Howdy All! So we got Red-breasted Nuthatches. Lots of 'em. (except at my feeder). Now we have a few Pine Siskins. Are they a fluke or are the rest of us gonna get to see them? Being a normal, optimistic birder, I'm wishing for a good year. But since I actually look at RBAs for other states (shhhh...don't tell anyone), I decided to check out the status of a few of our winter hopefuls here in the East. Bear with me hear as I mention other states, but of course, as they RELATE to Maryland birding... Pine Siskin: Major invasion across entire Northeast. Here's what's happened just in the last 10 days: Berks County, PA - 10/1 & 10/9 Newfoundland - 10/4 & 10/9 New Jersey - 10/6 Central PA - 10/7 Maine - 10/5 Western NY - 10/7 Connecticut - 10/7 NY (finger lakes) - 10/7 Delaware - 10/7 Philadelphia - 10/7 E Massachusetts - 10/8 Rhode Island - 10/8 Red Crossbill: Still early. Coastal locations indicate invasion is not out of the question. The last 2 wks: Maine - 9/22 (no surprise) Cape May, NJ - 9/23 New York City, NY - 10/1 South Carolina - 10/3 White-winged Crossbill: Single rpt from Maine, 10/5. Already a large invasion in the Northern Rockies in the West. Redpolls: No reports. Pine Grosbeak: A single report again from Maine, 9/14. Evening Grosbeak: A few scattered early reports. Too early to tell... Connecticut - 9/15 & 9/23 New York City - 9/24 Bohemian Waxwing: Few early reports from the Northeast. Newfoundland - 10/4 & 10/9 NY (finger lakes) - 10/7 And finally, Massachusetts now has a Varied Thrush, Western Kingbirds and Lark Sparrows are being rpt'd North of us (maybe due to hurricane activity in September?), Harris's Sparrows are being rpt'd from the Great Lakes already, Franklin's Gulls have made a minor push into the Great Lakes, and jaegers are being reported in greater numbers than I can remember (IMHO) in the Great Lakes and along the East Coast (100 past Jacksonville last week)--more hurricane results? Who knows what else the winter might bring? -Greg Miller Hollywood, MD ===== __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com