Hoping to exercise my deficient store of knowledge on the subject of 
Iceland/Kumlien's/Thayer's Gulls, I paid a visit to the Frederick landfill 
along Reichs Ford Rd. this morning (12/31).

All I got for about an hour of patient searching through thousands of gulls 
(90% Reing-billed, the rest Herring) was large amounts of mud and household 
debris on my person -- and worse, on the floor of my new car!  Not even a 
Great Black-backed Gull to be seen.

It was a lot more interesting down at Little Seneca Lake, Black Hill 
Regional Park, in Montgomery County:

PIED-BILLED GREBE   10
EARED GREBE  1  (I think there may be 2 different birds - I saw an Eared 
Grebe in 2 separate locations, more than once.  But I did not see 2 
together ,so I may be wrong)
AM. WIGEON 1
CANVASBACK  30
RING-NECKED DUCK  400+
LESSER SCAUP  2
RUDDY DUCK    100+
BUFFLEHEAD  50-100
HOODED MERGANSER  10
COMMON MERGANSER  12  (all females)
COMMON GOLDENEYE  10 (males and females)

The Ring-necked Ducks were mostly over in the part of the lake west of the 
bridge, and there were probably even more of them up the arms of the lake 
stretching up towards the Ten-mile Creek area.  The Eared Grebe was close 
in to the bridge on the east side, with the other one (if it was another 
one) about 100 yards farther south.

Happy Hogmanay!



D. H. Michael Bowen (Mike)
8609 Ewing Drive
Bethesda MD 20817-3845
Tel/Fax: (301) 530-5764
e-mail: