Date: Sat, 15 Apr 2000 20:51:36 -0400 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Larry R Lynch Subject: Short-eared Owls along Grifith Neck Road (MD) Comments: cc: marvadel@egroups.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Greetings everyone.... After visiting Blackwater NWR this morning, I had decided to head to Elliott Island. After crossing the single lane bridge where the road changes from Bestpitch Ferry Rd. to Grifith Neck Road, I came up on a Short-eared Owl in tall grass along the roadway. While watching it, two additional Short-eared's flew into sight. After enjoying the spectacle of the threesome flying around the car, I finally decided to move on. About 2/10's of a mile further down the road, I came up on a fourth Short-eared. He was even closer to the road and posed on a high clump of grass for a dozen or so photo's. Awesome! All four were seen within 1/2 a mile from the bridge. A question or two comes up: What is the "late" date for Short-eared's in Maryland? This seems rather late to me. Are there any breeding records for Short-eared's in MD? Some of the birds observed at Blackwater NWR included: Least Sandpipers, Semipalmated Sandpiper, numerous Dunlin, Snipe, Long-billed Dowitcher, both yellowlegs, Bald Eagles, Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, Pintails, N. Shovelers, Wood Ducks, Gadwall... on a rainy, soggy day. Also, 8 Wild Turkeys were observed in several small groups along the roadways. Larry Larry Lynch Richmond, VA birder6@juno.com ========================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ========================================================================= ===========================================================================