This hike was titled “revisted”, which is accurate. In fact, it could be labeled “revisted again and again”, as the photographer and I had been there innumerable times during our relationship, starting in our dating days. If we say “the Oxbow” our girls know exactly what we are talking about.
The Oxbow is a 2500 acre nature preserve in the most southeast corner of Indiana, just a short drive from Cincinnati and our Northern Kentucky home. It is basically a group of lakes with a large amount of surrounding cropland and prairie, that is bisected by the right away for I-275, the Cincinnati circle freeway. It started in 1849 when the Great Miami River, which used to flow through this flatland to the Ohio River, changed course during a flood, and relocated its mouth 1.5 miles east of its previous location. What remained were a series of shallow oxbow lakes, that only connected with the Ohio River during floods. The associated bottomland, with outstanding soil, was farmed but spared development due to frequent flooding. Man made lakes were added to the landscape when soil was collected for use on levee and road building projects. The remaining “burrow pits” filled with flood waters, failed to drain, and provided additional wetland habitat. And all of this greenspace is shoehorned in amongst bustling industrial, transportation, and commercial activities.
Despite the development, they still come – both migratory wildlife and nature enthusiasts. It seems both groups are able to look past the nearby infrastructure and ignore the ambient noise of human activity, to find respite or solace here. For me, I start getting the urge to return as we near the winter solstice, for late December is a good marker that cold weather at northern latitudes has sent the migrants south. Many will stop at the Oxbow for rest and nourishment, giving birders an opportunity to see species not often seen in our region.
The species list for birds documented at the Oxbow is impressive – numbering two hundred and ninety, including thirty three species of ducks, geese, and swans, six types of owls, and thirty six members of the warbler family. Some of these are year round residents, but most are transient visitors, stopping on their migratory travels. Each time I go I fill with anticipation, hoping that this will be the time that I see a Sandhill Crane or a Golden Eagle there.
In all the times that I have been there, I can assure you that Poison Ivy berries, which are pictured in the title photo, have never been the stars of the show. But they were on this day.
After parking, we headed down the gravel lane that leads to the Oxbow lakes that attract the migratory birds.
Almost immediately we noted birds dancing through the trees that were supporting poison ivy vines and their off-white fruit. The low winter light and dense branching made photography a challenge, but still the patient photographer captured some foragers.
While identifying warblers can be a challenge, this appears to be a Pine Warbler. The diffuse streaking on the sides of the breast, the stout bill, and the long narrow tail helps differentiate it. They usually are found in pine woods, but will visit habitats with deciduous trees during migration.
The Poison Ivy fruit was everywhere, climbing both majestic and failing trees alike. I tend to think of Poison Ivy berries being generally white but at the Oxbow they had a pale yellow pigmentation.
It turns out that as the berries age into winter, they do in fact turn white. Since the time of this visit, I have been back to the Oxbow and progression toward white was noted. Clearly from a bird perspective yellow ones are ripe enough, as we witnessed numerous species feeding on them as we walked.
One was a Carolina Chickadee, who has a berry in his mouth in the first photo below.
In very short time we watched this Downy Woodpecker feasting.
Later we saw this Tufted Titmouse eating berries as well.
One of the things that was striking on this visit to the Oxbow was the water level. It had been a unusually dry fall in our part of the Ohio River Valley and clearly it impacted this wetland. The edge of the standing water had receded far from the tree and brush shoreline that usually gives the wildlife cover.
Normally there is a small land bridge separating the smaller Juno Pond from the much larger Oxbow Lake, but now that area extended for hundreds of yards.
As we continued down the gravel lane, we eventually reached Oxbow Lake, the largest of the lakes at the Oxbow. Here we found numerous Great Blue Herons feeding. Notice the reflections of both the landscape and the herons on the water.
At first glance in the photo below one notices the heron in the foreground, but what is perhaps more interesting are the nine herons standing in the agriculture field in the background. In their literature, Oxbow Inc. reports that the population of snakes at the Oxbow is quite low as they are easy prey for the large population of herons.
We were on the gravel lane for about a mile when we decided to divert to the Osprey Lake Trail, a newer trail that circles around the man made Osprey Lake, through a meadow. The development of the lake has an interesting history that reflects the proactive nature of Oxbow Inc., the nonprofit organization that oversees the property. In the 1990s the nearby city of Greendale was converting an abandoned elevated railway line into a levee that would protect a developing commercial district to the west of the main highway. They purchased a 45 acre farm to use the soil to extend the levee. Before the project started, Oxbow Inc. approached the city about wanting to buy the property after they had finished building the levee. They requested that the burrow pit, the source of the soil, be dug in an irregular shape to increase shoreline, and that it have variable depths to increase the diversity of underwater habitats. In addition, they requested that some nesting islands be left in the middle of the lake. The lake ended up being 22.5 acres and the remaining 22.5 acres of the farm were planted with seeds of prairie plants native to the area.
Surprisingly the lake itself is less of a feature of this trail than the name implies. At least at this time of the year views of the lake are limited due to the tall skeletons of last summer’s prairie plants.
At two locations the trail arches back to small bluffs that overlook the lake.
These provide outstanding views of the smaller body of water, where we again saw herons. In the photos below you can see some of the breeding islands that were left in the lake.
One of the nice features of the Oxbow, and the Osprey Trail in particular, are the placement of poles with QR codes that provide information on the history of the property. The narratives can be accessed with your phone camera and enrich the visit. Topics on the several we looked at included items on the natural history of the Oxbow, farming on the land, interfacing with the utility companies, and how some of the land of the Oxbow was actually given by the federal government to soldiers of the American Revolutionary War for back pay. One of the more surprising items was an explanation on how land trusts, like Oxbow, Inc., play a critical role in protecting habitats in the United States. They reported that land trusts in the U.S., of which there are more than 1700, in total protect more than 61 million acres of land, which is more than that of all the national parks combined.
For the photographer and I the walk through the dormant meadow was a pleasant surprise. We were not aware that the preserve offered a prairie experience. We enjoyed the still lifes that the seed heads offered us. These are a few that we captured:
A Milkweed seedpod releasing its seeds with the assistance of the wind.
These thin seed pods belong to Indian Hemp, which also utilizes the near constant winter winds to disperse its seeds.
I particularly like this one where the low lying winter sun, passing thru the seed flight fibers, results in some iridescence.
And lastly, Illinois Bundleflower, which we featured a couple of times this summer on our prairie visit essays. The seedhead is a whorled cluster of legume seed capsules – think pea pods.
Early on the Osprey Trail we came upon a fallen Hackberry tree that had been down for a while. Up in the close branching of the trunk we saw this, which initially caught us off guard. It is a Lion’s Mane Mushroom. It was about the size of a rabbit and is edible.
When many of us think about woodpeckers hunting for prey, we picture them hammering into a tree looking for insects beneath the surface. But if you watch them closely, you will notice that they, like Nuthatches, will look for insects overwintering in the crevices of the barks of trees. We enjoyed this Red-bellied Woodpecker‘s dance up the trunk of this failing Black Locust, cocking his head to look amongst the ridges of the bark, and then probing in search of a nutritious morsel. Truly a circle of life display.
And though we are in the throes of winter, we can now begin to anticipate the coming of spring. Having passed the winter solstice the days are getting longer again, and if you look closely, you will notice that some tree buds, like these on a Silver Maple, are already getting significantly larger.
So in the end, this was not one of those days where we were blown away by some rare wildlife sighting. We did not see a Golden Eagle or Sandhill Crane. But what we did witness was the invaluable role that the infamous noxious plant Poison Ivy plays in sustaining the community of birds that call the Oxbow home. And two things that we did learn on this outing should make future trips there even more rewarding. First, one can drive their vehicle on the gravel path to marked parking areas further into the property, to make it easier to reach more remote wetlands in the preserve. And second, the planted prairie habitat around Osprey Lake gives us a meadow habitat closer to home for those late summer flower displays attracting a variety of butterflies.
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Photo credits to Peggy Juengling Burns.
Overview:
Location – In southeast Indiana, about 16 miles from downtown Cincinnati, just off I-275. You turn south off US 50 in Greendale, between the Waffle House and the Circle K. You will be passing through a collection of commercial enterprises including a large auto repair business, a towing service and its vehicle lot, and a staging area for a waste management firm so do not be surprised. Follow the road to the stop sign and turn right. The entrance to the Oxbow is on the left, less than 100 yards after the turn.
Parking – Gravel lot
Facilities – None
Trail Conditions – The primary “trail” is a gravel drive. There are grassed trails through the fields and bordering cropland. There are always brochures and maps at the parking area.
Benches – Two noted at the lake overlook.
Kids – Kids who are able to negotiate the gravel and avoid the occasional pot hole should do well.
Dogs – No restrictions noted on their website or literature.
Links:
The Oxbow bird species list: