Birders: ( The First American Golden or Lesser Plover Recorded in Hamblen / Grainger County in 2005 ) Here an information on the American Golden-Plover that I got from Don Miller last that the Tn-Birders and the Bristol-Birders would enjoy. Shane, I'm currently working on a project on the birds of Greene, Cocke, Hamblen, Jefferson, Grainger, and Hawkins Counties. In doing this, I'm slowly going through 75 years' worth of bird records. So far, I haven't found any golden-plover records for Hamblen or Grainger County. Sometimes it's hard to identify birds from photographs because there are so many important clues that photographs can't capture. Your photos appear to me to be American Golden-Plover. Your record would be either the first or one of only a very few. You found a great bird. The photo you sent is an adult molting from breeding plumage into winter plumage. It is still mostly in breeding plumage. Males and females look alike, so I can't help you on that question. Good birding. Shane Adams East of Hamblen County Morristown, TN. 37813