Unfortunately, Dave Brenneman and I must have arrived minutes after Fred 
left.  I was there from 11 AM until 4:30 PM and saw no crossbill.

Winger West
Millersville, MD


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Fred Shaffer" <>
To: <>
Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2008 12:42 PM
Subject: [MDOSPREY] White-winged Crossbill -1/31


I got wonderful extended views of the White-winged Crossbill in Silver 
Spring.
I arrived at 10:24 and set up my scope on the thistle feeder.  A group of
goldfinch were feeding.  At 10:30, the crossbill made a brief appearance
(about 1 minute) and I got looks at it through my scope.  The bird then 
left,
only to reappear at 10:35.  This time it made a more prolonged stay, 
remaining
on the feeder until 10:44.  I was able to view the bird from several angles 
and
make notes of all the various field marks, included the notched tail, 
prominent
wing bars, face pattern, and of course that spectacular bill.  The birds
scattered at 10:44.  I hung around for a few more minutes without seeing the
bird again, and then left shortly before 11:00.
Fred Shaffer
Crofton, MD