I visited several parks near this route in NE Columbus inadvertently over the last 3 days, and the mix of early migrants and odd winter birds has been striking. The sites visited included Ridgewood Park (at the NW corner of 161 & I-270), Blendon Woods, and Swickard Woods (in New Albany), which provide a nice 'transect along 161. Notables included: Kildeer - 1-2 were in the fields around Swickard, a noisy reminder of the promise of Spring. Merlin - 1 was perched at the top of a Sycamore at Ridgewood. This is not far from areas in Westerville and Minerva Park where one has been seen this winter, so it may have wintered. Horned Larks - sizeable migration over the past several days, with overflying birds even in the most urban locations. I've been averaging about 2-3 every half hour, even during the blustery early afternoon today. Cowbirds - 14-15 are haunting the feeders at Blendon Woods. Dickcissel - reported from the Blendon feeders by several people on the 10th, but I couldn't find it on the 11th. White-winged Crossbill - 1 bird was lurking in spruces on the edge of Ridgewood Park. They seem to be showing up in all sorts of places now. ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]