Date: Sat, 1 Jan 2000 15:55:28 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Ray Kiddy Subject: Green-tailed Towhee !!! in Allegany Co. MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi MD, Around 11:00 this morning (1/1/01), I found what I believe to be an adult Green-tailed Towhee along the roadway just beyond the sewage ponds (the former Rouge Lagoon) at North Branch, Allegany Co., MD (DeLorme 67 C6). The solid rufous cap, green wings & tail and white throat patch bordered by black were well seen. The bird foraged actively along the roadway with a sizable mixed sparrow flock which included White-crowned, Tree, Song and White-throated Sparrows as well as Juncos. At one point, it foraged just in front of 2 immature White-crowns affording a good size comparison. The Towhee was very similar in size, perhaps slightly larger. It scratched actively at the ground like a Song Sparrow and held its tail erect. I observed the bird with both binoculars and scope for about 15 minutes total. I contacted several local birders, two of whom arrived and saw it briefly behind some vegetation before it and all the others birds flushed when a Cooper's dove into a nearby bush. Subsequent efforts to locate the bird were unsuccessful. However, there is plenty of suitable habitat and the area is being used by many sparrows with which it was freely associating. It seems reasonable that it would stick around. I will send details to the Records Committee once transcribed from my tape recorded notes. Directions: From I-68, take exit 43B in Cumberland onto Rt. 51, Industrial Blvd. Follow 51 south about 5 1/2 miles. Turn right onto PPG Rd. Turn left onto River Rd. after 1/4 - 1/2 mile. Follow this until you come to the ponds which will be on your left. The bird was seen mostly on the roadway just beyond the ponds with the farm pasture on your left and the C&O Canal on your right. Happy trails .... Ray Kiddy Cumberland, Allegany Co., MD rrkiddy@hereintown.net http://www.hereintown.net/~rrkiddy/Kiddy.htm ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================