I took advantage of today's cooler temperatures and spent the morning monitoring my nest boxes at Area K (Wiese Road), Area L (Dustin Road, Little Walnut Creek, and Area M (near the boardwalk in Galena). The Prothonotary Warblers apparently also were enjoying the good weather as the males were out singing for all they were worth. In the sunlight some of the best colored males looked like they had been done using Neon Golden-Yellow fluorescent paint. When I arrived at Area L the first thing I heard was a Prothonotary singing at the water's edge. For a small bird they can belt out a song to be heard far and wide. I worked the area along Dustin Road first, then looped along the edge of the cove, the peninsula and finished following Little Walnut Creek upstream. Males were perched and declaring their territory at almost every 100 to 200 feet. Finding the nest site was more of a challenge. At this point the females are either laying eggs at one a day or incubating during the morning. As it got closer to noon I began seeing females out foraging. I make it a rule not to disturb any boxes during the morning when the females are on the nest. Counting eggs or hatchlings is best done during the afternoon hours and done quickly. Area L held a few extra pleasures this morning. Sometimes you can sense someone or something is watching you. As I was taking a GPS reading for a natural cavity site I turned around to find a Barred Owl looking down at me (do they people watch?). Later I encountered a Black-billed Cuckoo near the base of the old railroad bed. Usually I find Yellow-bill's here as the habitat is more to their suiting, but the backyards along nearby Dustin Road and the abundance of tent caterpillars are an attractive combination. Area L also had many Warbling Vireos, a few Green Herons and many Baltimore Orioles. At Area K the habitat has been altered dramatically from what is was for years. A section of the Ohio-to-Erie Bike Trail has been run through the abandoned part of Wiese Road. This changed the area from a quiet path with lots of edge flora to a paved bike path with wide swarths of flora cleared away on both sides. Many species that have been consistent nesters here are totally absent now, Others including White-eyed Vireo, Brown Thrasher, Wood Thrush, Common Yellowthroat and Ruby-throated Hummingbird are barely hanging on. On the other side of the ledger, Yellow Warblers, Eastern Towhee, Song Sparrows and a few others are showing an increase along the road edge areas. The Prothonotary Warbler status is still out and yet to be determined. I had two males on territory this morning whereas the area historically hosted 5 to 7 pairs annually. A part of the bike trail runs right along the water's edge. I'm hoping I will find the prothonotaries adjusting and only moving along the shore to where the bike trail is further away. The jury is out on this. Over at the boardwalk in Area M I installed additional nest boxes to make the Prothonotary Warblers easier to locate. Thus far this seems to be a success. This was initially demonstrated on April 23rd when we hosted several Ohio Young Birders Club Chapters. I was discussing the area with a couple of these great kids when I heard a male Prothonotary calling from nearby. I phished to try and have it come out so the kids could see him. He did me one better as he flew over to the boardwalk and landed in front of the kids. Twice since the same thing has occurred at the boardwalk much to the pleasure of the birders present. There appears to be at least 4 males on territory close to the boardwalk. Every time I have stopped there one or two of them has been in the open and viewable. Then as an added treat one can walk to the end of the boardwalk and see the Osprey on platform H-2, built and installed curtesy of Dick Tuttle. If you're lucky Dick might be there monitoring the nest with his spotting scope. He is an amiable gentleman who loves to share knowledge about these noble birds. And if the male Osprey doesn't chase it away too soon you might catch a glimpse of one of the Bald Eagles that hang around the north end of Hoover Reservoir. I keep hoping that a pair will nest there someday but so far no luck with that wish. Next time out I plan to check out the back sections of Area N. It is an area with many Prothonotaries as well as nesting Yellow-throated Warblers and Northern Parula. Charlie Bombaci Hoover Nature Preserve ______________________________________________________________________ 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]