Category Archives: birds

Meanwhile Back at the Bungalow

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As promised, here is a little update on the home crowd, inside and out.

Below is an early group shot of three of the five new Zebra Finch fledglings, with what I can probably assume is their mother on the left. Since I have not yet had a chance to name them, they remain First Bird, Third Bird, and Second Bird. Second Bird on the end is the most “normal” looking and will probably be difficult to distinguish once he/she reaches adulthood. But I am having fun keeping track of what markings survive the transition.

Below is a little video of First Bird being fed by his dad a couple weeks ago.

He started growing up rapidly. See how different he looks below. And immediately as he started to acquire adult plumage, he started trying to sing. You can hear his attempts in the video below – it’s the squishy little babbling sounds he’s making. He will be working on a song for a long, long time. With any luck I will be able to keep track of his progress.

Below, left, is Third Bird – I am sure she is a “she.” She has her dad wrapped around her little beak – she should be feeding herself by now, but she still begs for food even after trying out some food on her own, and her dad, being new at all of this, doesn’t seem to quite know how to say no.

Below in the second photo, I think the birds are Fifth Bird in front, with Second and First Bird toward the back of the photo.

Moving out to the yard one day, I managed to take some photographs in the snow.

At first it seemed all I would be able to do is capture the cardinals through the back porch windows, which makes for a blurry situation.

Then I did manage to go out a couple times without scaring everyone away. Three of the seven or eight Mourning Doves I have seen in the yard lately were happy to sit still when they knew I couldn’t get a good photo of them.

I don’t seem to get as many House Finches as I used to. In any event, the pair below were just barely visible from the back steps.

The woodpeckers tend to show up less often when the horde of House Sparrows is present.

I did finally manage to capture one of the male Northern Cardinals that frequent the yard.

Since these photos were taken, all last month, we had more snow and it has now all melted away.

I have heard cardinals singing the last few mornings, confirming that the days are getting longer. In spite of all the sameness and slowness of winter birds, I have come across a few surprises lately. I hope to be back with them soon.

As a sad postscript to this post, I am sorry to report that First Bird sailed right over my head and out the front door yesterday morning as I was leaving. He flew across the street and beyond, never to be seen again. I am quite confident he will not survive. I did wake up praying for an unlikely miracle this morning – that I might at least see him one more time – but more realistically, I suspect he is gone. We have had rain overnight and off and on all day, which is going to turn into snow later. Nothing even a precocious young Zebra Finch can handle. I miss his attempts at singing, and hope that I have another young male in development, though it is too early to tell. I haven’t lost a bird to the outside for years. I will have to be much more careful going in and out with youngsters around. But he was moving so fast and was so determined, I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if he had been planning his escape for days.

First Crow Post of 2023

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Last weekend I was determined not to let another cloudy day deter me from having some fun, so on Sunday morning I drove downtown to visit the American Crows on the Chicago lakefront – armed with peanuts in the shell and a fresh batch of Crows Favorite Cookies I had baked the day before.

Since Crows always know ahead of time what is bound to happen, it didn’t take long for my followers to find me. But when I first rode the elevator up to street level from the underground parking garage, the sky was not inviting.

Yet within a moment or two I saw two Crows flying overhead. I crossed Columbus Drive and entered that section of Grant Park just north of Buckingham Fountain that does not have its own name, as far as I can tell. But it has a statue and a garden and other features that differentiate it from some of the other sections. Unfortunately those features did not invite photographs in the winter gloom.

Grant Park, north of Buckingham Fountain

I was soon joined by one Crow.

And within half a moment I had three – then four – Crows coming to see me.

It had occurred to me that photographing black birds on a gray day was not going to be fruitful, but the Crows gave me plenty of opportunities anyway.

The first Crow seemed to remember the cookies. But the others went for the peanuts initially. There was one Crow who decided to approach a piece of cookie by first jumping back from it in case it was a trap – or a bomb – and when the cookie did not attack it, the Crow bravely took the sample.

