Learn about Monarch butterflies at MPL's Headlands Branch

Learn how our habitat helps the Monarch butterfly during its migration.

The Monarch butterfly is both beautiful and hard traveling.

It migrates thousands of miles from Canada to Mexico, passing through our humble neck of the woods each year.

Rebecca Donaldson, the naturalist from the Mentor Marsh, will talk about how valuable our habitat is to the migrating Monarchs on Saturday, Aug. 29, at our Headlands Branch. She'll also discuss the butterfly's life cycle, which takes it all over North America.

Donaldson is one of our favorite guests at Mentor Library. She's talked about the bald eagles and other denizens of Mentor Marsh at our Headlands Branch before.

You can register for her free upcoming talk on Mentor Library's website.

Meeting the eagles from Mentor Marsh

Beck Donaldson, a naturalist from the Mentor Marsh, talks to kids at our Headlands Branch about the bald eagles who live in Mentor Marsh.

Naturalist Becky Donaldson wasn't able to bring the actual bald eagles who nest in Mentor Marsh with her when she visited our Headlands Branch this Saturday, but she was able to bring a few interesting artifacts (including a skull) and her vast knowledge of Lake County's most famous raptors.

Here are just some fun facts that we learned Saturday:

• Did you know that there were as few as four nesting bald eagles in Ohio in the 1970s? There are now probably more than that just in Lake County. (We think there are six or seven in Lake County, but it's difficult to say for sure because some are on private property.)
• The eagle pair moved into Mentor Marsh in 2010 when they took on an abandoned redwing hawk nest. Since then, they've raised (an estimated) four eaglets, including one this year.
• Bald eagles mate for life, usually only splitting if one of them disappears or dies. However, eagle pairs that have failed to breed after multiple tries may go their separate ways.
• Bald eagle nests can be up to 13 feet deep, eight feed wide, and weigh as much as one ton.
• They need a lot of space because their typical wingspan is between six and 7.5 feet.
• Bald eagles are opportunistic carnivores, meaning they'll eat whatever's available. That includes other birds, mammals and even roadkill; but fish make for most of their meals.
• Bald eagles can fly as fast as 43 miles per hour.



Kids practice flapping their wings at Mentor Library's Headlands Branch.

To learn more about bald eagles, in general, and the nesting pair that lives near us, come to Mentor Marsh's Bald Eagle Fest from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 3.

You can help build a mock eagle nest and meet some of the marsh's animal ambassadors.

You can also take a guided hike of the Marsh's bald eagle nest at 12:30, 2 and 3:30 p.m. The 2-mile hike is on unimproved and sometimes muddy trails, so be ready for weather. Spotting scopes will be provided; but you can bring your own binoculars, if you prefer.

Also, you need to make a reservation if you want to go on one of the nest hikes. You can make reservations by calling 440-257-0777, emailing rdonalds@cmnh.org, or messaging the Mentor Marsh Facebook page.

Peyton checks out a replica bald eagle skull.

Of course, you can also learn about eagles by checking out a book or documentary from Mentor Library.

There are also a few fun raptor nest webcams you can watch, if you want to see these amazing birds in their natural habitat.

These eagles in Hanover, PA, have a pair of eaglets; these eagles in Iowa have three nestlings; and, for some local raptors, these peregrine falcons in Cleveland atop the Terminal Tower have five eggs waiting to hatch.

Gabriel compares his wingspan to a bald eagle.

Discover More About Where You Live: The Bald Eagles in Mentor Marsh

Did you know there are bald eagles nesting in Mentor Marsh?

Did you know that more than 200 kinds of birds live in Mentor Marsh? That includes the blue-winged teal, yellow warbler, American wigeon, gadwall, heron, American black duck, red-winged blackbirds, Northern shoveler and hooded merganser.

And bald eagles.

Yes, that's right. There are a pair of nesting bald eagles just a few miles from your home (presuming you live in or near Mentor, Ohio.)

