Yesterday, I went out to the BSBO Hawk Watch location on South Bass just when the rain and southwest wind really got started. There were only a few Turkey Vultures but did see some other interesting things. On the grounds of the South Bass Islands Lighthouse was a large mixed flock (approx. 200 birds) of Red-winged Blackbirds, Commmon Grackles, and Starlings with at least ten Rusty Blackbirds mixed in. In an adjacent field, there was a large flock of American Robins, several Killdeer, and about 20 American Pipits. The ice left the Bay yesterday morning (with some help from an airboat the day before.)Hooded Mergansers were in the pond. Lots of Red-breasted Mergansers, Common Goldeneye, and Bufflehead everywhere. Song, Chipping, and White-throated Sparrows in abundance. Lisa Brohl ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]