I took too many photographs of the Crows, but I haven’t visited with them for a year, so I couldn’t help myself. I just have to visit the lakefront more often this year.

A Crow observing a Gray Squirrel who went straight for the cookie

It was time to cross Jean Baptiste Dusable Lake Shore Drive and move toward the lakefront. The Crows came with me.

I should perhaps mention that the Crows were cawing in the key of B minor which matched the music playing in my head. I take for granted that they read my thoughts, but I had forgotten they also seem to be able to listen in on my ear worms.

Crows are great birds to feed, in no small part because they are fastidious in gathering their food and carrying it off to stash for later consumption. No mess!

At some point I noticed the sun was trying to come out from behind the clouds.

Once I was at the lakefront, the Crows followed me a bit but did not go beyond the Chicago Yacht Club. Unlike my visit last year, I had only about 8 Crows total this time with no others north of the yacht club at Monroe Harbor. So I brought home the extra cookies and peanuts. Cookies for me, peanuts for the squirrels.

There were not a lot of birds in and around the lake but I had a nice walk and it was just good to be on the lakefront again.

Monroe Harbor

At least I got to see a couple Red-breasted Mergansers for a change.

Sunshine, which had been absent all week, began to return by the time I was already on my way home. The next day, Monday, was The Sunny Day of the Week. Tomorrow, we are promised, sunshine returns. It will be colder than it has been, but it is January. I will likely visit the Chicago Portage.

I have more of the usual local visits to report and will be back. Looking forward to singing with the choir Sunday morning. Our three selections are all in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Portage Recently

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After two days of inclement weather earlier in the week, I couldn’t stand the thought of not walking, so I put on my long underwear and all the other necessary layers to endure a very cold walk Thursday morning at the Chicago Portage. I didn’t see a lot of birds, but I was happy to catch up with the flock, such as it was, eventually. Most of the birds were quite far away and the cloud cover made it that much harder to capture their images.

The last time I was there before that was last Sunday, the 13th, when at first the sky proved more interesting than anything on the ground.

But then I saw a deer.

The sun came out and made it quite pleasant.

American Robin

House Finches have been more noticeable lately as they move around with the sparrow and cardinal groups. For the most part, any birds I am seeing lately have been part of a larger mixed flock.

I managed to capture a Fox Sparrow that day. They are larger than other sparrows and they tend to sit still for a while, making the only challenge how far away they have decided to perch.

I have been seeing American Tree Sparrows at the Portage for weeks now. I don’t think I have seen any in Riverside yet although there are likely some there. Their arrival always verifies winter. Although the bird below had its back to me I think I found the feather pattern attractive.

Of course Dark-eyed Juncos spend their winters here too.

And Black-capped Chickadees are a year-round delight.

So this was how the Portage looked on the 13th.

Some more American Tree Sparrow photos from that day. This bird was perched at quite a distance.

Below might be the same bird in the earlier photos. I just found it interesting to see how well it blended in with the foliage, especially in the middle photo below. Hard to tell where the bird begins and the brush ends.

It was much colder on Thursday, but at least there was sunshine for a while.

Here’s how the sky looked when I stepped out my front door.

But by the time I got to the Portage, the scene was much gloomier.

I see Mourning Doves more often in my backyard lately, but this one was present at the Portage on Thursday morning.

The Northern Cardinals stand out now that all the leaves are gone.

As long as there is open water, there will be Mallards. This water is pretty shallow though. I suspect it could be frozen over by now after the second day of extreme cold.

I heard a Fox Sparrow chirp – which the Merlin App confirmed – but didn’t realize I had probably seen it until I found this barely captured bird in my photos later.

Fox Sparrow

Here are a few more images from Thursday’s outing. There weren’t many. But I’m glad I went. Yesterday and today have proved too cold, blowy and somewhat snowy for my taste. Maybe I’ll reacquaint myself with the mirrorless camera as it would be a lot less to carry around and manipulate with gloved fingers.

