On Tuesday, Dec. 18 at about 4:30 pm my 21-year-old daughter & I
were traveling down a backroad in Amish country in Middlefield, Ohio.
    I spotted a dark charcoal gray bird in a tree above and jumped out
to take a better look.
    The bird had a fine, sharp red hooked beak, a red eye and red legs.
There was a white band visible across the blunt tail. It was 15 feet
above my head.
    The bird's head was beautifully shaped and round. The chest also was
pronounced and very curvaceous.
    It took flight and we could see a white band  on the wings and the
band across the tail.
    I believe what I saw was an adult male snail kite native to southern
Florida.
    I saw this bird just about 1/4 mile north of State Route 87 on Hayes
Road in Middlefield in northeast Ohio.
    No, it was not a turkey vulture or a Night Hawk.
    But I need confirmation on this rare sighting, if anyone can get up
there with a lense and shoot this bird, I'd be very happy for the help.
    I am brand new to this list, but in Sept. the Ohio Dept of Natural
Resources put out a press release about Mississippi Kites nesting in
Ohio.  These birds are also native to Florida. So maybe this is a change
in range for this bird as well.
    Cindy Oravecz
    Julia Oravecz

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