Hello all, There's currently a major northward movement of Black-necked Stilts underway, with the first individual being detected on 8 April and now upwards of 12 individuals (mostly paired) between Wood, Ottawa, and Sandusky counties, as far as I'm aware. Below is a message I posted yesterday on Birding Ohio's facebook page regarding 8 Black-necked Stilts documented in a single day. I had an incredible total of 8 BLACK-NECKED STILTS today, 7 May 2013, between Ottawa and Sandusky counties in NW Ohio. The biggest shocker was a group of 4 flybys while Keith Norris and I were shorebird banding at Winous Point Marsh Conservancy in Bay Township (Ottawa Co.). That in itself was a very unexpected and welcomed treat, but the stilts just kept coming. On one of my first stops of our regular color-mark shorebird survey routes, I found yet another pair [pictured here]. This pair seemed to be settling in nicely at a closed area of Ottawa NWR along the south shore of the Toussaint River in Carroll Township. There is a chance that this is the same pair noted by many observers off County Line Rd. in Ottawa NWR over the weekend (not present at that location on Monday, 6 May). In this photo, the brown-backed female is on the left and the glossy black-backed male is on the right. You gotta love those ridiculously long, bubble gum pink legs! The final pair I located -- for a grand total of 8 on the day -- were at my last survey stop at Boggy Bottoms of Pickerel Creek Wildlife Area off CR 254 in Sandusky County. I believe this pair was casually reported over the weekend by one or two Biggest Week field trips to Pickerel Creek. Fortunately, birders can access this property at any time. To access, take US 6 west out of Sandusky or east out of Fremont until you reach CR 254. Once on CR 254, you can park in the parking area on the left next to the large white barn and hike in. It's about a 0.75 mi. hike one-way to the pool where the stilts were hanging out, but well worth it. Although this wetland isn't being used by many shorebirds, it is holding a fair number of lingering waterfowl. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jboslerbirds/ Good shorebirding, Justin -- Justin Bosler Port Clinton, 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]