House Finch
Gray Squirrel
American Robin

Going for a walk every morning has become an integral part of my daily routine, so I don’t intend to stay inside for long. I did go swimming yesterday and it was rejuvenating. My greatest joy every day is to play piano for the birds when they join in with such enthusiasm. I hope to manage posting a few recordings in the not-too-distant future. After all, that’s how this whole thing started.

I may spend a little time in the yard this morning. If I had been outside long enough yesterday I might have caught the sound and sight of tens of thousands of Sandhill Cranes flying over. Of course they were. They always take advantage of that push from the north, and we certainly have had that. I am sorry I missed them, and I haven’t traveled far enough lately to see them up close. Oh well. Tomorrow will be sunny, if cold, but I will be in the choir and with any luck doing the line dance with others at the end of the service. I look forward to being back on the trail Monday.

Thanks to all for checking in.

End of September at the Chicago Portage – Part 2

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I could have simply just done a blog post and called it Black-throated Green Warblers from the photographs I took on this day. Believe it or not this is only half of the ones I kept. But this is the best half. All photos were taken on September 29.

Yellow-rumped Warblers have been foraging in the duckweed for weeks.

I had a Blackpoll Warbler that day, and you can almost even see the field mark for which it’s named in the first photo below.

A Chipmunk was waiting for something on the first bridge.

Invariably American Robins in various molts were foraging on the front lawn, or going somewhere.

I had a glimpse of a Downy Woodpecker.

Another woodpecker, a Northern Flicker, was busy too,

And there was a third woodpecker, a Hairy Woodpecker, whose profile distinguishes it immediately.

I had one of my last juvenile Indigo Buntings – you can see a bit of blue at the tip of its tail.

Hermit Thrushes have been at the Portage all of this month. This one may have been the first I saw there this fall.

Two more Yellow-rumped Warblers – one in Boneset and the other in Goldenrod.

Below is an immature Red-winged Blackbird.

I barely captured the Chestnut-sided Warbler below, but I am glad I did.

Not to be overlooked, a Bay-breasted Warbler made an appearance.

Here are some more photographs of another Black-throated Green Warbler.

It was a pretty day at the Chicago Portage.

I am glad I am able to finish this post, such as it is, on my phone. I will be back in a few days when I can reconnect with all the photos on my laptop!

Riverside Wednesday and Today

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Well, it looks like warbler migration has slowed down for the moment. I am hopeful that this is just a temporary blip on the radar, so to speak, but our “birdcast” has been uninspiring and it’s pretty quiet on the ground.

I was seeing a few warblers on Wednesday but practically none today. Indeed I had so few species today I have decided to combine both days into one post.

I was very happy to find a Chestnut-sided Warbler in my photos on Wednesday as I hadn’t seen one yet this fall.

And perhaps best of all for its confirming orange toes, a beautiful Blackpoll Warbler posed for several photographs. Indeed it could have been two different individuals or the same one, depending on the light.

A few more of the Blackpoll.

And now, for the More Confusing than Ever Fall Warbler, another Blackpoll.

After much deliberation, I have concluded this is indeed a Blackpoll Warbler

The only other warbler I was able to capture was a distant Magnolia Warbler.

I tend to think I will see Magnolia Warblers more regularly than I have this fall. Here’s one that was the only warbler I saw today. And not well, either.

There weren’t even Tennessee Warblers today, but I had them on Wednesday, however briefly.

The rest of them…

Red-eyed Vireos have been abundant the past week or two as well, and I got lucky again on Wednesday.

A scruffy-looking Red-eyed Vireo

So why did I start out with a female Northern Flicker? She was close enough to photograph well and she was preoccupied enough not to mind me clicking away.

The abundance of American Goldfinches seems to have calmed down.

This Rose-breasted Grosbeak was sitting still atop a tree.

Cedar Waxwings are moving around in flocks. Unfortunately all these individuals were quite backlit.

This is my favorite light on a Swainson’s Thrush.

