Jim Fry and I went to Big Island this afternoon. We didn’t get started until after lunch as Jim had the drive north from Hocking County to contend with just to get to my place in Delaware County. Jim was hoping the Black-necked Stilt and Wilson’s Phalaropes would still be around. Like everyone else we had no luck with the stilts. I guess I used up my quota for them Monday when they put on a show for everyone. We did better with the Phalaropes, locating 15 in the wetlands off Herr Road close to SR 95. One pair constantly stayed apart from the rest and displayed breeding behavior as they copulated. Maybe Big Island will join Hardin County and have a successful breeding pair this year. The Phalaropes were joined by a nice mix of additional shorebirds including Semipalmated Plovers, Semipalmated Sandpipers, White-rumped Sandpipers, Least Sandpipers, Dunlin, a Spotted sandpiper, and a Pectoral Sandpiper. In the grassland around the wetland were Bobolinks, Eastern Meadowlarks, Grasshopper Sparrows, Horned Larks and a Savannah Sparrow we heard calling but didn’t located. In the old impoundment along Prospect-La Rue Road we located several Common Moorhens, Northern Pintails, Blue-winged Teal, a Great Egret and listened to Marsh Wrens singing. They did not come to the top of the cattails and reeds where we could observe them. There were several Pied-billed Grebes with their young tailing behind. Charlie Bombaci **************Get trade secrets for amazing burgers. Watch "Cooking with Tyler Florence" on AOL Food. (http://food.aol.com/tyler-florence?video=4&?NCID=aolfod00030000000002) ______________________________________________________________________ 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]