroy Road

Mentor, Ohio 44060

(440) 257-0777 Direct

 

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History

1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle

Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1767

www.cmnh.org

216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg.

800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.

Check us out on Facebook!

 

MENTOR’S DEER POPULATION: DEER EXCLOSURE AND PELLET COUNTS AT VETERANS PARK

Mark Welch, Metroparks District Park Manager and Larry Burnett, Veterans Park Manager, admire the newly constructed deer exclosure.

The purpose of a deer exclosure is to demonstrate the health of an ecosystem.  Because deer are prevented from browsing within the fencing, the prevalence of plants, seedlings, saplings and trees within as compared to outside the fencing is a good measure of the effect deer have on forest vegetation.

Mentor’s Park and Recreation Department is fortunate to have a candidate for his Eagle Scout Badge who will give nature a little jump-start by planting within the exclosure a few colonies of plants native to the park but which have been browsed to the point of apparent extinction.

The Scout will also plant a couple of samples of the plants on the area outside the fencing.

I’ve said “apparent extinction” because we can expect to see a number of the plants sprout on their own within the exclosure.  Though browsing and invasive plant species can prevent native plants from growing, the seed bank under the soil has a strong will to survive—and will, once the browsing animals and invasive plants are removed.

Below is a photograph of one of the deer exclosures at Mentor Marsh that had been up about 10 years when I took the photo.

The only plants growing outside of the exclosure are blankets of ramps.  Evidently, the deer don’t want to have onion-breath, so leave the ramps unmolested.

None of the plants or saplings growing inside had been there when the exclosure was erected by the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

None of those plants or saplings was planted by man.

Nature heals itself, if given half a chance.  And that’s the gift being given at Veterans Park.

You’ll find a number of these vividly colored pegs throughout the park.  They mark the spot where deer density estimations by deer pellet group count will take place.

It sounds like exactly what it is:  workers will count the number of piles of deer pellets within a radius of x number of feet of the pegs, knowing that deer deposit on average 25 pellet groups per day.

Counts are taken within a deer’s home range, which is one square mile, and are taken only in the spring after snow melt and after the previous autumn’s leaf fall is complete.

After computing the samples found in one square mile, the result is a fairly accurate estimate of the number of deer per square mile.

Photos © Carole Clement

MENTOR MARSH: MENTOR MARSH EAGLET OUT OF NEST!

Public Domain Photo of Eaglet

From Becky Donaldson, Mentor Marsh Naturalist

I posted the text below on our Marsh Facebook this afternoon…if you want to see the eaglet, come along on our Sunday hike!

Have you seen the eaglet lately? I had a chance to swing by the nest this morning and saw it in the nest tree, in a branch a bit above the nest. It looks like it is hopping or “practicing flying” since it was up and out of the nest.

Go eaglet!

We’ll take our “seasonal venture” hike down the Zimmerman Trail with the scope to see if we can spot it on our upcoming Sunday hike. Hope you can come along!

Meet at 2 p.m. at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center this Sunday, July 8.

Becky Donaldson, Mentor Marsh Naturalist

Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center  5185 Corduroy Road

Mentor Headlands, Ohio 44060

(440) 257-0777 Direct

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History   www.cmnh.org

216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg.   800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.

SUNDAY IN THE MARSH WITH BECKY: TREE IDENTIFICATION JUNE 10, 2012

Sunday, June 10, 2 PM     Let’s get into the shade of the woods and explore the upland forest and shrub ecosystem surrounding the Marsh.  We’ll work on identification as well as discuss forest diversity and trends on this informational hike.

Mentor Marsh is an interpretive nature preserve of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History(CMNH) and the State of Ohio (ODNR) Division of Natural Areas and Preserves.

Trails are open daily, year-round, dawn to dusk.

From April through October, Mentor Marsh Nature Center is open from noon to 5 pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

Hikes are free with registration at rdonalds@cmnh.org                         or (440) 257-0777.

Becky Donaldson  Mentor Marsh Naturalist

Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center

5185 Corduroy Road     Mentor, Ohio 44060

(440) 257-0777 Direct

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History

1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle  Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1767

www.cmnh.org

216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg.  800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.

Check us out on Facebook!

 

 

SUNDAY IN THE MARSH WITH BECKY: CLEAN UP THE ZIMMERMAN TRAIL

Celebrate National Trails Day at Mentor Marsh this Sunday, June 3rd at 2 p.m.   Help us take part in the long standing celebration of America’s magnificent trail system and its countless supporters and volunteers.

Lend a hand as we “spruce” up our section-2 miles of the Zimmerman Trail–part of the Buckeye Trail. Tools provided; wear sturdy footwear and bring work gloves.

Meet at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 5185 Corduroy Road in Mentor Headlands.

Event is a go in rain or shine.

Reservations are recommended so we know you are coming! Thanks!

Becky Donaldson

Mentor Marsh Naturalist        Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center              5185 Corduroy Road Mentor, Ohio 44060                    440) 257-0777 Direct

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History        1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle          Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1767 http://www.cmnh.org     216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg.       800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.

Check us out on Facebook!

 

MENTOR MARSH: 3RD ANNUAL BALD EAGLE FESTIVAL, MAY 6

Come share in the excitement of our magnificent bald eagles next Sunday, May, 6 from 12:00 – 5:00 pm at Mentor Marsh’s 3rd Annual Bald Eagle Festival!

Visit mini-stations to learn more about eagles and take part in hands- on and interactive activities –build a mock-eagle nest, hold a replica skull in your hands, learn more about bald eagles and bird biology.

