Sunday at the Chicago Portage

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Sunday morning was full of sunshine and the temperatures were warmer than the cold cloudiness of previous days. I decided that a visit to the Chicago Portage was in order and it turned out to be fruitful. I had 39 species on my eBird list. One in particular was the Blue-headed Vireo at the top of the post.

That said, things started out a bit slowly as I stood by the same Box Elder Maple tree as last time, watching for movement. A male Northern Cardinal sat patiently.

Then I barely saw a Warbling Vireo, but they are nearly always elusive, so I settled for a small photos anyway.

Warbling Vireo

I spotted a Pine Warbler.

A Yellow-rumped Warbler appeared and disappeared into the foliage.

I caught a female Red-winged Blackbird in a furtive moment.

There was only one Blue-winged Teal in the open water, but I later discovered some in the flooded marshy area, although they were too far away and obscured by vegetation to photograph properly. For what it’s worth, there was also a Solitary Sandpiper. So the Blue-winged Teal are still present.

Here’s what I saw later from the paved trail looking out onto the marshy area.

Solitary Sandpiper and Blue-winged Teal in the background

And a close-cropped view of two Blue-winged Teal.

Solitary Sandpiper with Blue-winged Teal

I heard and saw several Blue-gray Gnatcatchers.

Then I was pleasantly surprised to see my first Black-throated Green Warbler of the season, even if I had only obscured views.

It took me a while to find a Yellow Warbler, but I managed to capture one rather distant individual.

The turtles were enjoying the abundant sunshine.

I barely saw an American Kestrel as it flew in the distance.

Here’s another Blue-gray Gnatcatcher.

And I found a Ruby-crowned Kinglet – with just a tiny bit of red in the third photo

One more Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. They will quickly become increasingly difficult to see.

Next, I found a Black-and-White Warbler foraging on a Hackberry Tree.

Then a couple Orange-crowned Warblers appeared. They became more evident in my photo review later.

Another Orange-crowned Warbler.

And another Black-and-white Warbler appeared.

I was quite happy to see a Nashville Warbler.

One more Orange-crowned Warbler. They are sometimes confused with other “drab” warblers, such as the Tennessee Warbler. One definite clue to an Orange-crowned is the yellow undertail coverts. Don’t bother looking for an orange crown…

I took a photo of a nearby Palm Warbler, even as I already feel like I have seen enough of them. They don’t try to hide themselves too well, which probably encourages our tendency to dismiss them, but they are still beautiful.

There was yet another Black-and-White Warbler.

My last Ruby-crowned Kinglet of the morning…

As I started to walk along the paved trail toward Harlem, a male Eastern Bluebird came to see me. I wonder if it was my turquoise windbreaker that attracted him.

I went down to the picnic tables by the water and sat down on the one directly under the tree. As I sat there, a Blue-headed Vireo flew into the branches above me.

A male Red-winged Blackbird displayed close to the shore.

On my way back out on the paved trail, I spotted a Field Sparrow.

And the next-to-last bird I photographed was a male Baltimore Oriole.

I apologize for the photo overload. It’s just been so long since last spring. I went back to the Portage this morning and it was warm, cloudy and windy. My Merlin app heard more warbler species than I saw. But the week is young and more birds will continue to appear. To quote Emily Dickinson, “Hope is the thing with feathers.” Indeed.

Here’s the last bird!

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

After the Rain

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The rain stopped Wednesday and it was still mid-morning, so I decided to take a look around Riverside Lawn before I went swimming. I’m glad I did. Even though the light was poor, I had some birds I hadn’t seen among all the Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers.

I was first greeted by a beautiful female Eastern Towhee.

I saw two Chimney Swifts returning from Chile.

There were a couple Yellow-rumped Warblers bathing in a puddle on the trail.

I noticed a couple Northern Flickers getting ready to make more flickers.

A Yellow-rumped Warbler seemed interested in posing for me.

There were so many Palm Warblers I found it hard to estimate, but eBird would only allow me to enter 20 without requiring documentation, so that was the number I entered. I’m sure there were more than 20, but I would have needed an assistant with a counter to keep track of them all.

Ruby-crowned Kinglets have been abundant. I haven’t been seeing any Golden-crowned Kinglets lately.

Here’s another Palm Warbler and a Yellow-rumped Warbler.

I then felt lucky to see a Swamp Sparrow on the muddy trail.

