OAK HARBOR, Ohio — The Blackburnian Warbler was there. Then it wasn’t.
There was a flash of the bird’s brilliant orange face then it took flight, escaping out of the frame before Joshua Covill could trip the shutter on his camera.
Mr. Covill is one of thousands of birders in northwest Ohio to enjoy the 10-day Biggest Week in American Birding festival, which kicked off on Friday. Tourists come from all over the world to observe the hundreds of thousands of songbirds that settle along the Lake Erie shoreline.
The festival’s international draw was underscored by the presence of Kevin Loughlin’s Wildside Nature Tours, a Yardley, Pa.-based company that coordinates birding tours from Africa to Antarctica and beyond.
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Mr. Loughlin, who owns the company, was accompanied on his trip to northwest Ohio by a dozen guides from all over the Western Hemisphere including Ecuador, Trinidad, Belize, and Puerto Rico.
“I fly them up from wherever they are from, and we come and enjoy this,” he said.
When asked why he bring people to the festival from all over the globe his answer was simple: “This is one of the most amazing spectacles every year.”
Mr. Covill traveled from Montana and rented a house in Port Clinton so he could partake in the festival for the first time.
“I couldn’t pass this up,” he said. “There’s a density of birds where you can see a lot of species all in one spot.”
While the festival is headquartered at Maumee Bay State Park, Magee Marsh is the central hub for birders.
Mr. Covill set up his tripod and camera on the outskirts of the heavily populated Magee Marsh boardwalk.
On the boardwalk, hundreds of people lined up along the wooden handrail, jockeying for a favorable position for bird-watching.
Onlookers gazed into the wilderness hoping to spot one of the exotic birds largely camouflaged by the morass of trees, swampland, and sparse vegetation.
The combination of chirps, whistles, and piercing trills of the songbirds traveled with the howling wind coming off Lake Erie.
The birds are often oblivious to the naked eye except when taking flight. That’s why most birders carry either a camera with a long lens or pair of binoculars.
But the occasional sighting of a bird can be breathtaking for some.
“Whew, two right in the same view,” Marty Reynard said, as she spotted two warblers through her binoculars.
Ms. Raynard of Bedford said she usually comes to Magee Marsh twice a year and wanted to avoid the large crowds of people, but after reading about the festival, she couldn’t wait any longer.
“It’s all so cool,” she said. “It’s just such a great spot.”
Ms. Raynard said she enjoys observing several species — vireos, swallows, flycatchers, and thrushes — but the warblers are the big draw.
With so many tourists the festival is a driving engine for the local economy. It attracted nearly 90,000 visitors to the area last year, making an economic impact estimated at about $40 million, said Bryan Edwards, the director of marketing with Ohio’s Lake Erie Shores & Islands tourism bureau.
“You walk up and down the parking lot at Magee Marsh, and you’ll see 30 to 40 different license plates,” he said.
“We have people coming for multiple days, so it’s not just hotel stays but restaurants and shopping. It’s a huge boon to the area.”
All visitors are given a brochure that suggests “fun places to visit” in Ohio, offering them a list of surrounding restaurants, wineries, bars, and attractions that might interest birders.
“Not only does the festival bring in different birders from around the country but people who never come here. We’re hoping they come here, fall in love, and want to come back,” Mr. Edwards said.
Contact Javonte Anderson at janderson@theblade.com, 419-724-6065, or on Twitter @JavonteA.
First Published May 4, 2018, 9:42 p.m.
