good evening

[Napper]

After the Thunderstorm move thru this evening I decided I should go over to the pond and have a little look about. (7:10 pm)

I figured with all of this rain and warm temps it should be starting to thaw a bit..

Well it sure sounds like spring,  multiple song sparrows and Cardinals singing.. there appears to be a robin in every

second tree in the Neighbourhood, grackles are everywhere, junkos still here. Many Crows and Canada Geese

At the pond thin ice at the centre and water at the edges. I was able to spot 6 Buffleheads, 15 mallards, 20 or more Canada

Geese, 2 killdeer and what I think was a couple of ringed neck ducks "head appeared squashed, sat very erect in water and

had white vertical stripe in front of wing" ... Your going to think I am nuts but I am sure I spotted the forked

tail of a "Hirundo Rustica" flying North West. group of 8:?

 I haven't had time to look at any recent reports....It could have been a Starling cause there are tons about.. but that forked

tail... :?:   way too early...

Napper:lol:


Was 20 deg C today at 4:00 pm  "this was a Bino's only trip"

[JTF]

Its quite possible, with the weather lately anything is possible. If I am not mistaken the normal arrival is the 2nd week of April in Ontario. [/u]

[Bruce Colvin]

I often wonder who named some of these birds. The Ring-necked duck has a ring around it's neck, but it's not visible. What is clearly visible is the white ring aroud its bill. Every time I see that duck I think why didn't they name it Ring-billed Duck. I birded on the west coast for years and thought the same thing with the Double-crested Cormorant that has one crest and the Pelagic cormorant that has two distinct crests.  In breeding the Double-crested Cormorant has two white head plumes, but plumes aren't crests. One of the oddities of bird naming.

[Pat Hodgson]

"who named these birds" was often someone who had shot it and was holding it in the hand - they were named in the days before field marks were relevant for ID - red-bellied woodpecker is another similar example

[Walter Sobchak]

Yeah, the Red-bellied Woodpecker always gets me...It's like they only gave it that name because the Red-headed woodpecker was already taken.

[Brian Bailey]

But what about the semipalmated sandpiper?  Some people ID them by plumage, bill shape, or leg colour.  
Me?  I just look for those partially webbed toes! :wink: