This a.m. (Sat., July 17) we saw the Huntley Mississippi kite briefly at 9 a.m. from the usual spot--seen from the observation deck, the bird flew over the area in front of the dead trees, toward the left-most tower. We saw it a total of about two minutes, as it soared briefly, then flapped out of view behind the treeline. Didn't stick around in the heat for its return. On July 13, I made a brief stop at Lake Needwood's shallow end, where I saw three cliff swallows over the remaining water there. (To get to this spot from the entrance road off Avery, take a right at the first "T" junction and follow it [past the left-hand lake view where the geese hang out] to the end, then take a left on the public road and pull off on the shoulder.) Howard Youth Rockville, MD hmyouth@erols.com