Category Archives: spring migration

Less is More

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I’m staying in this morning while I await the threat of thunderstorms. It’s still quite warm and the increase in humidity helps to hold in the heat after some overnight rain. I did manage to visit the Chicago Portage yesterday. In retrospect, it was quite a successful outing. Although quiet and not terribly “birdy” most of the time, I am beginning to realize that it is those quiet, uncluttered moments that allow one to focus more deeply on an individual subject. The birds that made themselves available to me might have been missed in a more crowded context.

Of course there were the American Robins on the trail and everywhere.

But then, after weeks of hearing Red-winged Blackbirds singing and seeing them at a distance, I finally had one close enough for a few photos, even though poor light made it challenging.

It wasn’t long before I heard and saw an Eastern Phoebe, but I had to wait until later in my walk to visit with one.

Eastern Phoebe

Then the most unexpected and therefore rewarding surprise was seeing a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.

I made note of a White-breasted Nuthatch.

Then I encountered the Eastern Phoebe close to the smaller bridge.

Things calmed down after that. I listened to a Song Sparrow.

I have seen more than my share of empty Common Milkweed seed pods but this one spoke to me with its stubborn endurance.

And among a few deer feeding off the paved trail was this one very young individual.

I’ll be back with a little more or less (or more!) as I realize these quiet, isolated little one-on-one encounters have occurred more often than not lately and they are a great opportunity to be in the moment. As much as I look forward to the chaos of spring warbler migration, perhaps in hope of drowning out some of the chaotic malaise of our own creation that we battle daily, I am going to try to appreciate these emerging chance encounters more for what they are, while they last.

What’s Up at the Chicago Portage?

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We are presently experiencing a brief warmup with highs around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Along with that we have been promised rain, but that remains to be seen as we always seem to be on the outer edge of the forecasted systems and we remain quite dry. Monday the temperatures will drop again for a few days. The photos in this post are from the past week and a half.

Two days before Official Spring on the 20th, birds were getting ready. I saw a Cooper’s Hawk.

I found a Red-bellied Woodpecker and a Downy Woodpecker in the same spot.

Poor light didn’t do much for these photos but it was good to see a couple Fox Sparrows.

I found one American Goldfinch.

And it was a definite sign of spring when a Great Blue Heron flew by.

The Cooper’s Hawk returned.

And then I saw a Red-shouldered Hawk after that.

Then, on the first day of Spring, snow was the main attraction.

I found a White-breasted Nuthatch.

American Robins have been consistent.

And I exchanged looks with a White-tailed Deer.

I barely managed to capture a Golden-crowned Kinglet.

Five days later, the snow was long gone, although we were still under cloud cover. I noticed Cooper’s Hawk action early. After watching for a while, there were two Cooper’s Hawks, and they seemed to be checking out a nest. I have not seen them return to it since, but I am keeping an eye on it.

More views of a Cooper’s Hawk.

There were also three American Crows harassing a Red-tailed Hawk in another area. I didn’t figure out who they were going after until I zoomed in on my photos.

Here’s the Red-tailed Hawk. I found the third and fourth photos in the panel below to be particularly interesting as the hawk flew behind some golden buds in a tree that made its underwings look like they were lit up.

Beyond that, three Mallards took to sitting on top of one of the muskrat huts. I haven’t seen a muskrat at all lately, but I can’t imagine it would tolerate this behavior. The hut looks pretty beaten up by all the weather.

That’s it for the moment. I’ll try to report back soon, as migration continues slowly but surely changes the avian landscape.

Welcome Back

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I was in Riverside last Friday and, perfectly timed with the second day of spring, I encountered a few new birds for the season. The first was a Double-crested Cormorant flying over the Des Plaines River. I may have seen one before this date but this is the first one I have listed and photographed.

There seemed to be not much happening after that, but then I noticed the pair of Eastern Bluebirds farther out in the area called Swan Pond on the other side of the paved trail. The female was the first to recognize me.

Then the male flew in, and they both posed for photos.

It was as if they were welcoming me back. This was the third time I have seen them so far this spring.

As I crossed the swinging bridge, I heard and then saw a Belted Kingfisher.

Then I heard an Eastern Phoebe singing, and located him shortly after that. This was a first-of-year (FOY) bird for me.

In Riverside Lawn after I crossed the bridge, I didn’t find much. Still, it was nice to see a female Northern Cardinal.

And Song Sparrows have been singing and foraging here and there.

Near the end of the trail going out, I found a Golden-crowned Kinglet. I have been seeing them ever since.

I was going to do a longer post with more photos, but I think I would rather do a series of shorter posts for a change, as the birds are coming alive to the season and I am trying to keep up with the changes, however subtle.

Hurry Up Spring

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It’s been hard to focus lately, but what else is new? My indoor birds remind me every morning that the sun is coming up, we are all still here and somehow life continues to amuse and sometimes amaze us. Spring being what it is, instead of the post I was writing, I am going to recap the last few days. But first, speaking of the indoor birds (apologies for the size, I can’t seem to shrink this cell phone video)…

Looking for nesting material on my slipper

On March 10. in Riverside, the abundant sunshine brought out a Blue Jay.

The Northern Cardinals have been singing for awhile, but now they are serious. I couldn’t resist trying to shoot the video below of the singing Northern Cardinal who is also at the top of the post.

Earlier that morning I had stopped to record this Northern Cardinal and another male a few trees away, singing what sounded more like a duet to me than countersinging.

The next day, Bob and I drove down to the Des Plaines SFWA Widewaters in Will County where numbers of waterfowl had been reported earlier. Unfortunately, most of the birds had moved on, but it was a nice change of scenery. Thanks to Bob for driving, and I will have to make a point of visiting this spot again. I did get a few photos, although most of the birds were too far away.

Click on this photo and look closely in the back and you might see a Bald Eagle perched in a tree

It was nice to see two Bald Eagles, a juvenile and an adult.

There were a couple Mute Swans, and I caught one as it flew closer.

The next morning in Riverside, the Red-breasted Merganser couple was out on the river again.

Song Sparrows have been singing and displaying. I haven’t recorded one yet this year, but they know I’m listening,

I saw a female Northern Cardinal foraging in the mess of branches off the trail close to the river.

And a male Red-winged Blackbird posed by the river.

A Dark-eyed Junco popped up, reminding me that soon I will not be seeing this species for a while.

A Black-capped Chickadee showed off its calisthenic prowess.

Thursday the 13th, back at the Chicago Portage, the ice had finally melted and there was water for a few Mallards.

Red-winged Blackbirds were abundant and singing like crazy. They haven’t been posing yet on territories, but I caught one in flight. Below the photo is a sample of the chorus.

I barely saw an American Tree Sparrow. This is another bird that will be disappearing soon.

I stopped to admire some moss growing on a decayed stump.

A Red-tailed Hawk flew beyond the fence

And a male Downy Woodpecker was close enough to contemplate.

Later that evening, I stepped outside to look at the full moon.

Then the next evening, I did not try to get up in the middle of the night to see and photograph the lunar eclipse. Now I am sorry I didn’t, because when I did wake up in the middle of the night, around 2:40 AM, I took a peek outside the back door. I could see a partial eclipse, and after I tried to see if the cell phone camera could do anything, I went back in and grabbed my camera. The photo isn’t great, but it was amazing to be standing out on my back porch steps in my flannel pajamas on a March evening.

Beyond that, I walked in Riverside Lawn before I went swimming, saw the Red-breasted Merganser couple again…

and an enthusiastic-looking American Robin, who seemed to be tuning up, if not yet singing.

I will try to show up here more often. Especially because even as the weather keeps fluctuating wildly, I expect I will be seeing some more birds. I did not go out today for a walk because of the weather which actually gave me the time to write this post: we are in between storms and it is too windy. I also need to save my knee and energy for the weekly living room cleanup and singing with the choir tomorrow.

Back in Riverside: Early May

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I had plans to visit a grassland habitat today, but the weather and my knee had other ideas. We are in the thick of a heat wave with threats of storm activity. My knee wasn’t too bad, just adding its opinion to my decision to stay close to home. Instead, I took a short walk this morning to visit a friend on her birthday. Cooling off, I may as well write a blog post I’ve been poking at for days as the summertime lull settles in.

These are photos from last month in Riverside when migrants were still coming through. Two visits, one on May 3 and the other on May 6, are in this post.

On May 3, the first creature I saw was not a bird but a groundhog just off the Joliet Avenue bridge. I have never seen one here – or I think anywhere – before.

Baltimore Orioles were showing off in early May.

The bird below looks like an Alder Flycatcher to me. It’s harder to tell without being able to see its wing bars, but empidonax flycatchers are meant to be confusing.

Red-winged Blackbirds are sometimes hare to ignore.

There was a Tree Swallow investigating a hole in this dead tree that leans over the river by the swinging bridge. I continue to watch for further activity.

The last of the Ruby-crowned Kinglets were present.

Maybe this was one of the last of the Yellow-rumped Warblers too, looking like a female.

A House Wren looked busy establishing his territory.

That day may have been the first time I saw a Great Blue Heron on the river.

Then, on May 6, I saw a few more birds to photograph. Somehow, I managed to get this Blue Jay in flight at quite a distance.

Yellow Warblers were easier to see. There are still some around raising families, but now I only hear them.

Here are a couple more photos of the Song Sparrow at the top of the post with its insect snack.

A Warbling Vireo gave me the eye.

Likely there wasn’t anything happening off the swinging bridge that morning except for some turtles.

I found a White-throated Sparrow.

And I just barely managed to see a Lincoln’s Sparrow.

A Northern Waterthrush was close to the water.

Northern Cardinals provide a splash of color all year long.

I found a Nashville Warbler that day.

A dramatically backlit Baltimore Oriole managed to remain half-hidden in the leaves.

Some more photos of the Yellow Warbler are below.

There’s lots more from May and June which I will try to fit in soon. Even though this spring migration season was more than a little “off”, there was always something to see, usually when I least expected it. Maybe it will be a little easier to sit inside and write a post while it’s too hot to be out walking. We shall see.

One-on-One: Mourning Warbler

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On Monday morning, in Riverside Lawn, I heard a Mourning Warbler. I couldn’t locate it, but it wasn’t too far away from the big fallen log that I often sit on. I didn’t expect to hear it again.

I was back in Riverside Wednesday morning. rolling with the slowdown as breeding birds get down to business, and figured I would just walk through Riverside Lawn as usual, go swimming and get ready for the talent show. And then, Merlin and I heard the Mourning Warbler, again.

It wasn’t far away, but the vegetation is messy and thick around that same spot and I knew it was likely hopeless. However, I stood still and made little subdued pishing noises to see if maybe I could get the bird to move somewhere I could see him. Then I walked back around another trail that had been carved out since the last obstructing tree fall. I heard the warbler again, and then saw him pop up on a branch to sing.

I have managed to export my Merlin sound file for the first time, and then was able to isolate the section of the recording with the Mourning Warbler’s song. There are also camera clicks and cicadas on this excerpt. If the Mourning Warbler is still around tomorrow, I will try to make a better recording without Merlin.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had a good look at a Mourning Warbler, so I am very pleased. I feel as if I have made a new friend. Obviously, I took way too many pictures of him, but there wasn’t all that much more to photograph yesterday anyway.

A Baltimore Oriole emerged here and there.

Common Grackles flew along the river over by the Hofmann Tower.

Red-winged Blackbirds were busy defending territories.

Below, a couple red-winged Blackbirds policing a pair of Mallards and a Red-tailed Hawk.

A Ring-billed Gull was flying about.

And I am always happy to see a male Northern Cardinal.

To honor Bob’s request, I photographed a few cicadas.

Here are a few more of the Mourning Warbler.

I survived the talent show, but found it was way more difficult to just sit down and play the Evening Snack Song. I discovered today, though, that practicing that Bach Prelude over and over again last week had a beneficial effect on my muscle memory of the Adagio to the Ravel Piano Concerto in G. Amazing how that works. I’ll take whatever I can get.

We still have cool nights, but I was thrilled to see some bees on the foxglove this afternoon, so maybe it’s finally warm enough to go back to work in the yard. Cool nights are quiet, too: some peace in that.