An American Robin commanded attention

After weeks of shallow waters, the Des Plaines River is quite full again.

There was one Great Egret available for a photograph on Wednesday.

But this morning when I got out of my car and walked south of the Hofmann Tower to see if the Great Blue Egret was holding its ground, I found seven (yes, 7) Great Egrets.

As I started my walk in Riverside, I encountered more Great Egrets.

No. 8
No. 9
Could this be No. 10?

On land, there were Mourning Doves holding their perches.

Blue Jays were noisy and visible this morning.

And a Belted Kingfisher sat perched over the river not far from the Joliet Avenue bridge when I first started out.

Looking up into the trees for birds, I found a well-attended wasp nest.

The search for birds resumes tomorrow morning in Columbus Park, where I am responsible for showing up. I am going to turn in for the night so I can get up early enough to meet whoever else shows up.

Surprises Abound at Riverside

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This is another 2-visit post – from September 2nd and a week later on the 9th. There was a lot more happening on September 2nd but yesterday’s visit to Riverside produced a surprise or two, so I’m including it. The American Goldfinch at the top of the post was in my front yard when I left the house, but maybe it’s surprising too as it didn’t leave but instead allowed me to take its picture.

Just as some birding acquaintances had mentioned they weren’t seeing Red-winged Blackbirds anymore, easily 100 or more blackbirds in a mixed flock of Red-wingeds and Common Grackles descended on Riverside that morning.

Blackbirds in an oak tree

Even more surprising later was a hail of acorns falling onto me, the trail, and everywhere when I was walking the trail in Riverside Lawn. Below is a video as I tried to capture some of the craziness of birds landing and hopping in two big oak trees, causing the acorns to fall. The birds – Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackles – don’t eat acorns, so I can only surmise they were having fun.

It was hard to get a decent shot of the acorns on the ground. But I managed to capture a chipmunk and its stuffed cheeks with my cell phone.

Apparently the acorns were scattered about more than it seemed

There was a small but nice selection of warblers on the 2nd. I was actually able to capture an American Redstart or two. One thing I like about the photograph below is that it shows off this bird’s rictal bristles, which I thought, like many others, had something to do with catching insects. However that assumption has been challenged and I found a brief article by Dr. Roger Lederer interesting. Still, it’s nice to see the bird’s whiskers.

I think I saw my last Golden-winged Warbler on the 2nd. Below are photos of what appears to be a female Golden-winged Warbler. Nice of her to show off her prize in the last photo.

I also saw a Wilson’s Warbler that morning close to the paved walk along the river. Wilson is one of my favorites.

Also in the Queen Anne’s Lace was a lovely Tennessee Warbler. After this fall I have become a big fan of Queen Anne’s Lace.

Wait – a few more warblers, and then back to surprises. Here’s a very nice Black-throated Green Warbler I saw that day. Another one of my all-time favorite subjects.

And a Cape May Warbler.

And a Magnolia Warbler…

And one more Tennessee Warbler.

Where were we? Mourning Doves like to pose as if they are part of a frieze.

Also on the 2nd, an Osprey made a brief appearance, the light playing with its backlit silhouette.

Congratulations for making it this far. I think we’re about halfway there. This looks like a brand new Northern Cardinal.

Swainson’s Thrushes have been easy to see now for a couple weeks.

Below is a Hairy Woodpecker. I don’t see these as often as the Downies so, hail Hairy.

Delighting to the song of an Eastern Pewee all summer but rarely seeing one, it was great to see this bird well, if briefly, on the 2nd.

And young Gray Catbirds are not shy.

The Common Grackles have been bathing and sipping water on the rocks all summer. I think I know how this feels when the pool is closed for a week – let’s get those last luxurious baths in before we have to leave.

When I went back to Riverside on the 9th, I was a little surprised to see several species other than the Common Grackles on the rocks. The water is a little shallower now.

