Family picnic!
McClaughry Springs Woods, IL
Sunday 26 April 2020
57 °F
Such a beautiful day (for a change!) with nothing to do called for a family picnic, of course! My dad drove us to McClaughry Springs Woods which was great for the family because it is a sublime little preserve at which to picnic, and productive for me because it is a woodland birding hotspot.
WHITE-THROATED SPARROW:
Picnic time with Pearl and Tian!
I was overjoyed when a RED-SHOULDERED HAWK, an increasingly uncommon Palos-area specialty, gave a quick flyby:
But was soon chased off by one of the resident RED-TAILED HAWKS:
RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS proliferated today. About a week late for their peak numbers!
Nice to catch up with another BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER who even sung for us!
And I loved seeing this lovely male EASTERN BLUEBIRD. It also seemed to have a mate tagging along — hope they breed successfully!
EASTERN PHOEBE:
BROWN CREEPER:
It was a great excursion. Later today, Tian, Pearl, and I enjoyed relaxing on the roof outside my bedroom window and I even did some birding! This may be a new spot to have a “big sit” during May migration as the view is great, hmmmm...photo credit to my neighbor Priscilla!
One of the birds seen from up there was this bright YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER:
Bird-of-the-day to the Red-shouldered Hawk with runner-up to the Eastern Bluebird. Stay tuned: tomorrow morning I am off to the Calumet area to search for marsh birds!
Good birding,
Henry
World Life List: 1114 Species
Stop having so much fun...and such great birds!
Calliope hummers have returned here to the Wood River Valley! Yay!!!
by Poo