🎅✨ The most wonderful time of the year is almost here — and so is Brunch with Santa at Tall Oaks! Join us for a festive morning filled with laughter, delicious food, holiday cheer, and a special visit from Santa himself. It’s the perfect way to make lasting memories with your family this Christmas season. 🌟
Seats fill quickly, so don’t wait — buy your tickets today and make this holiday one to remember!

Local Event: Brunch with Santa at Tall Oaks

Lake County

Mentor

Ohio

Brunch with Santa at Tall Oaks

🎅✨ The most wonderful time of the year is almost here — and so is Brunch with Santa at Tall Oaks! Join us for a festive morning...

central Lake County, OH

&nbsp; &nbsp;Blackbrook Audubon Society invites nature enthusiasts to contribute to their Christmas Bird Count Saturday, December 27. Blackbrook volunteers will fan out across central Lake County while teams in three other counties will search in their assigned circles.
&nbsp; &nbsp;The object of this early-winter census is to count all the bird species and number of birds in a 15-mile diameter circle in one 24-hour period between December 14 and January 5. Anyone living within the circle can also report birds at their feeder. To be assigned to a team covering a specific area on foot or in a vehicle, or to report backyard feeder counts, contact Dan Donaldson, the compiler for Blackbrook's circle, at danook057@yahoo.com.
&nbsp; &nbsp;Blackbrook's CBC circle extends from Lost Nation Airport to Western Perry, Lake Erie south to Holden Arboretum and Big Creek Park in Geauga County.
&nbsp; &nbsp;Teams usually meet for an optional lunch. Dan Donaldson will give participants the location. After the morning sightings are added to a preliminary list, counters may choose to head back out after lunch in search of more birds.
&nbsp; &nbsp;Blackbrook Audubon's territory covers Ashtabula, Geauga and Lake counties. The Ashtabula CBC, centered just east of Kingsville, will also be December 27. Marc Hanneman compiles this count which covers both Ashtabula and Conneaut Harbors, as well as several Ashtabula County Metroparks. Contact Marc at 440-645-6245 or marchanneman@embarqmail.com to help with that count. He plans to assign territories by December 15.
&nbsp; &nbsp;The Burton CBC held in Geauga County will be Thursday, January 1, 2026. Linda Gilbert, the primary compiler and a naturalist with Geauga Park District, can be reached at lkg38@roadrunner.com. Dan Best will assist with the compiling of lists for the Burton count.
&nbsp; &nbsp;The Cleveland circle, centered just north of Richmond Hts., will be surveyed Saturday, December 20. Laura Gooch is the compiler for the Cleveland circle, which extends into western Lake County. For an assignment in the Willoughby/Wickliffe area, contact Mary Huey at maryhueyquilts47@gmail.com.
&nbsp; &nbsp;Circles for the count stretch from Arctic Bay, Baffin Island in Canada to a NOAA research vessel in the Drake Passage at the southern tip of South America; as far west as Guam in the Pacific to the eastern tip of Brazil. Census takers in the NEO circles share the same mission and may count on the same day as birders in some of these far-off places. View a map of active CBC circles at <a href="https://gis.audubon.org/christmasbirdcount" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://gis.audubon.org/christ...</a>. For more information on the local Audubon chapter and count, visit <a href="https://blackbrookaudubon.org" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">blackbrookaudubon.org</a>.
&nbsp; &nbsp;The Christmas Bird Count is the longest-running community science bird project in North America and helps biologists monitor bird population trends. The official count began on Christmas Day 1900 when ornithologist Frank Chapman proposed a new holiday tradition - a "Christmas Bird Census" when people would count birds rather than hunt them. However, a local birder and ornithology professor, Dr. Lynds Jones, conducted a Christmas-time count in 1897 in Oberlin. His effort may have inspired Chapman to organize a wider count.
Photos: Rusty Blackbird, Eastern Bluebird by Nan Patrick, Northern Cardinal, Mallards and Mallard hybrid, Canada Geese by Laurie White

Local Event: Christmas Bird Count Teams Search across Northeast Ohio Circles

Christmas Bird Count Teams Search across...

   Blackbrook Audubon Society invites nature enthusiasts to contribute to their Christmas Bird Count Saturday, December 27....

Christmas Bird Count Teams Search across Northeast Ohio Circles

Veterans Park, 5730 Hopkins Road, Mentor, OH

&nbsp; &nbsp;Birders of all skill levels are invited to Blackbrook Audubon's monthly bird walk at <a href="https://www.lakemetroparks.com/parks-trails/veterans-park/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Veterans Park</a>. Trails are level with asphalt, compacted gravel and boardwalk. The walk leaders will have a couple pairs of binoculars to lend. Blackbrook will host this bird survey on the fourth Sunday of every month year-round.
&nbsp; &nbsp;Gadwall, American Black Duck, a Ruddy Duck and a Pied-billed Grebe joined Mallards and Canada Geese swimming across the pond at last month's walk. Blue jays vocalizing in some conifers drew the group's attention and helped the walk leader hone in on a Barred Owl tucked against a tree trunk. A Pileated Woodpecker flew from tree to tree at the front of the park following the walk.
&nbsp; &nbsp;At 100 acres, Veterans Park
encompasses the largest inland pond in Lake County, Granger Pond, and protects a remnant of original Ohio swamp forest. The property was once a sand quarry. The City of Mentor purchased it from the Granger family in 1970 and formed Mentor’s first neighborhood park. It's now managed by Lake Metroparks, which stocks the pond with catfish, bass, bluegill and rainbow trout. A valid Ohio
fishing license is required to fish at Veterans Park.
&nbsp; &nbsp;Granger Pond's wide expanse attracts both fishermen and birds such as herons, kingfishers and mergansers. The <a href="https://ebird.org/hotspot/L620840/bird-list" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">list on eBird.org</a> shows 207 species for this location. Just under a mile from Lake Erie, the pond and tree cover at Veterans Park
offer birds inland shelter from blustery lake conditions.
&nbsp; &nbsp;Blackbrook Audubon covers Ashtabula, Geauga and Lake Counties as the local chapter of National Audubon Society. Contact Blackbrook Audubon at <a href="mailto:blackbrookaud@aol.com">blackbrookaud@aol.com</a>. Find updates on their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/people/Blackbrook-Audubon-Society/100064551195019/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Facebook page</a>.
Photo:&nbsp;Barred Owl by Josh Sebrasky

Local Event: Blackbrook Audubon visits Veterans Park

Blackbrook Audubon visits Veterans Park

   Birders of all skill levels are invited to Blackbrook Audubon's monthly bird walk at Veterans Park. Trails are level with...

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