For those of you who are hunters of obscure and ancient records of birds in Maryland (or any state or province for that matter) you might be intersted in knowning about the 6 million cards kept in attic of the Nelson Building at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. These cards were collected from the 1880's through the 20's with some continuation through the 40's. Cards are separated by AOU number and then state. Information came from field reports, publications, books, field notes, diaries, and a network of people who collected information for the Bird Migration Project. These cards were collected to better understand the distribution, abundance, and migration of birds and is an almost complete compilation of data on bird occurence in North America prior to 1920. If you are interested in the collection, you can contact Chan Robbins (301-497-5641, Chan_Robbins@usgs.gov) or myself at the number below for access. It is likely to move soon to the archives. None of it is databased. sam Sam Droege FROG@USGS.GOV w 301-497-5840 h 410-798-6759 fax 301-497-5784 USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center 12100 Beech Forest, Laurel, Md 20708-4038 Http://www.mp1-pwrc.usgs.gov Blue Jay Now that autumn is here And the leaves curl up in sheer Disgust, And the cold rains fringe the pine, You really must Stop that supercilious whine Or you'll be shot by some mephitic Angry critic. --George Lathrop