If you want to learn more about these incredible animals, come to our Headlands Branch at 2 p.m. this Saturday, April 11, for the latest program in our Where You Live series. Mentor Marsh Naturalist Rebecca Donaldson will offer all kinds of facts about the bald eagles in our backyard. (You can register for it here.)

The Where You Live series is our way of letting you know more about the amazing natural history of Lake County. We've talked about everything from the Morton salt mines to the other denizens of Mentor Marsh.

Come join us this Saturday for an amazing program!

You can visit our Facebook page for fun photos from library programs. You can also check outMentor Marsh’s Facebook page for some beautiful snapshots, if you’d like.

Kids meet the animals of Mentor Marsh

Cheyenne touches the soft fur of an opossum.

The pelts of an opossum, skunk, beaver, raccoon, rabbit, gray fox, and two red foxes—both a summer and thicker winter coat—covered the floor of the Mentor Headlands Library Branch on Saturday afternoon.

The kids sat in a semicircle around them and took turns looking at the beak of a great horned owl and a pair of turkey feathers.

None of them realized just how much wildlife lived so nearby.

Zach looks at the different types of feathers that grow on a turkey.

Naturalist Becky Donaldson from the Mentor Marsh visited the library to tell the kids about the unique habitat that's just a few miles from their home.

The marsh is unlike any other park in the region. More than 200 kinds of birds (including a pair of bald eagles) nest in its mixed oak swamp some time during the year.

During a walk, you can see staghorn sumac and Northern shovelers, rose hips and heron, gadwalls and wild raspberry.

And it's free to visit and open from dawn to dusk every day. Its nature center is also open from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

Raven and Lucius check out the pelt of a red fox. In the winter, the fox's fur grows thicker.

The marsh also offers hikes from 2 to 3:30 p.m. each Sunday.

On Oct. 19, a naturalist will lead a fall foliage hike through the marsh. On Oct. 26, there will be a spooky scavenger hunt that busts some common myths about local wildlife. Then, on Nov. 2, nature lovers can learn about white-tailed deer and even practice their tracking skills by looking for signs of deer along the marsh's trails.

You can register for any of these hikes by calling the Mentor Marsh Nature Center at 440-257-0777 or by emailing rdonalds@cmnh.org.

Naturalist Becky Donaldson explains that while opossum do have prehensile tails, they don't hang upside down to sleep.

Becky Donaldson will return to our Headlands Branch in April to talk about bald eagles. It's a little too soon to register for the program but never too soon to get excited.

You can visit our Facebook page for more fun photos from library programs. You can also check out Mentor Marsh's Facebook page for some beautiful snapshots, if you'd like

Discover More About Where You Live: Mentor Marsh

The Newhous Pond in Mentor Marsh after the foliage has started to turn for the season

We are fortunate to live in this beautiful community.

We are surrounded by scenic city, county, state and even national parks. But how often do we think about or visit them?

Take, for example, the Mentor Marsh. It's nearly 700 acres are unlike any other habitat in the world. It provides a home to more than 200 kinds of bird, including the blue-winged teal, yellow warbler, American wigeon, gadwall, heron, American black duck, red-winged blackbirds, Northern shoveler and hooded merganser.

It combines a mixed oak swamp forest—an increasingly rare kind of habitat—with the largest phragmite marsh in the state. There are also picturesque walking trails that pass through thickets of staghorn sumac, rose hips, wild raspberry and more.

Kids can learn more about the Mentor Marsh when Naturalist Becky Donaldson visits Mentor Library's Mentor-on-the-Lake Branch on 2 p.m. this Saturday, Oct. 11. (You can register for the program on our website.) Donaldson will have hands-on items for kids to touch and explore as well as audio sounds of the marsh wildlife.

She'll also be talking about how the Marsh prepares for the winter.

Donaldson works for the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, who manages the park along with the state of Ohio. Her talk is free and open to everybody.

For more online information about Mentor Marsh, you can visit:

• the Cleveland Museum of Natural History
• the Marsh's Facebook page (with several gorgeous photos, including the one above)
• the Ohio Department of Natural Resources
• Hiking Ohio Parks.