On Fridays I fix meals for a relative who is on dialysis. After starting supper around 4 o'clock, I took a quick 20-minute walk along a stream between cultivated fields. It was a typical Ohio farmland mini-riparian area, shrubby with some tall sycamores and walnut trees. The usual suspects: Eastern meadowlark Common grackles Cowbirds Mourning doves Rock pigeons Starlings Song sparrows Chipping sparrows House sparrows Barn swallows Two flickers A tufted titmouse A female Baltimore oriole A few chimney swifts still hanging around. (Does anyone know if they might nest in unused concrete silos?) Warblers: Yellow Palm Common yellowthroat A couple of unidentified female warblers But, the best bird was a real surprise - an Ohio first for me: Lincoln sparrow I had to study it for several minutes - and it was pretty cooperative - because I'm just not used to seeing this particular sparrow. But, by ruling out all other possibilities, that's what it had to be. It was classic textbook - p. 499 in Sibley. I'm finally learning what to look for when identifying sparrows. It has taken at least four years of consistent and persistent study, and I don't always get the identification on the first try. And sometimes, a sparrow remains unidentified. That just happened earlier this week. But, I'm making progress. It feels good! Anyway, it was a nice end to a stressful work week. 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]