Guessing not many first-hand reports from today will come in, and since winter's almost past, I offer news from winter 2001 for a different perspective. --this was the year a Townsend's solitaire was easy to see at Holden Arboretum in Lake Co, from 1/17 through 2/21, a fifth Ohio record. --a varied thrush, present since 12/12 in Findlay, remained through 9 April for Ohio's longest stay by the species --a Harris's sparrow stayed through Jan and Feb near Apple Creek in Wayne Co. --Ross's geese were seen 18-20 Feb near Buck Creek SP and 4 Feb at Hoover Reservoir near Columbus; this was in the day when they were still quite rare, and hybrids with snow goose less likely --golden eagle sightings came from The Wilds in EC Ohio, among the first few from what later became more or less routine wintering birds --spring migrant sandhill crane reports began on 19 Feb, much as this year --during the winter 11 long-eared owl reports emerged, from Wayne, Franklin, Summit, Cuyahoga, Clark, Stark, and Lucas counties. 85 short-eared owls were reported from 17 counties. Thirteen snowy owls were reported, including the marathon stay by an accommodating individual down near Wilmington that ended a nine-week stay on 9 Feb --an indigo bunting spent the winter at a Cincinnati Nature Ctr feeder --a harlequin duck spent 30 Dec-6 Mar in the Maumee River, eventually molting into alternate plumage --many woodcocks were reported arriving in the state as early as 7 Feb --a decent gull year at the Lake, with a flock of 10,000 herring gulls on 1 Jan, and accumulated sightings of 40 Thayer's gulls, 32 Iceland gulls, 92 lesser black-backed gulls, 89 glaucous gulls, and a couple of kittiwakes --ten northern shrikes reported, with nine (some others) on CBCs --70,000 American crows estimated at the Cincinnati roost, and 20,000 at that in Springfield --birders scouting for the Hamilton CBC located 3034 Lapland longspurs in the western part of the county --a rose-breasted grosbeak visited a feeder in Holmes Co on 9 Dec --20+ red crossbills were reported, mostly in the NE, but one in Cincinnati; birds at Holden Arboretum were quite possibly of an unusual subspecies, as they were eating ponderosa pine seeds; a specimen was found, but later lost. Bill Whan Columbus ______________________________________________________________________ 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]