Hi Guys, My wife had to work this afternoon, so on a lark, I took a drive up 95 today. Stopping at the observation deck in Funk Bottoms, I saw a couple Belted Kingfishers, and not much else. I wasn't expecting to see a lot of birds. This isn't the best time of the year, and it was the middle of the day. Leaving Funk Bottoms, I continued on up to Killbuck and parked at the end of Carrie Lane (W. Messner Rd. on Google Earth) I hiked through the briars and crawled through the brambles down to the edge of the marsh, and it was worth it! I saw a Red-Tailed Hawk, a Great Blue Heron, a huge flock of Canada Geese, several groups of ducks, (American Black Ducks? I'm not sure, they definitely had blue secondaries and were mostly dark everywhere else.) And then just as I was ready to leave, four Sandhill Cranes erupted from the bushes at the edge of the water! At least I THINK they were Sandhills. It was overcast, all I could see was their silhouettes against the clouds. They appeared to be mostly gray, were as big, or bigger than a Great Blue Heron and flew with their necks outstretched. I couldn't tell if they had red crests or not. They were quite vocal, and I can only describe the sound they made as a loud croaking sound. Also saw a small raptor, (Kestrel maybe?) as well as numerous Gray Catbirds, Cardinals and Goldfinches. I thought I'd see more Red-Winged Blackbirds, but I only saw one, maybe they've all gone south? There was a constant parade of Starling-sized birds heading south in groups of 6-30, occasionally stopping to rest in the trees, couldn't identify them either. I really need to find some experienced birders to tag along with. I'm having fun teaching myself the art and the science of birding, but I know I'm missing a LOT! Anyway, it was a fun afternoon, and then I went home and watched some FOOTBALL! What a great autumn day. Cheers, Brian ______________________________________________________________________ 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]