About 6 PM today, I stopped by the pump house impoundment at Pickerel Creek hoping to see the avocet again. I was disappointed to find that the area was pumped almost dry (and the pump was still running, trying to get the last of it). The only shorebirds present were 5 Least Sandpipers and some Killdeers. One good thing - large numbers of carp were killed so maybe that is why it was drained. Hopefully, water will be returned soon to provide shorebird habitat during migration. I then put my kayak in Pickerel Creek where it crosses Rt 2 and paddled to the bay. The highlights of the trip were watching a singing White-eyed Vireo along the creek and having a pair of very active Belted Kingfishers at the mouth of the creek. About 8:00 PM I went to the Orchid parking lot in search of the Sedge Wren. I had heard it earlier this month but tonight I had two great looks at it perched in a small bare tree doing its buzzy insect-like call. My ebird list of birds follows. Sheryl Young Sandusky Location: Pickerel Creek Wildlife Area Observation date: 7/14/08 Notes: Many species seen while kayaking Pickerel Creek to the bay. Sedge Wren perched in a small bare tree for some great looks! Number of species: 40 Mallard X Hooded Merganser X Ruddy Duck X Pied-billed Grebe X Great Blue Heron X Great Egret X Green Heron X Black-crowned Night-Heron X Bald Eagle X American Kestrel X Killdeer X Least Sandpiper X Ring-billed Gull X Herring Gull X Caspian Tern X Mourning Dove X Belted Kingfisher X Downy Woodpecker X White-eyed Vireo X Tree Swallow X Barn Swallow X Carolina Wren X Sedge Wren X Marsh Wren X Blue-gray Gnatcatcher X Gray Catbird X European Starling X Cedar Waxwing X Yellow Warbler X Common Yellowthroat X Field Sparrow X Song Sparrow X Swamp Sparrow X Northern Cardinal X Rose-breasted Grosbeak X Indigo Bunting X Red-winged Blackbird X Common Grackle X Baltimore Oriole X American Goldfinch X This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org) **************Get the scoop on last night's hottest shows and the live music scene in your area - Check out TourTracker.com! (http://www.tourtracker.com?NCID=aolmus00050000000112) ______________________________________________________________________ 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]