Date: Sun, 19 Jan 2003 08:44:51 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Chris Starling Subject: Good day to look for ducks in Cecil (Susquehanna River) Greetings: I just go got to work this morning and noticed that the Susquehanna Flats and the Susquehanna River are nearly completly frozen causing thousands of ducks to raft up in the few, scattered, and small areas on unfrozen water. These rafts are closer to the Cecil County (Perry Point) side of the river and can be easily scoped. I didnt bring any optics with me to work as I have already packed them for my trip to the Turk's and Caicos early tomorrow. If any body is coming to Perry Point/Peryville to bird today (Sunday) let me know, (stop by the Perry Point Fire house or call 410-642- 1034), as I would like to join you. I birded this area yeasterday with my wife, crystal, and her father. The ice provided close views of 17 (List below) species of waterfowl. There is way MORE ice today and the rafts are much more compact. The most interesting phenomena osberved yesterday was 5000+ Common Merganser that spanned the entire width of the, then unfrozen, mouth of the Susquehanna River. They were so thick that you could have walked on them from Perryville all the way to Havre de Grace (1 mile). Waterfowl observed Saturday 1/18 Perry Point, Md Pied-billed Grebe Tundra Swan Mute Swan Canada Goose Mallard American Black Duck American Widgeon Gadwall Canvasback REDHEAD Ring-necked Duck Lesser Scaup Common Merganser Hooded Merganser Ruddy Duck Bufflehead American Coot Pied-billed Grebe Good Birding, Chris Starling North East, Md ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================