From the BirdYak listserv...

----- Original Message -----
From: <Rich712 at aol.com>
To: <birdyak at yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 10, 2003 10:49 AM
Subject: [BirdYak] catch/Gnat gray/Blue, deja vue


> Chirp,
>
> Jumping (well, leaving home at 7:00 am is more of a follow up) on a
Tweeter's
> tip from Gary Wiles, I located a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher in Hardy Canyon at
> 9:00 am this morning.
>
> The bird was very close to last year's nest bush...approx. 60 yards south
> (uphill) from the lone Ponderosa Pine. I was working the east side of the
dry
> creek bed to take advantage of the morning sun. I tied a white
handkerchief to
> a lone 15' serviceberry (?) bush/tree just behind the area I was standing
> when I made the initial ID. When I cut back to the road, I realized that
this
> was very close to last year's nest.
>
> Having poor hearing, I used the Stokes CD to attract the Gnatcatcher.
After
> the first encounter, I played the CD in front of the nest bush. Both here
and
> the original location, it took approx. 30 seconds for the bird to
> respond...his business this morning must have been a short distance away
from the
> location. He did circle me...singing/calling from several perches. He
knew exactly
> where the intruding call had originated. I had views as close as 12 feet.
He
> remained so close that I only had one opportunity to use my scope. Most
of
> the time he was two close to locate with a scope. Charter member of the
BBBB
> (Bodacious Brotherhood of Befuddled Birders) that I am, even I could have
made
> the ID without birding optics. Might have had to do a little bifocal head
> nodding, but it was possible.
>
> I must add that I'm a little annoyed with myself for having to rely on
> westside birders pointing out Gnatcatchers zipping up and down the creek
bed
> opposite the bluebird nest boxes I've been monitoring the past two years!
>
> Kudos to Gary for the tip...he only had a brief look on Sunday but posted
to
> Tweeters that a probable Gnat was back in Hardy Canyon. I'm sure many
fine
> birders worked the area during the Memorial Day Hazel Wolf Campout hoping
to
> bottle the lightning of last year's sighting.
>
> Later,
> Rich