All, here is an email I just received from Neill Cade. ------ Forwarded Message From: Neill <[log in to unmask]> Date: Sun, 12 Dec 2010 14:02:56 -0500 To: Sean Williams <[log in to unmask]> Subject: Re: Empid sp. Sean: Jason didn't see the bird, but I did. I'm not a member of Ohiobirds, but please pass along the following details if you like: The bird was sighted on the Silver Creek property portion of Mitchell Memorial Forest. Information and directions for accessing the property can be obtained from the Hamilton County Park District. The bird was in the company of two Dark-eyed Juncos and was located in a honey locust in a large "brier" patch (blackberry, multi-flora rose, etc.) bordering the northeast corner of the property. This habitat is a "bald", with some cedars and briers, surrounded by hilly woodland. The bird was roughly the same size as the juncos, fairly dark green upperparts, with two beige wingbars, dark bill, yellow on the breast and belly, and a noticeable eye-ring. The head was noticeably peaked. The bird did not vocalize. It flew from the brier patch south to a large isolated clump of trees (the only one in that open area) near the wooded edge. It flew again, still in the company of the juncos, south into the wooded area just above the creek, where I lost sight of it. At no time did the bird wag its tail, vocalize, or flycatch. It remained 10-20 feet above the ground the whole time I saw it (as did the juncos, oddly enough). The bird was sighted at approximately 2:00 PM on Saturday. The weather was overcast, 45 F, with light wind (5-10 mph). That's all I can remember. I hope that this helps. Thanks! ------- End Forward Message The ³noticeable eye-ring² and ³two beige wingbars² could rule out Eastern Phoebe, depending on how boldness of the wingbars. Also, ³dark green² is not a color to describe the upperparts of an Eastern Phoebe. A peaked head points toward Empidonax. Additionally, I got another email from Neill, who says the bird did NOT pump its tail during his observation! It sounds safe to assume that this bird is indeed an Empidonax flycatcher. However, from a description, it¹s nearly impossible to identify an Empidonax flycatcher. I urge anyone in the area to PHOTOGRAPH THIS BIRD!! Good birding, Sean Williams Delaware, OH ______________________________________________________________________ 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]