At some point on the Riverside Lawn trail there’s a tree with these glorious Chicken of the Woods Mushrooms (Laetiporus sulphureus) growing. I am not tempted but I have read they are edible.

Perhaps the most surprising thing about this Magnolia Warbler yesterday is that it was the only warbler I saw well enough to photograph.

The Killdeer were still on the rocks by the former Hofmann Dam.

The biggest surprise yesterday was to see perhaps a dozen Double-crested Cormorants flying overhead in formation.

I’m sure the reason why I’m seeing more Mourning Doves lately is simply because there are more of them. I am quite fond of these birds, as it was one in particular who first alerted me to the fact that birds sing in key with music.

And the American Goldfinches are busy weaning their young. The juvenile on the left was begging for a handout but his dad held firm and eventually left him on the branch alone.

Monarch migration continues.

A pleasant surprise was to see a Belted Kingfisher well enough to photograph. I had just emerged from within the woods and had forgotten to adjust my exposure to sunnier conditions so these photos are a bit overexposed. I hear these guys a lot but don’t always see them well, so this was a treat.

I will be back with more. We have a choir party/rehearsal this afternoon and we sing tomorrow morning. I have been ripening avocados so I can use one of my serrano chiles to make guacamole for the party. It looks like we will have rain tomorrow and through Monday morning, so I will be busy indoors. We will cool off a bit too. Feeling more and more like fall.

One more of my front yard American Goldfinch

Fall Migration Continues…

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It’s been a busy birding week and fall warbler migration is only getting started, but I’m already having a hard time keeping up. To add to my confusion, with the pool closed, the break in my routine is making it harder to figure out what day it is. But I have started getting up earlier to join bird walks and I will start leading Saturday walks tomorrow through the second week in October. It’s beginning to look like fall, even if it doesn’t feel like it just yet.

These photographs are from August 31st at Riverside, and I have also added the rest of the birds from August 26th at the same location.

I was happy to see a very cooperative Northern Waterthrush on Wednesday.

American Redstarts are the most numerous and well-distributed fall warbler species so far. I have seen them every day. The one immediately below looks like a first-year male.

Also fairly common are Magnolia Warblers like the one at the top of the post and below.

I discovered something about Blackpoll Warblers I never realized before. Apparently they all have orange toes – so when stumped by a decision between whether you are looking at a Blackpoll or a Bay-breasted, if you can see orange toes, that solves the problem. I was delighted to find photos showing beautiful orange toes. This is nearly impossible to see in the field, however.

I have also seen Golden-winged Warblers all week, starting on Tuesday morning at Columbus Park with Henry G.’s walk. They seem to have all come into the area at once and I have seen them everywhere I have been. I’m sneaking this photo in from Tuesday as it is the best one I have of the whole bird.

Below is another Golden-winged I just barely captured the next morning at Riverside.

Cape May Warblers seem to be numerous this season.

And not a day goes by without a Tennessee Warbler.

Below is a barely-captured Black-and-white Warbler

Thrushes are starting to appear as well. This is a Swainson’s Thrush.

Juvenile Gray Catbirds can’t get enough of the camera. They demand attention.

I don’t think this molting Northern Cardinal wanted to be seen like this but I couldn’t help myself.

In answer to the question, “Where have all the blackbirds gone?”, I have seen huge flocks all week at Riverside.

And Cedar Waxwings are on the move in flocks as well.

I have a feeling House Wrens will be gone soon but the youngsters are still around.

And Great Egrets are busy fishing. The water level has improved in the river.

I will try to come back sooner and more frequently, as the birds just keep coming. I also have some stored surprises still to share. We are starting out very warm going into the Labor Day weekend, with a promise of cooler weather after tomorrow. We could see a lot more warblers with winds from the north.

First Fall Warblers – and Green Ballerinas

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I have seen some fall warblers, if sparingly, over the past week, so I have pulled the best images from birds seen at the Chicago Portage or Riverside Lawn, just to get a little warbler anticipation going here. Tomorrow morning might actually be a good day because we are experiencing a little storm activity tonight. And since I can’t swim this week – the pool is being cleaned – I will likely be walking a little farther and seeing more birds.

