Date: Wed, 3 Jan 2001 19:27:08 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Stan Arnold Subject: N. Shrike seen in late afternoon MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi Folks, I viewed the Montogomery Co. Northern Shrike late this afternoon (3 Jan), at very close range, from about 4:50 to 5:05 p.m., in the dimming light of the day. The bird was first seen exactly where Dave Cz. had viewed it, on the island of multiflora on the west side of Hughes Rd., about 1/4 mile north of River Rd. The bird perched in a variety of trees around the island, including one right up front, and had one short tussle with a mockingbird. At one point, to my delight, the bird flew right at me, and landed in the cedar tree above my head. While I couldn't see it in the thick foliage, it then flew high into the nearest sycamore tree, where I got the looks of a lifetime. Clearly seen were the two features that best distinguish this bird from the Loggerhead Shrike: a thinner, cleaner eyestripe, and a longer, thinner bill, with an unmistakeable hook at the end of the upper mandible. Also, at this range, I could see an almost pinkish, very faint scaly pattern on the breast, possibly making this a young bird with otherwise adult characteristics. Thanks Dave for finding, and reporting this bird. Stan Arnold Anne Arundel Co. blackrail@earthlink.net ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================