February 14, 2009 Greene County: Greeneville, Mosheim, and numerous backroad sites in the western portion of the county Highlights from a few very pleasurable car-birding hours today-- Canvasback (10, Guinn Dr.) Ring-necked Duck (4, Gravel Woods Rd.) Great Blue Heron (13 standing on nests, viewable at intersection of Pate's Hill Rd. / Jackson Hollow Rd.) Bald Eagle (immature, Bewley's Bridge (located on Hwy. 340 about a mile from the Cocke Co. line)) Merlin (Hwy. 340 0.5 mi. east of Turner Ln.) Sandhill Crane (4, Murray Bridge Rd. 0.2 mi. west of Easterly Rd.; the birds preened, "danced" a bit with spread wings, then flew east, disappearing over the Joachime Bible Refuge unit of Lick Creek Bottoms Wildlife Management Area) Eurasian Collared-Dove (Mosheim, about 0.75 mi. from West Greene High School) Horned Lark (8, Green Rd.) American Pipit (3, Seay Way) Rusty Blackbird (6, Hwy. 340 0.4 mi. east of Turner Ln.; there were probably at least four times that many, but I could not find a convenient place to pull over, and the birds kept moving actively, so I gave up trying to count after only a few minutes) [Today is the first date in 2009 when I have found all five expectable winter Icterids: Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Rusty Blackbird, Common Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird.] Purple Finch (3). Don Miller Greeneville, Greene Co., TN