10/6 Stratford - I birded around town today, tallying 74 species. Highlights were: Short Beach Park (Dorne Dr.), 11:20-12:15 - WHITE-TAILED KITE continues (perched in a tree & preening at least 10 minutes then took flight generally south towards Stratford Point), Merlin, AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, 86 Black-bellied Plovers, 2 Red Knots, 400 Sanderlings, 3 juv. BLACK SKIMMERS, estimated 1100 Tree Swallows (foraging over old landfill). Cove Place, Sound-watch, 8:30-9:50 - Not too much migrating, but did have 1 Great Cormorant (my first of season), 1 Common Loon, 15 Brant, 2 Surf Scoters, Peregrine Falcon, Cooper's Hawk, and a late Common Tern. Stratford Point (Prospect Dr.) , 10 - 11:10am , in part with Twan Leenders - Marsh Wren (unusual there), Bobolink, 300 Tree Swallows. Also a large shorebird with a white rump (possibly a Hudsonian Godwit) that flew north upriver towards the Milford Point sandbars. McKinney Refuge (Long Beach Blvd) 1:20-2:10 - 2 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons, Brown Creeper. Boothe Memorial Park, 4:30-5:30 - 2 Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers. Community Garden (Connors Ln), 5:40-6:00 - 2 LINCOLN'S SPARROWS, lots (130) of usual sparrows, 30 Monk Parakeets. Frank Mantlik Stratford