I should report my findings in talking with a number of knowledgeable Ohioans--and folks in Michigan and Ontario--about the distribution of chuck-will's-widows. I had felt my trusty Natl Geo field guide to North America was too stingy in depicting its distribution in the region, and I learned a lot. That field guide accurately depicts its distribution in a reliable area during the breeding season, and if you just have to hear and maybe see one, it's the best bet. However, you could surprised to see--or more likely hear--one elsewhere throughout Ohio, throughout Michigan, or even in Ontario. The maps in the Sibley field guides are more accurate in showing its distribution, displaying occurrences many miles north of its dependable Adams County haunts. Matt Anderson tells me the Toledo area, for example, has at least seven records, one in June, the rest in May. The oddball specimens from the Cincinnati area in January and February remain to be explained. I heard from many folks who felt they were lucky to have heard males calling (mostly on dry evenings) in spring in many out-of-the-way spots in Ohio and Michigan, and even some others--don't forget those 37 records at Point Pelee. It seems that chucks maintain their populations by doing a lot of exploration. Their calls are a lot louder than those of most other birds present, so males can spread farther and wider and still attract mates. They are adapted to swampy areas and dry pine plantations alike. The birth of young causes them to stop calling, which makes the season of assessing their population by vocalization a short one. At any rate, the range of this bird extends well beyond Adams County, and while you'll likely come up short looking for it elsewhere in the state, you could get lucky anywhere. Bill Whan Columbus ______________________________________________________________________ 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]