I heard and then saw this Northern Waterthrush. It sang and posed on a branch right ih froht of me.

Palm Warblers were still pretty to look at.

A couple female Red-winged Blackbirds were hanging out.

This Ruby-crowned Kinglet was cooperative, but I have yet to get a photo with one displaying the crown.

Then I was delighted to see my first Gray Catbird. It was totally silent, but the quiet won’t last as soon as a number of them come to nest. Then I will more likely hear than see them.

Not to be outdone by the Palms, another Yellow-rumped Warbler.

I was going to end the post here, but because the last few days have been increasingly birdy and I am accumulating too many photos already, I have decided to include Friday morning’s visit to Riverside as well.

That morning, before I left, I put out my oriole feeder. Moments after I came back inside, I looked out the kitchen window and saw a male Baltimore Oriole on the feeder. He had first been attracted to the hummingbird feeders that I had put out the night before, but then he saw his preferred color and got busy. I managed to get a few photos through the back porch windows.

When I got to Riverside and parked my car by the Hofmann Tower, I looked out on the rock “island” and saw a Solitary Sandpiper.

This time I walked first on the Swan Pond side of the river following the paved trail. I spotted a Pine Warbler.

Then I encountered a Yellow-rumped Warbler who thought he looked spectacular in a Redbud tree. I agreed and took too many photos of him. Here’s one.

A Great Blue Heron flew to the top of a tree on the other side of the river to survey his options.

The male Eastern Bluebird who knows me came to say hello.

While I was paying attention to the Bluebird, the Great Blue Heron decided to try fishing on my side of the river.

I took note of what appears to be a female Yellow-rumped Warbler.

I found a White-throated Sparrow on the dirt trail that leads to the library. I then stopped to have an engaging conversation with a man who was fishing at the bend in the river.

As I approached the swinging bridge, I heard and saw an Eastern Phoebe. Not far from him, perched on a cable of the bridge was a Tree Swallow making chattering sounds. I mused that they were exchanging bug stories and did a quick recording on my phone (below). The Eastern Phoebe sings his name, “Fee-bee.”

An American Robin thought I should take its picture as it stood on one leg.

On the trail, I sat down on a fallen log and after a moment or two, a male Common Yellowthroat popped up in front of me.

I also got a very good look at a Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

One more Ruby-crowned Kinglet

I finished walking Riverside Lawn with a Black-capped Chickadee, two Downy Woodpeckers and another White-throated Sparrow.

Other highlights of Friday morning’s walk were several more conversations with humans. Maybe we are all eager to talk with each other a little bit more these days. I am always ready to trade bird and (when appropriate) music stories. Spring migration gives us all something to look forward to.

Here’s one more photo of that hammy Yellow-rumped Warbler. I hope to be back soon as there’s lots more to report. Warmer temperatures and rain are in the forecast this week. More birds are on their way.

Earth Day at the Chicago Portage

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I was working on another post about what’s been going on at the Chicago Portage lately, but it seems only fitting to quickly make note of yesterday morning’s walk as the birds return. And I’m just a little rained out this morning…

The first bird I saw when I walked in was a Palm Warbler on the ground. It flew into a tree for a couple quick photos. I’ve seen a couple of these in other places the last few days, but there seemed to be a few more individuals yesterday.

As I walked in, just beyond the bridge by Harlem, I found a burst of activity in a big Box Elder Maple tree. There were several Yellow-rumped Warblers, and then I heard and saw a Yellow Warbler. This spot is generally where I have encountered the first returning Yellow Warblers who come to stay for the summer.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

I always think of my birding instructor’s comment years ago, that Yellow Warblers have yellow on every single feather.

Next a Downy Woodpecker flew in to join the loose flock.

It was hard to tear myself away from the activity in the tree, but I was curious to see what else was going on. I saw only one male Blue-winged Teal in the water, where just a few days ago there were a dozen. Although they are good at hiding, I’d be surprised if the others haven’t left. As things progress it will be interesting to see who’s next.

I heard and managed to just barely see my first Warbling Vireo of the season.

I discovered an Orange-crowned Warbler later in my photos. The second photo is a confusing preening shot which didn’t help much in the poor light.

I took one more photo of the Blue-winged Teal.

Then I saw a hawk flying in the distance. It turned out to be a Red-tailed Hawk. I also heard a Red-shouldered Hawk later, but did not see it.

