It appears that the area around the new nature center at Battelle-Darby
Creek Metro Park is hospitable to Blue Grosbeaks.  This morning a pair of
them scolded me along the path near the bison observation station just south
of the nature center.  As I observed this pair I heard another male singing
in the area.  Pictures can be found at:

http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S14923973

Also this morning I heard what sounded like a loud deep-voiced Mourning Dove
singing just the first quavering notes of its cooing song without the
follow-up notes.  Investigating further, I found that it was actually a
Catbird making this call in a path-side thicket, to which another responded
a little ways off with the same song fragment.  The imitations were quite
good.  I made this cooing sound back to them, and they both came to
investigate me.  This was the only sound that these birds made when I
observed them on two separate occasions- no other imitations, caterwauling,
or meowing calls.  I thought this was interesting, as I'd never heard a pair
doing this before.

Good birding!

~Tracy the Birder
http://seasonsflow.wordpress.com/

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