Euclid Creek Watershed
Bird Survey
by Anna Kozlenko

Saturday, June 14, 2003 - Surveying Team, Anna Kozlenko and Paula Lozano
Anna has assigned the volunteers with a map designating the point count areas in the Euclid Creek watershed for bird surveying. We are to document the habitat at this point and what species we see and hear in 5 minutes.	This morning started off with fog but Paula had a Eastern Meadowlark, some Red-winged Blackbirds, and two Red-tailed Hawks looking at the back of the Richmond Regional Airport.

Urban bird population has recreational, conservational and scientific values that are not always fully appreciated. Urban parks and refuges offer stop-over points for migrants as well as nesting habitats for many avian species. Bird feeding, an activity enjoyed by urban and suburban enthusiasts, generates a multimillion-dollar investment. Bird watching has captured the interest of growing community of individuals, many of whom live in urban areas. 

During month of June 2003, Friends of Euclid Creek together with the Kirtland Bird Club will conduct a Nesting Bird Survey in the area of Euclid Creek watershed. The goal of this survey is to collect information about the density and species diversity of the nesting birds. It will provide valuable information about bird population and importance of different habitats inside the watershed. This study will help to access volubility of different habitat types inside the watershed and will provide important information for developing the watershed management plan.  

 The first step in the creation of the plan is to reveal the current conditions of the watershed, including historical information, inventory of the streams, wildlife information, land use, etc.  The next step in the planning process is to identify goals for the watershed, including water quality, public access, green space connections, wildlife habitat enhancement, etc.  And finally, we evaluate the best management practices (BMP) to get to these goals.  Examples of BMPs include conservation easement programs and stream habitat enhancement projects. 

The survey will be conducted by knowledgeable volunteers that have a large amount of bird observation experience. A point count technique will be used. Survey points are established by imposing a 500-m grid of points, created as a GIS layer over the base Euclid Creek watershed map. After the data is collected, GIS will be used to allow multidimensional analysis of bird population and habitat assessment.

Here we are along Bishop Road on the edge of a wood lot. It was hard to hear the birds with the cars going by.	A Baltimore Oriole eluded us. We had hoped to find the nest before we walked back into the business park.
This was a great place, we saw and heard Indigo Buntings, and Red-tailed Hawks.	Savannah Sparrows were calling to each other on both sides of the road. They were wonderful and in Highland Heights!
Another day, another surveying group - Sunday, June 15, 2003
Here we are in Lyndhurst, and we found a creek and a Red-eyed Vireo.	The streets were very quiet, mostly House Sparrows and Grackles.
Behind this church we had American Goldfinch and House Sparrows.	We came across a few Red-bellied Woodpeckers and a White-breasted Nuthatch.
This Sunday morning we finished all but four of the point count areas before we ran out of steam.	Mickey will finish the last four points on her own.

Page last updated on Saturday August 26, 2006