The 75-85 heron nests in tall beech trees are home to as many as 200 herons. We are in the process of purchasing the last of the property. We are in negotiations with some landowners, but others are not interested in selling, Brumbelow said. Brumbelow added that the city would like to acquire all of the property, but the area can become a state nature preserve with the land it has now. According to Dan Rice, chief zoologist for the Ohio Division of Natural Resources, in Columbus, the area qualifies to be a state nature preserve with or without the herons.
Herons have wings.
There is no guarantee they will always be there, he said. He and Cusick decided that it did, noting the diverse plant populations, no invasive plant problems, and no unsightly tree stumps. It is probably about as close as it could be the way nature intended it as it could be, Rice said. Rice and Cusick travel all over the state to examine properties at the request of public or private landowners. For them to give a woodland preserve status is rare.