John, Large rafts (tens of thousands at least) of Red-breasted Mergansers have always been a feature of August through October off the tip of Pt. Pelee, Ontario. I wonder if the numbers there are decreasing as well, or if perhaps the species is lingering more at the northern end of the lake than the southern end these days? Allen T. Chartier amazilia1(at)comcast.net Inkster, Michigan, USA ______________________________________________________________________ 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]