I reached the Brass Ring Golf Club about 10:30am today. As soon as I arrived it started raining and continued until 2pm. Within five minutes I spotted a hawk-like shape on the ground under a tree just inside the golf course grounds. Could it be so easy? No. It was a Broad-winged Hawk. Nice views, though. Soon after, I almost hit a Wild Turkey hen which ran in front of my van on Keller Road. A deer crossed the road three times while I waited. I settled back with some birding books, sure the "brief showers" (as forecasted) would soon end. There were lots of Eastern Bluebirds around, and a Brown Thrasher. A Song Sparrow was feeding a pushy Cowbird fledgling. A groundskeeper motored by in a golfcart and I asked him if he knew about the Kite. He said it had been flying over the course all morning (before the rain) and that ODNR people had been there earlier taking photos of it perched in a tree. When the rain became lighter, I went to the clubhouse to ask more questions. The only one who knew of the bird was a man in the pro shop (the pro?). I told him I knew there was a tournament going on this day (I'd been told), but I asked if I could come back another day and rent a cart to search for the Kite (per suggestions by Whan's post and a golfcourse employee). He said only if I was playing golf. I asked if I could simply pay the golf AND greens fees without playing. He said no. I had to play golf if I rented a cart. I thanked him and left, wondering why they would allow ODNR to draw more attention to the Kite with photos/articles if they wanted to discourage people from trying to see the bird. They could probably make a lot of money if they let birders pay to briefly look for the Kite during slow times for golf play. Ah, well. As the sun came out I parked on Keller close to the entrance road. I was soon joined by some Amishmen (and a non-Amish driver) from Holmes County. Shortly after, we all got a look at the Kite, soaring far overhead. They had a scope which they let me share. I could only identify the Kite by it's tail, but its unique diving for insects in the air led me to believe it was, indeed, the Kite. I'd hoped to get a look at its pale head but it was too far away. A White-eyed Vireo chattered at me from a nearby bush, annoyed I was so close. At least I had great looks at it, if not the Kite. And I met some nice new friends! ____________________________________________________________________________________ Park yourself in front of a world of choices in alternative vehicles. Visit the Yahoo! Auto Green Center. http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/ ______________________________________________________________________ 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]