Check out our local Blackbrook Audubon Society’s info booth and chat with Smoky Bear as they help tell the story of birds and fire prevention at the Marsh. No registration is required to attend open house activities at the Nature Center.

Do you want to hike and see the eagle nest from our trails? Register for one of three naturalist-led hikes to view the bald eagle nest at 12:30, 2 and 3:30 p.m. Registration is required for hikes.

This two -ile round trip hike is on a rustic and sometimes muddy trail and is not recommended for young children.

Spotting scopes will be provided. Bring your own binoculars or we will also have binoculars to lend.

Meet for the hike at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center before your reserved hike time. Space is limited for hikes, so register soon!

For questions or to make a reservation for a bald eagle viewing hike, please contact the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 440-257-0777 or rdonalds@cmnh.org.

Becky Donaldson Mentor Marsh Naturalist Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center 5185 Corduroy Road Mentor, Ohio 44060 (440) 257-0777 Direct

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History 1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1767 http://www.cmnh.org    216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg. 800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.      Check us out on Facebook!

MENTOR MARSH: UPDATE ON MARSH EAGLES, 3/23

This just in from Becky:

Finally had a time to scope the eagle nest yesterday late in the afternoon. Saw two eagles!

One parent was in an adjacent tree to the south of the nest. And every once in a while, dark-colored back or wing feathers were spotted over the rim of the nest. Even with the warm sun and air temperature, that eagle in the nest sure was hunkered down on those eggs.

No more news or action to report, but this is exciting nontheless. They are still sitting on eggs!
Go eagles!
– 
Becky Donaldson

Mentor Marsh Naturalist
Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center
5185 Corduroy Road
Mentor, Ohio 44060
(440) 257-0777 Direct

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History
1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle
Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1767
www.cmnh.org 
216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg.
800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.

Check us out on Facebook!

MENTOR MARSH MARCH 4th WINTER HIKE WITH BECKY: TRACKS IN THE SNOW (OR MUD)

Get out of the house and into the woods with us this Sunday, March 4,  for our monthly winter hike–Winter Tracking. Meet at the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 5185 Corduroy Road at 2 p.m. If you haven’t visited the Nature Center before, be sure to give yourself a bit of time beforehand to explore the hands-on natural history displays.

Tracks in the snow (or mud!) let us discover what kind of wildlife lives in and around the Marsh and is active this time of year. We’ll also look for other signs such as nests which show who all uses this preserve as vital habitat. We’ll have identification guides to lend. Please dress for the weather, including boots. Trails may be muddy this time of year.

Reservations are suggested. To register or for more information on this program or others, call 440-257-0777 or email rdonalds@cmnh.org.

Mentor Marsh Nature Center programs are family friendly and all are invited. Activities will be held rain/snow or shine. Trails may be muddy this time of year, so please prepare and dress for the conditions. Reservations are requested. For questions or to make a reservation, please contact the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 440-257-0777 or rdonalds@cmnh.org.

The Mentor Marsh State Nature Preserve’s mission promotes stewardship of Mentor Marsh for its environmental and aesthetic value and provides educational, scientific and recreational opportunities for visitors to the unique ecosystem and interactive nature preserve. Visit the Mentor Marsh State Nature Preserve web site at http://www.cmnh.org, search for Mentor Marsh.

Becky Donaldson, Mentor Marsh Naturalist    Mentor Marsh Carol H. Sweet Nature Center 5185 Corduroy Road Mentor, Ohio 44060 (440) 257-0777 Direct

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History

1 Wade Oval Drive, University Circle Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1767 http://www.cmnh.org 216-231-4600 x3505 Lv. mssg. 800-317-9155 x3505 Lv. mssg.

Check us out on Facebook!

BURROUGHS NATURE CLUB: FEBRUARY, 2012

                 Burroughs Nature Club Friday, February 17th   8 PM

Sand: A Geologic View of Caddisflies and Historical Building Stones in Northeastern Ohio      Dr. David Saja, Curator of Mineralogy, CMNH

After we saw northern Ohio from far above in our January meeting, we will narrow our focus in February to a grain of sand which has its own story to tell. Dr. David Saja, Curator of Mineralogy at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, will share two stories of sand from his research.

First, the story of sand used by caddisflies to build mobile cases in which they live and pupate. Dr. Saja and his students have been studying several species of these caddisflies in the rivers of northern Ohio.

He will then tell the story of sand still locked within our local rocks, like the Euclid Bluestone, Berea Sandstone, and the Sharon Formation, that tell intriguing tales about the rocks’ formation and use by industry.

 

Join us at our February Burroughs meeting and learn how careful methodic observations of individual objects less than a millimeter in size can reveal wonders of the natural world around us.

Dinner at 6:30 by firm reservation Adults             $8.00

Willoughby United Methodist Church Children 12 & under             $4.00

Make dinner reservations by Tuesday noon, February 14 to Carol Fishwick (440 946-3699) or email dfishwick@sbcglobal.net; Joe Baumann (440 248-6419); Lois Mara (440 352-9901); or Marge Westman (440 352-0510). Cancellations after Wednesday noon must be paid for, or you may wish to send someone in your place.

Guests and new members are always welcome at Burroughs.

Recycle printer cartridges and help save money on printing costs for Burroughs Club. Bring your empty cartridges to the meeting and Connie Owen will trade them in at Staples. Last year we saved substantially this way.

Visit us at  burroughsnatureclub.org