It was nice to see more species returning, even if there were not many individuals and they were staying high in the treetops. It’s already a bit of a challenge as the tree buds open. Here are a few so-so photos of a Pine Warbler I encountered.

Hearing Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers and not seeing them was frustrating. But eventually I managed to see one or two.

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher

A couple female Brown-headed Cowbirds were low to the ground and making a lot of noise. When I refused to bother looking for them, they flew right up in front of me into the tree hanging over the trail to make sure I couldn’t miss them.

A Song Sparrow had its back toward me until it struck this pose.

After hearing them sing, I found one of a few White-throated Sparrows.

After I turned around to meet Bob on the trail, I saw the Yellow Warbler again.

I had an appointment to take my car in for an oil change, so I had to leave. My walk ended as it began, with another Palm Warbler.

Anything could happen in the coming days. We have several daytime highs in the 70’s and some storm activity is predicted. Strong winds are blowing birds considered vagrants into the area. I will try to keep up with some of this in my little corner of the world. I start leading walks this Saturday. For the moment, the Saturday forecast is for sunshine. I wish you some sunshine in your life.

Elsewhere on Sunday Morning

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I decided to visit Little Red Schoolhouse, a Cook County Forest Preserve in the Palos Area, for a change, just to take a bit of a longer walk and perhaps see a different bird or two. I did not see the Common Loon there (at the top of the post), but I’ll get to that later.

Almost immediately as I walked around the back of the nature center along the path close to Longjohn Slough, quite a large body of water, there appeared an abundance of Tree Swallows. These days, an abundance is anything three or more…

Observing the slough from a small platform blind, waterfowl was dispersed and distant, but things perked up quickly when an Osprey flew in. The Osprey picked up something that appeared to be nesting material and flew off with it.

Ironically, there is a nesting platform for Osprey in the middle of the slough, but it was serving as an observation deck for some Double-crested Cormorants. This Osprey must be nesting somewhere else.

A little while later, a Bald Eagle was flying around very distant, I couldn’t make it out until I went through my photographs. It looks like a first-year bird. The cloudy sky didn’t help.

I did manage to capture a couple Wood Ducks that were not out too far.

I also found a female Bufflehead. There were several Common Mergansers and likely a few other species but they were too far away to capture well.

I started to walk the trail through the woods and found a willing Song Sparrow.

I encountered a couple Tree Swallows up close.

I looked back out toward the slough and saw that two Canada Geese had taken over the osprey platform.

After a while I found some Yellow-rumped Warblers. There may have been half a dozen of them in a loose group.

I have seen a few Ruby-crowned Kinglets the last week or so, but they’ve all been hard to capture in poor light and this one was no exception.

Then when it seemed like there was nothing else, a bright Pine Warbler sang and hung around long enough for a few photos. Lack of light added to the fuzziness of these photos, but it was just so nice to see a new bird for the season.

Done with this location and ready to go home, I looked at my phone and noticed Lori from the Oak Park Bird Walkers had been trying to contact me to tell me there was a Common Loon in the lagoon by the Trailside Museum parking lot at Thatcher Woods. At first I dismissed the idea of going up there to see it, but then I thought it over, realized it was only a 25-minute drive, and that the bird would likely not be going anywhere soon as it was off course and stuck there for whatever reason. So that explains the photo at the top of the post, and here are a few more.

There were plenty of other people with large lenses taking pictures of the loon and I didn’t feel like hanging around. It always upsets me to see a bird that has somehow gotten lost. Lori was kind enough to let me know later that the bird was eventually seen trying to cross Chicago Avenue which is quite a busy street, while being protected by people who thought it might be injured, and was taken eventually to DuPage Wildlife Conservation Center. That was probably the best possible outcome.

Our weather is still on the chilly side of things, but we are starting to green up, and I am still taken by surprise with the ever-increasing daylight hours. This is perhaps a side-effect of messing too much with reality. (/s) More encounters to follow.

Any Minute Now

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When I was in Riverside Monday morning and it was gloomy and chilly, as it had been all week, there were still signs of things about to get better. This will be a quick post.

I don’t see a lot of Canada Geese these days, but there are a few, like the regular couple that hangs out on the wall by the Joliet Avenue bridge. I think this is the goose doing her morning exercises.

Things brightened up a little with a Golden-crowned Kinglet.

A Great Blue Heron flew up the river. Any day now, one will find a place to fish on the shore.

