Lee and all, Mark your calendar and open a free eBird account (http://ebird.org/content/ebird/). The third annual Rusty Blackbird Hotspot Blitz needs your help locating Rusty Blackbirds, January 30 to February 15, 2011! Rusty Blackbirds are no longer common or abundant as many early observers noted. The species is in steep decline for reasons not fully understood. The most recent published estimate by leading investigators suggests an 88% decline during the previous four decades (Greenberg et al, November 2010 Condor). Rusty Blackbirds winter in Ohio in small numbers compared to populations found in primary winter range in the SE United States. During Ohio cold spells when snow is on the ground, rusties appear at feeders--a secondary foraging choice. They normally forage invertebrates by flipping leaves and debris in swamps and moist pools in woodlands. Alternatively, they choose grains. We see them in corn stubble with other blackbirds if we scan flocks carefully. to be continued... Tom Bain Ohio Coordinator Rusty Blackbird Hotspot Blitz -----Original Message----- From: Ohio birds [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Lee Underschultz Sent: Monday, December 27, 2010 8:55 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: [Ohio-birds] Rusty blackbirds I had a Rusty Blackbird scouting out the feeders today. I thought it was a cowbird until I looked though my binoculars and saw its light iris'. I saw another one around a week ago and then saw what I thought was a bunch of cowbirds. Now I am wondering if they might have been Rusty Blackbirds. Are they very common? Lee Underschultz Firefly Hollow Little Hocking, OH www.fhsigns.com [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] ______________________________________________________________________ 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]