Back to the Chicago Portage

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These photos are from May 8. Pre-Brood XIII. I have a feeling that the season will now be defined by the emergence of the 17-year cicadas, so this was pre-emergence. Please bear with me through a rather disjointed but short post.

Warbling Vireos were still visible. That’s over by now.

Warbling Vireo

It was even easier to see a few butterflies Pre-Cicada.

Red Admiral Butterfly

I managed to see a Nashville Warbler, albeit distant.

The highlight of the day was seeing this Broad-winged Hawk. We don’t see them often, and when we do it’s only during the summer, according to the Sibley app on my phone.

White-crowned Sparrows were very accommodating this spring.

Indigo Buntings are abundant. Every once in a while I see a female. But everybody is disappearing into the leaf cover.

I did get to see another Chestnut-sided Warbler, sort of.

And an Eastern Kingbird.

Song Sparrows are bored with me.

I did notice a female Baltimore Oriole looking for nesting material.

I followed her up to a tree where she was fashioning her nest. I couldn’t resist taking all these photos of her beautiful creation. And as far as I could tell, she was singing while she worked.

We slipped into a chilly, rainy pattern of weather over the Memorial Day weekend that looks like it will continue for a while, and temperatures will not begin to increase until Friday. Up until now, it’s been nice to leave the windows open, but I have closed them to conserve warmth in the house. It’s not just weather anymore.

Only one thing is certain: Johann Sebastian Bach. I have to practice the prelude to the English Suite No. 2 in A minor as I have decided to play it tomorrow night for the annual choir appreciation dinner talent show. As many times as I have played this as a prelude to the Evening Snack Service, I will need an extra layer of protection against messing it up.

Highlights of a Spring Bird Count

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The Illinois Spring Bird Count was on May 4 this year. I joined the group I have been counting with for years in DuPage County. We had 66 species and counted a total of 940 individuals. We started at McKee Marsh as usual and immediately began seeing the first of the Yellow Warblers which totaled 35 by the end of the day.

Baltimore Orioles demand attention.

Many birds were already busy starting families. We saw a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher on her nest.

We had plenty of swallows and they were often at eye level. I paid attention to a Barn Swallow.

I managed to capture a Tree Swallow in flight and another in a Bluebird nest box.

Song Sparrows were abundant. So were Field Sparrows, but we heard more than we saw.

Field Sparrow
Song Sparrows

Early on, we had a Fox Squirrel looking down at us from its hole in a tree.

The first bird I photographed was a distant Hairy Woodpecker.

Gray catbirds aren’t always even this easy to see.

A brief but welcome Eastern Bluebird sighting…

I can never resist a male Brown-headed Cowbird in good light.

One of those ubiquitous Warbling Vireos:

A Painted Turtle poked its head out to greet us.

Red-bellied Woodpecker
A brief glimpse of a male Wood Duck

A Pileated Woodpecker flew by so fast right in front of me I could only follow its disappearance with the camera.

Three more of the Yellow Warblers…

Another Baltimore Oriole
White-breasted Nuthatch

This Rose-breasted Grosbeak had his back to us but turned around to say hello.

We watched an American Robin feeding nestlings.

We heard some other species of warblers but did not see them in any expected locations. Looking back on it now, this probably signaled the beginning of the end for this warbler migration.

I’m going to stop complaining about the dearth of warbler sightings. Spring is rapidly becoming summer. In the meantime, there have been some exciting encounters. I’ll be back soon. First, yard work.

Transformation at the Chicago Portage

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Spring migration has been completely unpredictable this year. There are certain things that you tend to expect to happen, and several of those things did still occur, but the timing and number of species seen has been quite different from the past few years.

We always look forward to seeing lots of wood warblers during spring migration, yet this spring, for whatever reason, sightings have been sporadic at best. There just were not that many species in the trees once we got past the early influx of Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers. There were hardly any other species in large numbers, and when there were, like Tennessee Warblers, for example, they were so high up and distant, they were impossible to see.

Rather than go on about What Happened To Spring Migration?, I am going to just start posting my favorite photos from the past few weeks, starting with three visits to the Chicago Portage on April 28, May 2, and May 8. Let’s start with a fond goodbye to the Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers.

