Rick,
the "anting" possibility shouldn't be just discarded out of hand.
Last week i had lunch with an old friend and we were intrigued to watch
a blue jay come down to mulch in the butterfly garden,   He spread  
his wings
and squirmed down into the mulch , then stayed quietly in that  
posture for
several minutes.  Neither of us knew much about it, but both remembered
hearing about this activity.

I'm not sure whether the ants would "clean" parasites off feathers,  
or something
in their formic acid is of value to a bird.    A R-S HAwk would seem  
to be pretty
large size for such an activity, though?

What an interesting question.    Thanks.

Leo Weigant



On Jul 1, 2008, at 8:44 AM, Rick Sussman wrote:

> Hi Bob,
>  Back in Ashton one winter, I observed an adult RSHA scratching in  
> the  wet
> dirt beneath a large oak tree, apparently in an effort to get  
> earthworms,
> which is listed in some references as part of their diet.
>
> Alternately, maybe it was "anting?"
>
> Rick Sussman
> Woodbine,MD
> 
>
>
>
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