Fall migration is underway in your Metro Parks

TINA FRONK
Social Media Specialist

Bundle up and bring your binoculars out to your favorite Metro Park – fall waterfowl migration is underway! You can see a variety of birds floating in the water or soaring overhead.

Pickerington Ponds Metro Park, a premier spot for birdwatching, has several marshes and wetlands where you can see more than 260 species of birds throughout the year. The wetlands are teeming with waterfowl such as sandpipers, great blue herons and mallards. The rich wetland vegetation and bordering woodlands serve as a magnet for migrating waterfowl, shorebirds and land birds.

Known as a birding mecca, Scioto Audubon Metro Park is home to various birds and waterfowl. Plan to spend the morning at the park and you might see mallards, ring-necked ducks, wood ducks, blue-winged teals, hooded mergansers and great blue herons. Scioto Audubon is a hot spot for birding, so come out any time of the year to marvel at the more than 200 species of bird spotted in this Important Bird Area.

The wetlands within Metro Parks are home to many birds and other wildlife. If you’re lucky, you may see a mink or muskrat building a den or watch as a colorful wood duck takes flight overhead. Battelle Darby Creek, Glacier Ridge and Slate Run all have wetlands that are full of mallards, wood ducks, sandpipers and bufflehead ducks. If you’re patient, sandhill cranes may make a grand entrance at Slate Run.

There’s so much to discover in your Metro Parks, so lace up your hiking boots and watch this season’s fall migration.