It was consistently difficult to capture a Nashville Warbler this spring.

I saw a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker that day. I think it’s the only one this season.

American Robins are busy and ubiquitous. Could that be a cicada in the robin’s bill in the second photo?

Black-capped Chickadees have since gone nesting and are not so easy to see.

There was something odd going on with a couple Blue-gray Gnatcatchers that day. I can’t tell if the scruffy-looking one was an early fledgling, but that’s what it looks like, the other being its watchful parent.

On May 2, a couple fighting Baltimore Orioles caught my eye.

It was a cloudy day.

I barely captured a male American Redstart.

There was still a Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Yellow Warblers were easier to find. Here are some more photos of the bird at the top of the post and another individual.

Northern Flickers are getting easier to see.

Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are disappearing as they tend to their nests, but I got lucky with this one.

And Warbling Vireos are normally difficult to see but I have managed to photograph several this season.

I was watching a female Red-winged Blackbird searching for nesting material.

And a male Red-winged Blackbird by the water.

At one point three Turkey Vultures flew over in celebration.

The switch to summer-like hot weather and thunderstorms seems sudden. I’ve shed my jeans for lighter weight birding clothes. On Saturday morning, I led my auction bird walk at the Chicago Portage. Two days before, the mosquitos were waking up. On Friday morning, the first periodical cicadas were emerging from their exoskeletons. Here’s a sneak preview.

Yesterday was the last Unity Temple Choir performance for the season, and afterward, four of us went down to Hyde Park to sing with members of other UU choirs for the Meadville-Lombard commencement ceremony. Suffice it to say I was happily exhausted.

I have a lot more photos to share, and in spite of the lack of warblers, I still have had some nice warbler encounters from the last couple weeks. But I think I’ll be back first with some birds from the Spring Bird Count.

Two Walks at Columbus Park

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This is a little roundup of two Saturday walks at Columbus Park in which I participated. At the beginning of the walk on April 27th, first we saw Goslings.

But that was nothing compared to this past Saturday, May 11.

On April 27, there were still several Palm Warblers.

We also had a Black-and-White Warbler.

It was really difficult to capture a Nashville Warbler adequately as it was quite far away, but I tried anyway.

Yellow Warblers are everywhere.

And it may have been the last of the Yellow-rumped Warblers.

We had an American Robin on a nest.

And a beautiful Northern Rough-winged Swallow posed for us in the cloud cover. I don’t know how, but at first I mistook it for an Eastern Phoebe. I was off my game that morning, which was also the day of the Spring Music Festival. Or at least that’s my excuse.

I got a good look at a Red-tailed Hawk flying over us that day.

And I was happy to find a Savannah Sparrow later in my photos.

Here’s a Song Sparrow for comparison. The heavy malar stripe on the throat is sometimes the best clue to determine a Song Sparrow quickly.

I caught a Tree Swallow in flight.
This turtle was up for a photo.

On May 11, we saw a couple Black-and-White Warblers again.

And a Black-throated Green Warbler

Now that it was two weeks later, the Palm Warblers appeared to be females.

There were Yellow Warblers again, if not necessarily in the best light.

I had close views of a Warbling Vireo.

And not so close views of a Red-eyed Vireo.

When someone said they saw a Great-crested Flycatcher, I thought I did too but it turned out to be an Olive-sided Flycatcher which is a bird I have seen only twice (in my photos) and now I will never mistake it for any other flycatcher ever again. The yellow on the belly and the crested look threw me off, but that dark vest is unmistakable, as is the white throat and a shorter tail (not at all rufous in color) than the Great-crested.

The icing on the cake last Saturday was the appearance of a Black-crowned Night-heron just as we were walking toward our cars.

Other birds stopping long enough for photos were a Gray Catbird and a couple Baltimore Orioles.

It’s been kind of a slow start with warbler migration, as far as it goes on the ground, anyway. A lot of birds have been flying over at night. I also wondered if the solar flares producing northern lights would throw off the birds. I found a reference to a study suggesting that could be a factor, although I haven’t read it yet.

But just as things were terribly slow-going yesterday at the Chicago Portage, this morning in Riverside was promising. I will be back soon. Even without a lot of activity I have catching up to do.