Another quiet excursion at the forest preserves
Schiller Park, IL
Tuesday 21 April 2020
50 °F
After my friend Eddie let me know of a rare Yellow-headed Blackbird that had turned up at nearby Schiller Woods Forest Preserve, I of course was over there within the hour searching for this rare migrant.
And boy was it quiet. My expectations were set low upon on arriving and noting almost a complete dearth of bird life. In fact, so much so that I resigned to taking pictures of metal birds (Schiller is under a descent path for O’Hare):
And mammals, such as this runaway Raccoon:
Deer were grazing in astonishing numbers, with family groups everywhere I looked. No wonder the preserves are starting to have problems with these! (too many deer can trample and over-graze forest undergrowth, causing ecological imbalance) 
There were a few birds though like this RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET showing a sliver of its namesake crown:
And a KILLDEER in the “Golden Hour” light:
Alas, no Yellow-headed Blackbird, but the silver lining is that tonight we have southerly winds which means I expect a nice push of birds into the area. Starting tomorrow, I plan on waking up early and either birding locally in the neighborhood or chasing rarities every day that weather permits. Oak Park Bird Walks, as of now, begin May 16. Most of my birding so far this month has been during the evening hours, and I think that as we start to approach some nice pushes of northbound migrants, it is important to also be out searching in the morning — many birds’ most active time of day.
Bird-of-the-day to the Ruby-crowned Kinglet with runner-up to the Killdeer. Not much to choose from today. Stay tuned though!
Good birding,
Henry
World Life List: 1112 Species
