This morning I returned to Dustin Road (Area L) of the Hoover Nature Preserve with my camera to take pictures of the Prothonotary Warblers as they discussed (fought over) who gets what territory. Because I found a location where I was able to take good pictures and have a comfortable place to sit, I never got the entire area covered. I did however take pictures until I ran out of film. For those of you who are too young to remember, film is what we used prior to digital cameras. A lot slower and restrictive than digital, but then those of us in the Golden Buckeye Card Club are also slower and more restricted than we used to be. My Nikon F2 has served me well over many years and I’m beginning to think that it will outlast me. I tallied 16 male Prothonotary Warblers in this small area in a short period of time. At one point there were 5 males having a spirited discussion over territorial rights. They were flying around the series of nest boxes I have at the site as a group. It appeared that they were all chasing each other as they banked, dove and occasionally landed, where upon they flared their tail feathers showing the white spots. This is their equivalent of a chip on the shoulder. The scene could have come out of the Battle of Briton with them being RAF Spitfires. Once they made a pass, all 5, that made me wonder if I would need a flack jacket. One passed over my head, one to my right, one to my left, and the last two between me and my camera which I was holding upright at the time. As I was leaving Steve Jones arrived (with a large lens digital camera). His pictures will likely put mine to shame. I told Steve where the action was and now I’ll wait for him to post his pictures and make me jealous (while I wait for my film to be developed). Of course along with better equipment Steve has more talent with a camera. Steve mentioned the presence of Prothonotary Warblers, Osprey and Yellow-billed Cuckoo at Area N where he had just come from. Birds of interest I observed this morning at Dustin Road included: Blue-winged Warbler Nashville Warbler Northern Parula Yellow Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Palm Warbler Black-and-white Warbler Prothonotary Warbler White-throated Vireo Yellow-throated Vireo Warbling Vireo Charlie Bombaci Hoover Nature Preserve Delaware County **************A Good Credit Score is 700 or Above. See yours in just 2 easy steps! (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1220572846x1201387511/aol?redir=http://www.freecreditreport.com/pm/default.aspx?sc=668072&hmpgID=62&bcd= Aprilfooter427NO62) ______________________________________________________________________ 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]