The start of class

Dr. Shalaway has a small class of ornithology students this year. We are at Stone Lab for 1 week to learn all we can about birds, from identification to ecology to vocalizations. This is Dr. Shalaway's third year as an instructor at the lab. He currently writes a newspaper column in WV and does nature-based radio shows in Wheeling and Pittsburgh. His five students include Patrick, Sheila, Rachel, Georgia, and myself (Lyndsey). Patrick is a music professor at OSU; not surprisingly, he has an ear for bird songs. Sheila is a high school teacher in Elyria (outside of Cleveland). She uses the Great Lakes as a theme throughout her classes and is anxious to incorporate lessons using local birds. Rachel is a PhD candidate at OSU; she is spending a number of weeks at Stone Lab this summer taking as many science courses as she can towards her degree. Georgia and I are doing the same thing as Rachel. We are both taking a variety of Stone Lab's 1-week courses this summer. Georgia is working on her Master's degree and I'm aiming for Master's +30.

I think everyone would agree that Stone Lab is a great place to spend time for a class. The smell of the water, the sound of the birds, and the great wildlife you encounter all make the experience memorable.

Today's experiences were more than we had hoped for. We saw several Black-crowned Night Herons at Twilleger's Pond (unusual for this time of year), a Baltimore Oriole, both Tree and Barn Swallows, Chimney Swifts, and Purple Martins. Some of the more common species we encountered were Northern Cardinals, Herring Gulls, Great Blue Herons, Canada Geese, and Mallards. Tomorrow we'll venture back to South Bass Island for some more birding. Later in the week we'll visit Kelley's Island and the Ohio mainland to examine birds in some different environments.

Stay tuned to the blog for some pictures - we're still learning to use the binoculars correctly, so I'm not yet adept at viewing birds and taking pictures simultaneously!