During my years in Cincinnati, I made frequent trips to Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge, in southern Indiana. Located a few miles east of Seymour, this 8000 acre refuge was established to protect nesting habitat for wood ducks. In March, the preserve's lakes, ponds, sloughs and flooded fields attract a wide variety of wintering and migrant waterfowl; those who visit early in the month have a good chance of seeing tundra swans, introduced at Muscatatuck in 1998.
Diving ducks, such as buffleheads, redheads, ring-necked ducks, canvasbacks, common goldeneye, mergansers, lesser scaup and ruddy ducks will be found on the larger lakes, often in the company of coot and grebes. Shallow backwaters, ponds, sloughs and flooded fields attract mallards, American wigeon, gadwall, shovelers, teal, pintails and wood ducks. Large flocks of Canada geese move about the refuge and smaller groups of white-fronted geese may also be seen.
In addition to the waterfowl, Muscatatuck's varied habitat attracts sandhill cranes, bald eagles, northern harriers, red-tailed hawks, barred and great horned owls, eastern bluebirds, white-crowned sparrows, northern bobwhites, belted kingfishers and eastern meadowlarks. By the end of the month, double-crested cormorants, tree swallows and eastern phoebes arrive at the refuge. Resident mammals include white-tailed deer, red fox, coyotes, beaver, raccoons and muskrat; river otters, reintroduced in 1995, are always a special treat for wildlife watchers.
