For a time it almost looked like huge snowflakes were gathering to pummel us once again, but nothing to fear - just the annual March gathering of, i'm guessing, Ring-billed gulls.  I suppose these are migrants.  They seem to show up at this time every year.  I first noticed them this morning just after 0900 driving MD 383 west from Jefferson to the S of the road near the intersection with Burkittsville/Gapland Rd.  Later in the trip, i spotted a field full N of the road just before the intersection with Catholic Church and Picnic Woods (PWR) Rds.  Several hours later the snowflake look-alike flocks were seen over the house on PWR.  There were easily several hundred.  I watched until they caught a thermal and spiraled out of visual range to the east.

Jim (Michael) Speicher
jugornought—at—yahoo-dot-com
Bethesda  AT work :(
Broad Run_S. FRED Co  AT home