I was surveying Galloway Preserve, an area in south Gahanna near the Columbus Int'l Airport, and had several interesting birds.  There are still many berries here, so the Robins and even a few Waxwings were around, along with lots of smaller birds that must've felt safer with all the frugivore eyes on the watch.  Best bird was a female Redstart, in a small bush right where the bikepath heads down west into the floodplain from the entrance off Cliffview Drive.  I followed her for a few minutes, and she seemed lively and in good plumage, so not likely suffering much from the weather.

The other interesting bird was a small accipiter that I'm listing as a Sharp-shinned, but am not 100% sure.  I had a brief look at it sitting, and a good look at it flying, and it had features of both Sharpie (short head, bulky 'shoulders', flap style) and Cooper's (rounded tail, fine streak pattern).  Usually I have no problem pushing smallish accipiters into one species or the other, but this one actually made me think hybrid.  Given a spate of summer Sharpie sightings here around central Ohio over the last 3 years, it's quite possible that they've started staying around and 'mingling' with the substantial local population of Cooper's Hawks.  Just something to think about.

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