Dorothy, Dave et al - My first thought would be a female Purple Finch. They can look awfully similar to a RB grosbeak, especially if it sits alone without the benefit of relative size comparisons. And, a female Purple Finch at this season is not only possible, but quite likely. Greg Links Somewhere near Toledo www.toledobirding.blogspot.com Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry -----Original Message----- From: Dave Slager <[log in to unmask]> Date: Thu, 5 Mar 2009 11:07:16 To: <[log in to unmask]> Subject: Re: [Ohio-birds] female rb grosbeak wakeman, lorain county Hi Dorothy, This is an extremely early and rare record for Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Approximately 8 weeks early). If at all possible, you should try to get a photo of the bird to document it and also to rule out the possibility of a Black-headed Grosbeak, which is possible as a vagrant this time of year. Good birding, Dave Slager Columbus, OH On 3/5/09, Dorothy Dawson-sheldon <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Greetings All, > Today was exciting with the arrival of a female RB Grosbeak at our > feeder here in Wakeman, Lorain County. I do believe this is the > first we've seen this Spring. > Happy Birding > Dorothy > > ______________________________________________________________________ > > 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] > -- David L. Slager Graduate Research Fellow Terrestrial Wildlife Ecology Lab School of Environment and Natural Resources The Ohio State University 210 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Road Columbus, OH 43210-1085 [log in to unmask] ______________________________________________________________________ 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]