I took advantage of a day without obligations to visit Areas M and N of the Hoover Nature Preserve this afternoon. To my great surprise as I came to where the trail in Area N opens to the reservoir there was an American White Pelican. This was at about 2:00 PM. After as I was leaving the back area after checking my nest boxes for any damage in the last wind storm, the pelican was now near the west shore by Wiese Road and appeared to be swimming south along the west shore. Some other species of interest off Areas M and N where a Common Loon, about a dozen Double-crested Cormorants, Tree Swallows, Red-breasted Mergansers, Lesser Scaup, Ring-necked Ducks, Ruddy Ducks and two immature Bald Eagles. Tomorrow, March 20th is the official start of spring according to the calendar. My official start of spring will be about April 20th when the Prothonotary Warblers return to Hoover from their wintering grounds. I received an email from an acquaintance in Louisiana informing me that he saw his first Prothonotary Warbler there on March 17th and it was heading north with a “GO BUCKS” banner. Charlie Bombaci Hoover Nature Preserve **************Feeling the pinch at the grocery store? Make meals for Under $10. (http://food.aol.com/frugal-feasts?ncid=emlcntusfood00000002) ______________________________________________________________________ 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]