With amazing weather but a busy schedule, I find myself on daily short hikes through small to medium-sized parks looking for the early migrants. My focus is on the closest parks with dense undercover, water sources, and high tree canopy. Hancock County is fortunate to have such places as Blue Rock Nature Preserve. Also nearby are Riverside Park, Liberty Landing, and Oakwoods Nature Preserve. In March I listen to Spring Peepers and hope for American Woodcock, Eastern Phoebe, Wood Duck on the river searching for nesting sites, Rusty Blackbirds with the freshly arrived Red-winged, and early shorebirds in flooded areas. As always I’m watching the skies for migrating raptors and hoping for Black Vultures passing through with Turkey Vultures. Soon the warblers will be coming through, so find your local parks with the right conditions for great birding no matter the length of time you have to get out there!

A gift from the Remington Arms and DuPont Companies, Blue Rock Nature Preserve receives its’ name from the heavy, bluish clay mined from the property in the early 1900’s. Remington Arms Company used the clay for their Blue Rock brand clay sportsmen’s targets. The strip-mined area has now been returned to a natural state.

• 11 wooded acres
• trails system
• small pond
• wetland
• rest area
• parking lot

The Clay Pits area, located immediately southeast of Findlay is a shallow strip-mined area created to provide “Blue” clay for clay shooting targets for the Remington Company in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Now long abandoned, these strip mines represent the largest area of wetlands in Hancock County and the surrounding region.

This area is roughly bordered by County Road 180 on the east, Park Street to the west, just north of Olive Street to the north, and Township Road 201 to the south.

Please, note that, with the exception of Blue Rock Nature Preserve in the extreme northwest part of the area, almost all of the Clay Pits area is private property. Please respect property rights. Do not enter private properties and bird from the roadside only.