Coyotes and Cranes
Miller Meadow Forest Preserve, IL
Tuesday 26 December 2023
39 °F
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 22:
This morning I led an Oak Park Bird Walk at Miller Meadow Preserve in hopes of finding migrating raptors and Sandhill Cranes. We started the walk off right with a flyover RED-TAILED HAWK:
Then I spotted a dark lump in the meadow — turned out to be a coyote!
And its mate!
The lighter coyote got closer and closer to the other one-
Until this happened:
Oh well!
Then, the expected SANDHILL CRANE migration started for the day. We ended up counting almost four hundred flying over our walk!
COOPER’S HAWK was nice:
And this RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER actually showed off its red belly (for once):
AMERICAN GOLDFINCHES:
Another cool flyover hawk was this RED-SHOULDERED which has more narrow tail banding:
And an AMERICAN KESTREL perched on its nest box to round off the raptor count for the walk!
Bird-of-the-day to all the Sandhill Cranes with runner-up to the Red-shouldered Hawk. Good stuff!
Happy birding,
Henry
World Life List: 1172 Species
Love the Sandhills, how exciting!
FYI I couldn’t open your last one.
Happy New Year Henry!
by Poo