Want to see a bald eagle or other rare birds? Here are 6 places to bird watch in Columbus

Are you a fan of the sound of songbirds? Or watching waterfowl course through a pond? Or even sighting rare birds of prey?

Franklin County is home to as many as 341 species of birds, and there are a number of "birding hotspots" in the Columbus area, catalogued by users on Birding in Ohio, a website updated with tips by members of the birding community. Remember, if you do visit one of these locations, to be respectful of nature and the facilities.

Here are six of the best places to bird-watch in Franklin County:

Nesting bald eagles on Dublin Road

Why go on a hike to see a bird in the wild when you can see a pair of bald eagles from your car? A nesting symbol of America can be seen from the road along U.S. 33/ Dublin Road, right across from the Dublin Road Water Plant.

The pair — named Apollo and Annie by the group of people who regularly watch them — have a new nest on the south bank of the muddy Scioto, just south of busy Dublin Road. The Dispatch previously reported the couple might even have chicks.

Read more: Two bald eagles are back along the Scioto River in Columbus, with chicks — and visitors

Parking is available at the 1000 Dublin Road area and regular guests have created an impromptu viewing area for the bald eagle. The best time to view the eagles is in the spring, before tree coverage obscures their nests from where the guests gather.

Scioto Audubon: Restored brownfield site now hub for all types of birds

Scioto Audubon Metro Park, located in the heart of Downtown, was once a brownfield site but is now a major area draw for birds of several types.

The park sits along the Scioto River on the Whittier Peninsula and is a magnet for shorebirds and birds of prey. To promote wildlife, the Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks has restored wetland areas in the park, approximately five acres in total, according to the park's website.

Members of Birds in Ohio report that wetland birds such as wood ducks, blue-winged teal, and sandpipers have been attracted to the park. Visitors may also see egrets, northern pintail ducks, pied-billed grebe, American bittern, herons and osprey along walking trails and platforms throughout the park.

The Grange Insurance Audubon Center offers a free beginners bird-watching tour for adults and children with adult supervision on Saturdays from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. beginning at 505 W. Whittier St. Binoculars are provided.

Battelle Darby Creek offers fields, marshes for birds

Battelle Darby Creek in Galloway is the largest of the Metro Parks with more than 7,000 acres of prairies, fields and forests, according to the park's website.

The best trails for bird-watching at the park, according to the Ohio Ornithological Society, are the Harrier Loop, Rail Way & Teal, which connect through prairies and wetlands. According to the parks website, the system is a 3-mile, moderate hike on grass. The trails can be quite wet and muddy and waterproof shoes are highly recommended.

Bird-watchers might see sedge wren, marsh wren, Henslow’s sparrow, American bittern and several types of rail birds. Visitors to the wetlands may also see Nelson’s sparrow and large flocks of blackbirds at certain times of the year.

Pickerington Ponds attracts waterfowl, over 250 bird types

Pickerington Ponds Metro Park is a premier spot for bird-watching, with more than 260 species reported, according to the park’s website. Nearby woodlands, seasonal ponds and wetland vegetation are a "magnet for migrating waterfowl, shore birds and land birds."

At the park, there is a 418-acre nature preserve featuring a buttonbush swamp, marshes and ponds, an ideal habitat for many birds including waterfowl. The park features four observation decks overlooking ponds and marshes. A fifth observation deck overlooks Arrowhead Marsh.

Green Lawn Cemetery and Arboretum nationally acclaimed for birds

Green Lawn Cemetery and Arboretum is a national birding hotspot, according to the National Audubon Society, a bird conservation group. This three-mile area has had more recorded species of birds than any other stretch of the Scioto River, numbering at least 212 different types in the general area.

Visitors may see: northern pintail, pied-billed grebe, American bittern, osprey, at least 10 species of gulls and terns, prothonotary warbler, northern waterthrush and many other warbler species.

The grounds open daily to the public from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the summer, according to the cemetery’s website. The cemetery is active and facility management asks visitors to be mindful of funerals during their visit.

Blendon Woods the spot for wild turkey fans

Blendon Woods Metro Park is a 653-acre park located at 4265 E. Dublin Granville Road off Route 161. The park is a great place to see songbirds, waterfowl — and a flock of wild turkeys that roams the park, according to the website for the park.

The Sugarbush Trail is a moderate-to-difficult two-mile hike along grass that passes through a woods that opens onto a meadow and is heavily populated with many different species of birds.

Cole Behrens is a reporter at The Columbus Dispatch covering public safety and breaking news.

CBehrens@dispatch.com

@Colebehr_report

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Six places to bird watch in Columbus, Franklin County