I started Sunday morning at Fairport Harbor, where there were very large
numbers of gulls.  My conservative guess is +5000, but probably closer to
8,000 - 10,000 gulls, in flight, sitting on the water and on the ice in
the river.  The gulls were mostly, Ring-billed and Herring Gulls with a
few Great Black-backed Gulls.  There were more Great Black-backed Gulls
sitting out on the jetty.  I scanned the large flock of gull sitting on
the ice pack in the river, up river from the fishing pier.  I found one
Lesser Black-backed Gull sitting in this flock--not a new bird for the
year/month.   There were Red-breasted and Common Mergansers and Common
Goldeneye as well inside the far breakwall parallel to the beach and along
the breakwater to the lighthouse.  There was a sizeable flock of
Bonaparte's Gulls  flying in the inlet out by the light house.

Not very many gulls at Eastlake Power Plant.  I found one adult plumage
Glaucous Gull with yellow bill sitting with Herring Gulls on the far pier.
 There was an interesting looking light tan/brown colored immature
Herring-type gull, apparently without dark primaries, sitting near an
immature Herring Gull with very dark primaries, at the very end of the far
pier.  I walked west through the parking lot forward the power plant,
hopefully to get a somewhat closer view.  However, something flushed all
the roosting gulls, and I could not find this immature bird again for
closer study.  I could have been a Thayer's Gull, but I'm not counting it,
as I did not have a good enough look.  After the gulls settled, I found a
first cycle Glaucous Gull sitting with immature Herring Gulls on the near
pier, close to the hot water outlet.   Glaucous Gull is number 102.

I went to Sims Park to look for the King Eider reported there.  Met Dan
Sanders, Bill Whan, Paul Garner and Ben Warner from Columbus there just as
they were leaving, after an unsuccessful search for the King Eider.  Dan
Bill and company told me about the Harris' Sparrow in Holmes County and
the Harlequin Duck at Lorain.  Just as I was starting to scan at the pier,
Steve Borghius (correct spelling) arrived, and we scanned from the pier as
well as from the cliffs.  No luck.  Just before we left, the wind picked
up and lake effect snow increased and drastically reduced visibility.
Steve, another January Century lister, had contacted me about some birds
that he still needs that I saw in SW Ohio.  Steve told me about the Wood
Duck at Chagrin Reservation Metopark, and gave me directions.  It was only
about 10 minutes to the Nature Center where I saw the drake Wood Duck
swimming with Mallards and Black Duck in the water kept open with a
bubbler system.  Wood Duck is number 103.  Then I headed west to E. 72nd
Street to scan the gulls.

Met Steve again at E. 72nd Street.  The conditions were fierce with biting
wind and blowing snow!  Perfect for gull watching!  After Steve left for
Lorain, I did find one Lesser Black-backed Gull sitting on the water and
had a brief view of a white winged gull on the water with Herring Gulls.
Based on size, I believe that this was another Glaucous Gull.  There were
large numbers of mostly Ring-billed and Herring Gulls with fewer Great
Black-backed Gulls there while I was present.  I left E. 72nd Street at
about 2:30-2:45 pm.

At Lorain, at the end of Oberlin Street, met Steve again.  We joined with
a local lady birder, who helped us find our way around the several piers
for many vantage points of the area waters.  I never saw the Harlequin
Duck, but it could have been there.  Visibility was getting worse by the
minute, and it was nearly impossible to set up a telescope outside my van.
 There was one interesting smallish dark duck, diving right next to and at
the end of the pier just to the west of the main largest, first pier.  At
first it seemed that this was the Harlequin Duck.  However, I watched this
area with my telescope from inside my van, and found a female Common
Goldeneye.  It was a goldeneye and not the Harlequin, because it had the
triangular head shape, no white marks on the face and had the broken white
line along the wing that a female Common Goldeneye shows.  When the bird
turned to be perpendicular to my sight line, it showed the white in the
front that a female Common Goldenye shows.  The Harlequin Duck is probably
still there but was being elusive, as usual.  I left Lorain at about
4:45-5:00 pm for the long drive south and home through increasing and
blowing snow.
Jay

Jay G. Lehman
Cincinnati, OH
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