Freezing of the Great Lakes in late winter is considered one of the major reasons why red-necked grebes show up in numbers in the midwest and else where. According to The Weather Channel's article "Artic Blast Fuels Rapid Ice Growth in the Great Lakes (16 January 2015)", as of 15 January, 34.1% of the Great Lakes was frozen, up 5.65 % from New Year's Day. Last year the Great Lakes were 21.2% ice-covered on January 14, with this year's ice cover 13% higher to date (14 January). percentage of Great Lakes frozen on 14 January 2015 Erie 87.4 % Huron 44.17 % Michigan 27.11 % Ontario 26.5 % Superior 19.31 % With unfrozen water at Ohio being currently at a premium, r. n. grebes in the next several weeks will be limited to large rivers with gradient, the Ohio river, and at hot water locations at lake erie. Good birding, John Herman ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: listserv.miamioh.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]