Right off the bat, the bird at the top of the post is a female Cape May Warbler seen at Riverside Lawn on August 24. The bird below, I am not sure but I think is a Blackburnian Warbler seen at the Chicago Portage on August 27. I didn’t get any other shots, oddly enough, to help me identify it.

It’s been a good year all around for Bay-breasted Warblers. They are coming through. And I think I’m getting used to their contact calls. This Bay-breasted Warbler was at Riverside Lawn on August 26.

I don’t remember taking the photos of these two Tennessee Warblers, oddly enough, the same day at Riverside Lawn, but it’s likely I was just too mesmerized by them.

Here’s another Bay-breasted Warbler from that day at Riverside Lawn.

And another Cape May female-type or juvenile, on August 24 at Riverside Lawn.

Yet another Cape May from the same day and location.

Not a great photo, but definitely a Bay-breasted Warbler I saw on the 24th. There have been many more warblers seen along the lakefront, but I will be out a lot this week and I expect to see more around here.

Meanwhile back in my yard, I have two female Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that usually show up individually but sometimes make chases through the yard together. I have taken to calling them my Green Ballerinas.

Over the past couple weeks I have been fortunate enough to capture them…somewhat.

But what really became fascinating to me was seeing them attracted to the Tall Ironweed – of all things. I can’t figure out why, exactly – it doesn’t look like a flower a hummingbird would enjoy – but they keep revisiting it and I can’t imagine it’s for nothing.

A view of the Tall Ironweed in the backyard jungle

So I set out trying to capture one of the birds in the Tall Ironweed.

At first, where I can sit in the middle of the yard, I was close to a hummingbird at the flowers but could barely see the bird on the other side. I decided to stand by the front gate instead and see if one would come to the flowers right by the back steps. Within a moment or two of standing there with the camera, a hummingbird obliged (the second and third photos below).

I am enjoying these little birds so much more now that I have the time to engage with them. Yesterday as I was refilling the birdbaths, the two of them flew right over my head, clicking away, in greeting. The other day when it was cool enough to have the windows open, one came and sat on a branch outside the kitchen window and we discussed refilling the feeders with fresh sugar water. I believe it was later that day, early evening, when I went out to clean and refill the feeders one by one. No sooner did I bring out the freshly refilled one that hangs from the dead Staghorn Sumac tree right by the kitchen window than one of these little charmers came to check it out. I am thrilled to be of service to such a grateful customer.

Now that fall warbler migration has begun, I expect to be back soon – not to mention all those other birds that are emerging, such as juvenile birds that are barely recognizable Needless to say, I am putting the book on hold for a while. But I am learning so much these days from the birds, it’s addicting. Well, something has to fill the swimming void for a week.

Portage Potpourri

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It’s time to go back and sift through the summer’s photographs so I can start making room for the always anticipated overload of fall migration. As usual I find I have way too many photos that I had forgotten about. The ones in this short post go all the way back to June 4 and June 9 which don’t even qualify for summer yet, but the breeding birds had already been busy.

So this is a female Indigo Bunting. I love her delicate colors. And below her photo is a male, possibly my friend I have named Tadziu.

One bird I haven’t seen all summer, although they typically breed at the Chicago Portage, is the Yellow Warbler. I expect to see some in the next few weeks during fall migration. If I was seeing them so regularly in June they must have been nearby all summer.

I found this little bird’s photos and had to think for a moment what it was. I’ve concluded (with the help of other photographs online) that it can only be a very young Warbling Vireo.

For a short period of time, Gray Catbirds were making themselves available for photos until they disappeared later like nearly everybody else.

I’m beginning to realize this was an absurd idea because more recent photos are starting to accumulate quickly on my hard drive and I won’t be able to review older ones much longer.

Yes, a Chipmunk

House Wrens have been abundant all summer, but not always easy to see.

