More Chicago-area birding
Tuesday 31 August 2021
89 °F
This friday I led another walk at Thatcher Woods for a number of Oak Park Bird Walk folks and we saw a really nice number of birds. This RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER started the day off right by the parking lot:
As well as CEDAR WAXWINGS:
A brilliant BALTIMORE ORIOLE was wonderful to see:
As was this male SCARLET TANAGER, mainly molted out of his scarlet plumage but with a few lingering remnants of spring colors:
YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER:
On saturday I did a little birding with Tian and Herrick Lake Forest Preserve in DuPage County where I had BELTED KINGFISHER:
CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER:
GREAT BLUE HERON:
There was a second heron perched just on the other side of the creek that allowed for an incredible, long photoshoot. I think this is a young one based on the rusty streaking on the neck.
On Sunday I led a bird walk at Miller Meadow for Riverside’s Olmsted Society which was slow bird-wise but awesome to bird with mainly a new group of folks. We started off with this male EASTERN BLUEBIRD in harsh lighting conditions:
RED-TAILED HAWK:
Bird-of-the-day was this DICKCISSEL which perched high on an exposed branch giving prolonged views. Awesome.
And today I was just out in the backyard and I heard the screaming of a RED-SHOULDERED HAWK overhead:
And it turned out to be a pair of Red-shouldered AND a pair of RED-TAILED HAWKS, one of which is pictured here:
They seemed to even be interacting in the sky. I wonder if these are the birds that nest over in Columbus Park…both species, along with Cooper’s, nest there and frequently roam over here to northeast Oak Park. I suspect it’s a little too early to confidently call these individuals migrants. Here is a Red-shouldered (left) with a Red-tailed (right). Mixed-species raptor interactions are truly fascinating to me.
Well, I have one last Oak Park Bird Walk tomorrow morning, then I may do a little bit of birding and herping down in the Palos area afterwards, and then wednesday I am off to my junior year in NYC! With the pandemic raging on and a recital coming up, I will probably be doing little birding for the time being — at this point I’m very hesitant to use public transport until the Covid rates go down. So if I do any upcoming birding once I get to the city, expect reports from Riverside Park and maybe Central Park North!
Good birding,
Henry
World Life List: 1125 Species
Great birds and pics Henry, especially the gbh and scarlet tanager. Safe travels back to school, stay safe and healthy. Hoping you record and post your recital. 😁💜
by Poo