I made two visits to Conneaut harbor today, from dawn to 7:30 AM and again from about 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM.  In between I did some atlasing in northern Ashtabula Co.  Conneaut highlights were: double-crested cormorant, 8 bald eagles, 3 WILLETS (arrived in late morning, still there when I left), spotted sandpipers, 2 least sandpipers, imm. Bonaparte's gull, 2 Caspian terns, 2 ad. Forster's terns, a first-summer common tern, belted kingfisher, e. kingbird, purple martins, bank swallows, and a singing marsh wren.  Yes, the phragmites are getting high enough to attract marsh birds again.  Habitat was good on the outer spit with the S/SW winds today.  It rained enough during mid-day to keep most of the beach crowd away until afternoon.  The first few fireworks were heard, with many more to come there this weekend I'd bet.  Of course, the birds on the open part of the spit aren't too happy when they hear that noise.....I also saw a few good birds while
 driving along Rte. 7--at 5:10 AM a great horned owl was on a wire in Andover (always good to add an owl for OBBA2!); and Am. kestrels were seen in Monroe Twp. and at Yankee Lake in Trumbull Co. on the way home.  Craig Holt, Lowellville

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