Date: Tue, 23 Jan 2001 18:16:59 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Noel Wamer Subject: Missing Any Loons up There? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed Hi Maryland Birders, Please indulge an inquiry from a Floridian... Over the past two weeks unprecedented numbers of Red-throated Loons have appeared off the coast of northeastern Florida. The loons have been observed in concentrated morning and evening fights. This morning's flight of 675 in two hours at Jacksonville Beach was more than 13 times the previous one-day total reported from Florida prior to this winter. Obviously something very odd is occurring. Has anyone noticed lower than normal numbers of Red-throateds off the Maryland shores that might help explain this phenomena? Since this does not deal directly with birds in Maryland private responses are probably appropriate. I am sending this information request to several state mail lists in the normal winter range of the species, so subscribers to multiple lists may receive redundant postings. I apologize for this. Thanks in advance for any comments! Later... Noel Wamer Jacksonville, FL, US nwamer@fcol.com http://www.badbirdz.com/ "Even in its most primitive form, naming is a kind of judgment." (Walker Percy) ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================