Hi Folks,

I've done a lot of birding in the past week, but found little worth
reporting other than ravens.  I spent last weekend looking for
Franklin's Gull at Salisbury Landfill and at Depot Pond (PG Co.)
without success, despite good numbers of Laughers at both locations.
Returning from Salisbury on Saturday, I stopped at Hurlock WWTP in
Dorchester Co. where I was surprised to find a pretty late
WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER, but nothing else of note.

On Sunday morning I spent some time in our Ferndale yard for the first
time in nearly two weeks, and was rewarded with a COMMON RAVEN flying
south with two of the local crows taking notice and giving it pursuit.
 Elaine quipped that perhaps this bird was making a somewhat prophetic
flight away from M&T Stadium.  Anyway, this was our yard's second
recorded raven, the other also being in November three years ago.

On Monday and Tuesday I worked very long days with parent conferences
in the evenings, but both days offered long enough breaks that I was
able to get out and chase some birds.  On Monday I was able to enjoy
the Triadelphia scoters found by Joe Hanfman, and in fact Joe was
still there when I arrived.  On Tuesday I decided to take my morning
break to pursue the Red-headed Woodpecker found by Keith
Costly on Liberty Dam Rd. (Balt. Co.), but did not find the bird.  I
drove the entire length of the road, and was instead rewarded with a
flyover COMMON RAVEN (heard long before seen) that obligingly flew out
over the reservoir into Carroll Co. airspace.  What this meant for me
is that I have seen ravens in Montgomery, Howard, Carroll, Baltimore,
Anne Arundel, and Prince George's Counties all this year (along with
the four western counties where they are more expected).  That leaves
southern Maryland and the E. Shore to go for the listing game, though
I felt certain I heard a raven croak on Draper's Mill Rd. in Caroline
Co. this May, but was not willing to count it on just one
vocalization.

During my afternoon break on Tuesday I zipped up to Piney Reservoir to
tick the handsome pair of Surf Scoters found by Fred Fallon, seeing
Bob Ringler and later Bill Ellis across the lake doing the same.
Yesterday was the unsuccessful attempt to find Bullock's Oriole, but
it was still great birding along the towpath.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

Stan Arnold
Ferndale (AA Co.)