'We get a lot of birds': Flyways bring migratory birds to every corner of Ohio in spring

Ohio skies are filled this time of year with hundreds of species of birds flying north for the summer.

The height of the spring migration — known as The Biggest Week in American Birding — is expected to begin Friday.

That feathered display can be enjoyed anywhere in Ohio, according to Jamey Emmert, avian education coordinator for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife.

"There are so many really wonderful places speckled throughout the state that will offer quality experiences," Emmert said. "And there's a lot of species that don't make it far north, because they nest in the glaciated parts of Ohio."

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'We sit basically at the convergence of two flyways'

The great trek away from the equator begins as early as March for some birds and as late as June for others.

That trip tends to be the same time every year for each species, based upon our planet's position against the sun.

"When it's staying light out later, they can feel that and something inside them tells them it's time to go," Emmert said. "Temperature and wind play a part in it; it makes life easier for them to follow those wind patterns, which will carry them north."

Some breeds fly a few hundred miles, others thousands.

Flights tend to follow unmarked paths known in the birding world as flyways.

"What makes Ohio so special is that we sit basically at the convergence of two flyways," Emmert said. "We get a lot of birds following the Atlantic Flyway, and then we also get a lot of birds following the Mississippi Flyway. The Atlantic and Mississippi flyways overlap in and around Ohio."

'It just feels like a complete and utter fantasy'

Of the nearly 2,000 species of birds that live in North America, 450 have been documented visiting the Buckeye State.

Only about 200 of those 450 species live in Ohio all summer, which means the rest follow a flight plan that takes them through the state into Canada.

Visiting birds can rest anywhere they'd like in Ohio, at least until they reach the shores of Lake Erie.

"If the wind's not right, they will stack up on the edge of Lake Erie," Emmert said. "They will wait along that shoreline for the right winds to head to Canada."

That's why most people know to visit places like Magee Marsh Wildlife Area in Ottawa County, "The Warbler Capital of the World," to see flocks of migratory birds. An estimated 90,000 people converge on Northwest Ohio during the Biggest Week in American Birding.

"There's some days that it just feels like a complete and utter fantasy, because there are so many birds," Emmert said. "But there are other locations along the Lake Erie shoreline that have public access that are equally as good."

There are also great bird sightings to be found throughout the rest of Ohio.

Birding locations aplenty across Ohio

Every forest, field and waterway in the state can serve as a resting place for migratory birds.

People don't have to drive all the way north to Lake Erie to benefit from May's avian influx.

"To be honest, I often head south," Emmert said. "I just don't do well in crowds. Professionally, I have to for work and that's fine, but personally I don't do well with lots of shoulder-to-shoulder crowds. It's exciting, but it's just not the kind of experience I'm looking for and I'm sure that applies to lots of birders."

There are several birding locations inland at places like the Arc of Appalachia Preserves in Southern Ohio, Hocking Hills State Park in Southeastern Ohio and Mohican State Park in North Central Ohio.

That's not to mention prime waterways like Killbuck Creek in Eastern Ohio and Nimisila Reservoir in Northeastern Ohio, as well as the hundreds of smaller forests, lakes, and rivers statewide.

"There are Metroparks, county park system properties as well as state government properties," Emmert said. "It's an overwhelming opportunity to get out there and seek really high quality birding experiences."

More: Ottawa County leads Ohio in most bald eagle breeding pairs. How they got their groove back.

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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Migratory birds are in Ohio thanks to Atlantic, Mississippi flyways