Prairie Warbler in the Prairie State!
Tuesday 25 July 2017
85 °F
June 8:
I birded with Carolyn S at Illinois Beach State Park in hopes for finding my life-bird LEAST BITTERN, an elusive tiny species of heron.
Right near the parking lot for the Dead River Trail, we found this male SUMMER TANAGER:
NORTHERN FLICKER:
We walked up onto an observation deck above a marsh and BOOM! My life bird LEAST BITTERN popped out of the marsh and then immediately back down, not to be seen again. Life bird, and one that's eluded me for years!!
TREE SWALLOW:
RED-HEADED WOODPECKER:
GRAY CATBIRD:
Male ORCHARD ORIOLE:
EASTERN KINGBIRD:
Male BALTIMORE ORIOLE at his nest:
YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO:
Presumed Blue Grosbeak X Indigo Bunting hybrid:
My visual life bird YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, a species I have only heard, and not seen, before!
Bird-of-the-day for June 8 is a tie between the Least Bittern and the Yellow-breasted Chat.
June 20:
Led a bird walk for the Junior Naturalists Camp at Dominican University into Thatcher Woods which turned out to be lots of fun!
Fawn White-tailed Deer:
The best bird was this female HOODED MERGANSER in the Des Plaines River:
Red-eared Slider and Painted Turtle:
Bird-of-the-day for June 20 is the Hooded Merganser.
June 25:
I birded the Palos Preserves with my Uncle Mory. Our first stop was Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center where our target bird was a male Prairie Warbler that had been seen there, which would be my first sighting of that bird in the country.
Male ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK:
Male RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD:
And we found it! The PRAIRIE WARBLER gave some phenomenal views!
Then, it was off to Swallow Cliff Forest Preserve where we had this female PILEATED WOODPECKER:
And this male ACADIAN FLYCATCHER:
Bird-of-the-day for June 25 goes to the Prairie Warbler! It was a great month of breeding bird season birding.
Good birding,
Henry
