What a beautiful morning. I got out with my birding dog by 6:30 am, and returned home about 2:30. We birded the Dillon WA across from the main entrance to Black Hand Gorge, then walked the eastern 3 miles of the bike trail, and return, total of about 8 miles. We saw 59 species, including a new life bird for me. Lots of warblers were singing but not visible in the leaves, so there were many birds that I did not ID, and thus did not include below. A couple were new Licking Co. life birds, besides the gray-cheeked thrush, which was an all-time lifer. I had great looks at this bird, saw it from several angles in decent light at fairly close range for several minutes. I know that it is hard for beginners to distinguish Swainson's thrush from gray-cheeked, but I'm convinced that this is the correct ID. I've seen Swainson's several times, including one earlier this year. The bird I saw today had NO buffy overtones, no buffy spectacles. This bird was overall cold gray, with the throat and breast spots standing out a little more prominently than I expect on a Swainson's. Oh, happy day! Lifers are getting harder and harder to collect without extensive traveling. The day's list: Great blue heron Canada goose Wood duck Turkey vulture Red-shouldered hawk Red-tailed hawk - the closest I've ever been to a perched RTH! Wild turkey Killdeer Mourning dove Chimney swift Belted kingfisher Red-belllied woodpecker Yellow-bellied sapsucker - very skittish bird - almost missed her! Downy woodpecker Hairy woodpecker Pileated woodpecker Eastern wood-peewee - new year bird Acadian flycatcher - new year bird, numerous and vocal! Eastern phoebe Tree swallow Bank swallow Gray catbird Gray-cheeked thrush - LIFE BIRD #456 Hermit thrush Wood thrush American robin Blue-gray gnatcatcher Carolina chickadee Tufted titmouse White-breasted nuthatch Blue jay American crow European starling White-eyed vireo Yellow-throated vireo Red-eyed vireo - numerous and singing Warbling vireo American goldfinch Tennessee warbler - new Licking Co. bird (I may have seen one earlier, but failed to ID it. This guy was singing, which helped.) Northern parula Yellow warbler Black-throated blue warbler - first of the year for me Yellow-rumped warbler Black-throated green warbler Yellow-throated warbler Cerulean warbler - at the Dillon WA, the best looks I think I've ever had of one, including Shawnee last year Northern waterthrush Louisiana waterthrush Common yellowthroat (Sadly, the Prothonotary warblers did not return to the Dillon WA wetlands this year.) Scarlet tanager Eastern towhee Song sparrow Northern cardinal Indigo bunting Rose-breasted grosbeak - Dillon WA - single female Red-winged blackbird Common grackle Brown-headed cowbird Baltimore oriole The bird du jour has to be the gray catbird. They were abundant, bold and loud. One was taunting a white-eyed vireo who has been trying to establish its territory, by imitating the white-eyed's call. I thought the vireo was going to have an apoplectic fit. I swear the catbird winked at me, when I started laughing. Total species for May in Licking Co. to date: 89 Margaret Bowman Licking Co., OH ______________________________________________________________________ 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]