And every once in a while, an Eastern Phoebe would pose.

I am grateful for the many times I have seen Eastern Kingbirds.

Red-winged Blackbirds are due to start showing up in huge flocks before they take to their more southern destinations. They have disappeared from their breeding grounds. I suspect they have been busy educating the youngsters about self-reliance and survival.

American Robins are perhaps the most adaptable birds, thriving in and out of the human disturbance.

I was intrigued by the capture below – it looks like a very young Red-winged Blackbird.

Baltimore Orioles have been much harder to see long enough to capture lately.

I saw a Daddy Long Legs only once… and my favorite grass, the Squirrel Tail Grass, doesn’t look like this anymore, indeed, I haven’t noticed it at all lately.

Also well-adapted to us humans are American Goldfinches. They always seem so cheerful.

I don’t know what happened to the Song Sparrows at the Portage. I am not sure if any stayed to raise families.

The White-tailed Deer are making less frequent visits than they were earlier.

Another American Robin

Here are two quick and slightly blurry photos of a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.

I have never seen this yellow iris before…or since.

Here’s what the cottonwood seeds looked like in the beginning of June.

As if to prove my earlier point about adaptability, one American Robin built a nest on the edge of the shelter in spite of the spikes to deter such activities.

I have so much going on right now I can’t say when or with what I will return. But I figured as long as I started this post a couple days ago I may as well finish it.

We had our first choir rehearsal last night, and we are singing this Sunday. I was a bit surprised at how good it felt to stand together and sing, albeit still masked. And so we take the plunge into another year. And I will have to start getting up earlier – in the dark – as the fall bird walks start again next week.

End of July Tidbits

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Here’s what was going on at the Chicago Portage the mornings of July 29 and 31. Pretty much what can be expected mid-summer. Feeding fledglings and molting. A busy time for the birds.

On July 31st there was what appeared to be a family of Eastern Kingbirds.

I didn’t manage to get them all in one photograph but there were four Eastern Kingbirds total.

I can expect to see an American Goldfinch in the duckweed this time of year, and I can never entirely resist documenting its presence.

Blue-gray Gnatcatchers were here and there, if not always easy to see. But then they hardly ever are. The bird in the tiled series looks to be a juvenile.

After barely seeing a Downy Woodpecker out in the open for a few months, it was nice to see this one out and about. It looks to be a young bird as well.

Tadziu the famous Indigo Bunting was busy with his feather upkeep, on a fallen log close to his bridge.

The distant Indigo Bunting below was more disheveled.

A young-looking Marsh Wren was investigating this fallen log.

A young American Robin was curious about the camera attention.

The American Robins below appeared to be sunbathing on the gravel path. I tried not to disturb them for as long as I could.

An juvenile American Robin caught in flight, below.

It’s not often that I catch a Northern Flicker still for a moment.

Below, two Red-bellied Woodpeckers. The first appears to be a juvenile.

The bottomlands near the Des Plaines were flooded both days. A little less on the 31st than the 29th.

My “first” bridge is the southernmost one, and here’s the view I’m getting these days from it.

In the photos below, first a Blue Dasher Dragonfly visible from the bridge on July 31. I saw the turtle covered in duckweed later after I set out on the path after crossing the bridge.

The Hobomok Skipper Butterfly was available for photos on July 29. You can get an idea of how small this creature is by the leaves it’s on.

It seems lately I have been seeing one female Brown-headed Cowbird on every visit. This was her best photograph.

The trees that darken the path over on the north side are such a contrast to the open areas of the preserve. Some are purportedly hundreds of years old.

Here’s another profile of the Eastern Kingbird who was featured at the top of the post.

I was in Riverside yesterday morning and I will have a post soon with what’s going on down by the river there. I had planned to go elsewhere this morning, but I am temporarily catering to the complaints of my right knee which caused me to wear the brace again and venture no farther than the grocery stores. If I can walk well enough tomorrow morning I will go out again.