for what it's worth, as a former boston-area birder now in internal exile in DC, I recall thick-billed murre being much more regular in NE coastal waters in winter than common murre, despite the fact that its breeding grounds are considerably farther away than those of common murre. Robert Weiner (rweiner@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu) International Business Department George Washington University Washington DC 20052 202 994 5981