Greetings fellow Birders, As you are scanning the mudflats in the Lake Erie Marsh Region this fall surveying shorebirds, be sure to note any sightings of Color-Marked individuals. As Mark Shieldcastle mentioned in an email last month, a research project is being conducted by The Ohio State University on the shorebirds in the southwest Lake Erie Marsh Region during their fall and spring migrations over the next 2 years. This research will add to the understanding of just how important this area is for shorebird migration and what further steps need to be taken to ensure shorebird conservation. Your reports of color-marked bird sightings are crucial to the success of the project. By reporting this data, you will aid researchers in understanding just how the shorebirds use the Lake Erie Marsh region - where they forage, and how they move around the area. Your reports of marked birds aid in creating a much larger and robust set of data than the researches could ever hope to collect on their own. Several individuals have already been sending in reports - Thank You! I know that reporting the information takes extra time, but your efforts are greatly appreciated. When you see a marked bird, please note the following information: *Date* and *Time*, *Property *name and *Unit* (within the property, if applicable), *Location *(a specific corner, edge, etc. of the Unit), *GPS coordinates* (if possible), the* type of Site* (managed marsh, flooded cropland, etc.), *Species*, *Color combination*, the *Zone* in which the bird is (dry mudflat, moist mudflat, shallow water, deep water), and the * Behavior* of the bird (foraging, preening, bathing, sleeping, etc.). Send all information to Keith Norris, [log in to unmask] I have attached a document with more information and a data sheet. The data sheet is not required for reporting any sightings, but will aid you in collecting all of the necessary information while in the field. (If you have problems with the attachment, it is also available on the Black Swamp Bird Observatory's website:www.bsbobird.org). Once completed, data sheets can be mailed to: Keith Norris, School of Environment & Natural Resources, 210 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Rd., Columbus, OH 43210. If you have any questions, or to report any sightings, please contact me via email ([log in to unmask]) or phone (217.855.6324). I hope you each find some time to enjoy the fall migration as it starts to heat up! Thank you, Keith -- Keith A. Norris Graduate Associate School of Environment & Natural Resources The Ohio State University [log in to unmask] 217.855.6324 ______________________________________________________________________ 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]