Here's an interesting article about the Rusty Blackbird that appears in Northern Woodlands magazine (a very nice publication with all kinds of natural history tidbits, although with a definite focus on forestry, for those who aren't familiar with it)
http://northernwoodlands.org/outside_story/article/an-unnoticed-little-known-and-disappearing-songbird/ It made me realize how lucky we in the Cayuga Lake Basin are to have several spots, most notably Sapsucker Woods with its wet, swampy pools, where we can consistently see these cool northern birds as they pass through in spring. A couple of weeks ago I was able to photograph one there, thanks to Mark Chao who was essential in getting me onto this bird: http://www.marieread.com/cpg/displayimage.php?album=483&pos=0 (Taken using a 500mm lens + 1.4X, and a flash with a Better Beamer flash extender. Without the flash, in the gloomy woods, this would have looked horrible!) Marie Marie Read Wildlife Photography 452 Ringwood Road Freeville NY 13068 USA Phone 607-539-6608 e-mail m...@cornell.edu http://www.marieread.com ***NEW*** See my beautiful photo notecards: http://www.marieread.com/cpg/displayimage.php?album=478&pos=0 -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/cayugabirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --