Oak Park Bird Walk & Warbler Twitch

Sunday 24 May 2020 86 °F

This morning I led a bird walk for seven wonderful participants. We started off with a good showing of flycatchers, as expected for late May, headed by EASTERN WOOD-PEWEES:

And an even more noteworthy flycatcher sighting, the YELLOW-BELLIED!

As well as ten warbler species, another highlight of the walk was finding a late RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET, cool!

Later in the afternoon, I saw a report from my friends Simon & Peter Tolzmann who reported not one, but two Connecticut Warblers from Graceland Cemetery! Since I hadn’t photographed this bird yet this spring, I wanted to go try to track this elusive bird down so I could not only see, but photograph, every expected warbler this spring. Upon arriving with Tian, I saw a good number of warblers and several other songbirds like INDIGO BUNTING:

Then, after a LOOOT of searching underneath the evergreen bushes where the bird had been sighted earlier, I spotted a chunky, ground-walking warbler with a white eye ring and BINGO: I had it, CONNECTICUT WARBLER!! Luckily, I was able to get one shot of this hard-to-photograph warbler species. Awesome!!!

And afterward, somebody near me shouted “cuckoo!” and I immediately got on an amazingly obliging BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO!!

And so I sneaked around the hedge row where the cuckoo was sitting and got into a better position for photography!

And incredibly, the cuckoo, branch-by-branch, flew closer and closer to me! AMAZING!

Bird-of-the-day to the Connecticut Warbler with runner-up to the Black-billed Cuckoo! Another GREAT day!!! My updated warbler list for the day is included below.

Happy birding,
Henry
World Life List: 1115 Species

Final Spring 2020 warbler list: COMPLETE

1. Ovenbird: Washington Park, May 1
2. Worm-eating Warbler BONUS RARITY: North Pond, April 28
3. Louisiana Waterthrush: DuPage County, April 4
4. Northern Waterhthrush: North Pond, April 28
5. Golden-winged Warbler: Thatcher Woods, May 11
6. Blue-winged Warbler: Washington Park, May 1
7. Black-and-White Warbler: North Pond, April 28
8. Prothonotary Warbler: Mihiel Woods East, May 9
9. Tennessee Warbler: Jackson Park, May 2
10. Orange-crowned Warbler: Oak Park alley, April 24
11. Nashville Warbler: Hegewisch Marsh, April 27
12. Connecticut Warbler: Graceland Cemetery, May 24
13. Mourning Warbler: Plum Creek Forest Preserve, May 18
14. Kentucky Warbler: Mihiel Woods East, May 9
15. Common Yellowthroat: North Pond, April 28
16. Hooded Warbler: LaBagh Woods, May 14
17. American Redstart: Jackson Park, May 2
18. Cape May Warbler: Jackson Park, May 10
19. Cerulean Warbler: Lyman Woods, May 3
20. Northern Parula: GAR Woods, May 3
21. Magnolia Warbler: North Pond, May 2
22. Bay-breasted Warbler: 515 N Elmwood Ave, May 14
23. Blackburnian Warbler: North Pond, May 2
24. Yellow Warbler: Jackson Park, May 2
25. Chestnut-sided Warbler: Jackson Park, May 10
26. Blackpoll Warbler: Jackson Park, May 10
27. Black-throated Blue Warbler: LaBagh Woods, May 10
28. Palm Warbler: Big Marsh, April 27
29. Pine Warbler: Waterfall Glen Forest Preserve, April 18
30. Yellow-rumped Warbler: Thatcher Woods, April 4
31. Yellow-throated Warbler: North Pond, May 2
32. Prairie Warbler BONUS RARITY: Grant Park, May 18
33. Townsend’s Warbler BONUS RARITY: Deer Grove Forest Preserve, April 17
34. Black-throated Green Warbler: Gillson Park, April 28
35. Canada Warbler: Plum Creek Forest Preserve, May 18
36. Wilson’s Warbler: GAR Woods, May 11
Bonus: Brewster’s Warbler (Golden-winged X Blue-winged: LaBagh Woods, May 10