Hi all, There is a Rufous/Allen's type hummingbird visiting a backyard feeding station in Bexley, which is a suburb of Columbus. It has been present since October 17th, and I just heard about it late yesterday and went over today. The bird is likely an adult female, but sorting out the two sibling species - Rufous and Allen's - in the genus Selasphorus is not easy, and even determining age and sex of anything other than non-adult males can be tough. An effort will likely be made later in the week to band the bird, at which time a positive identification can be made. Odds are stacked in favor of Rufous, of which Ohio had its first record in 1985. Since that time, we've had a few dozen, most of which could be verified to species and they've all proven to be Rufous Hummingbird. But Allen's Hummingbird has appeared a number of times in the east and should show up here as well someday. I'll keep everyone posted on developments with this one. The homeowner, JoAnn LaMuth, is very gracious and would be delighted to have people visit and see the hummingbird. If you do, the best viewing hours are between 9 am and 11 am, when the hummer darts into the feeder every ten or fifteen minutes. It drops in all day, but the frequency of visits slows later in the day. The address is 2391 Brentwood, and for those of you not savvy to Mapquest: get off at Broad Street from I-71 in downtown Columbus and go east. Proceed about two miles, and turn south on Drexel Avenue. The fifth street down is Brentwood; turn east and JoAnn's house is on the southwest corner of Brentwood and Dawson. If you do stop by, please obey the following instructions: Enter into the backyard from the FRONT--on the right side of the house--that would be the WEST side. It's okay to walk across the grass, and then there is a little stone path that leads to the back--stay on the perimeter of the backyard, not close to the feeder--the bird doesn't like to be crowded--so at least 15-20 feet away. There will be some chairs where birders should stay. Jim Jim McCormac Columbus, Ohio Like nature? Visit my blog: http://jimmccormac.blogspot.com/ Like birds? Join the Ohio Ornithological Society: http://www.ohiobirds.org ______________________________________________________________________ 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]