Hi all, Sorry for the belated report - just back and able to tie in to the Internet. I spent yesterday along Lake Erie, traveling from Mentor Headlands to Lorain. The birding was very good, and listed below are a few highlights. Ray Hannikman already gave a great report of birds seen yesterday morning at Headlands. To that I would add one Red Crossbill, which noisily flew over my head soon after emerging from the car in the parking lot. A handful of Pine Siskins were also present. Also, the two Purple Sandpipers were exceptionally obliging, and I put a short video of them on my blog at: http://jimmccormac.blogspot.com/ It's always fun to see sandpipers in 24 degree temperatures, foraging on wave-swept rocks. Eastlake Power Plant was lousy with Red-breasted Mergansers. And I understand their numbers have been higher in the preceding day or two. Still, there were probably several tens of thousands visible from there, sometimes forming massive swirling clouds far off on the horizon. Bonaparte's Gulls were present in droves, too. There were perhaps a dozen Great Black-backed Gulls, and at least two adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls. The piers jutting into the lake just west of the parking lot are often encrusted with gulls, and they are always worth picking through. Sims Park produced the reliable scoters - nine Black Scoters and one Surf Scoter when I was there. Several dozen Common Goldeneye were also present. Two hen Common Mergansers were standing on the cement chunks east of the pier, making for a nice comparison with Red-breasted Mergansers. Unexpected was an Eastern Phoebe, foraging around flower beds of homes just east of the park. Edgewater Park had dozens of Canada Geese, and I picked through looking for Brant to no avail. But if you find yourself in the area, this site is always worth checking for these small geese, which like to forage on the large lawns. Lorain was crammed with Bonaparte's Gulls. It would be hard to give an accurate estimate, but many thousands are in the harbor and river mouth. Unfortunately I didn't arrive until the light was getting dim, but managed to find one Franklin's Gull among the masses. Lorain should be great for gull-watching for a while, and a good spot to find some of the rarities like Black-legged Kittiwake and Black-headed and Little Gulls amongst the squeaky, buzzy throngs of Bonaparte's. Jim McCormac Jim McCormac Ohio Division of Wildlife 2045 Morse Rd., G-3 Columbus, Ohio 43229 614-265-6440 614-262-1143 fax ______________________________________________________________________ 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]