Cooperative Blue Jays are rare, but I guess this one had enough twigs in the way to make it feel less exposed to my lens.

One of the Red-breasted Mergansers flew by.

I thought I heard this Song Sparrow start to sing while he was still on the ground.

A Downy Woodpecker appeared.

I never get enough of the Brown Creepers.

I wondered what the Eastern Phoebe could possibly be catching on a chilly, gloomy morning.

Then I saw my first warbler of the season. Not surprisingly, it was a Yellow-rumped Warbler. The same individual is at the top of the post.

I was heading back to my car when I noticed two Ring-billed Gulls on the “island” near where the Hofmann Dam used to be. They behaved like a couple of young lovers and they were fun to watch.

They were joined briefly by a Killdeer which you might be able to see coming in for a landing on the left, in the photo below.

The gulls continued to dream.

Then one of them caught something, and ultimately they both appeared to share the treat. I knew then that they had to be a couple, because I have never seen such cooperation among gulls before.

I always have a lot more photos than I can ever get around to posting here. I’m sorry it’s taking me so long to churn these things out lately. Especially when I am now anticipating Birding Boot Camp this weekend, when I start getting up before the birds and going out earlier, as more birds are starting to arrive. À bientot.

McGinnis Morning

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This morning started off cool and a bit cloudy, but I was feeling up to an outing and, after checking eBird for recent sightings, I decided to visit McGinnis Slough. I haven’t been there in months and it was time to see some more birds in a different habitat. It was especially gratifying to see that the recent rain has improved the water level from last year.

Predictably perhaps, the first birds I saw were some American Coots. They weren’t in huge numbers but they were just about everywhere.

And this is a very popular place for Red-winged Blackbirds. In addition to scores of males on territories, I saw my first female of the species.

Then I started seeing some distant Ring-necked Ducks. All these photos were taken at quite a distance and have been heavily cropped.

There were a couple Pied-billed Grebes.

Pied-billed Grebe and American Coot

Here’s a male Ring-necked Duck and a Pied-billed Grebe,

More Ring-necked Ducks. You’ll hardly ever see the ring on their necks. I have seen it only once and the bird was much closer than these were.

Then I was very happy to see a Horned Grebe rather close in the marshy area next to the mowed trail. I used to see these birds frequently on the lakefront when I worked downtown, but it’s been years since I’ve seen one. This is the same bird at the top of the post.

There were a couple Northern Shovelers at the far edge of the same area and the male suddenly took off.

I walked all the way back to the northern end of the trail where you can view the largest part of the slough. There wasn’t a lot to see as the waterfowl were sparsely distributed at quite a distance, but the toads were making a racket. I sat on the picnic table and listened to them.

Then, as I walked back toward the center and the parking lot, an Osprey flew overhead.

I said goodbye to the Horned Grebe and headed home. In my backyard, the birds had emptied the feeders, except for the American Goldfinches who were still working on the nyjer seeds that I refill their feeders with daily. They have had it good all winter. The photos were taken through the back porch screened windows.

A male House Finch flew in for a second and I almost caught him on his way out except for a photo-bombing goldfinch.

It’s been a good day. The sun is shining and it looks like we have a few more cold days ahead but soon it will be warm enough to start cleaning up the yard and welcoming the greening of everything. I hope to be done with this cold by my next post. I’ve been improving steadily.

More or Less in Riverside

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These photos are from the middle to the end of March by the Des Plaines River. I let the Hermit Thrush at the top of this post fly in from March 31, but I will return to the rest of that day in a later post.

On March 17, the Eastern Bluebirds were watching me from the Swan Pond area.

There have been four Red-breasted Mergansers consistently in the river. That day it wasn’t easy to get them all in one photo.

A Song Sparrow, a female Northern Cardinal and a Dark-eyed Junco put up with me.

On March 19th, a little sunshine made all the difference.

Song Sparrow

I saw a Ring-billed Gull fly by with something in its beak. I could not determine what the delicacy was. But the gull made things more interesting.

A pair of Turkey Vultures flew over and I managed these photos of one of them.

On March 26th, I heard an Eastern Phoebe sing, then saw him as he sidled up against the wall and then later perched in a tree.

The female Eastern Bluebird was available.

And I had visits with a couple Golden-crowned Kingleta.

The Red-breasted Mergansers were still around. If you look closely to the left side of the group you can see the head of the second female emerging from the water.

I was thinking of stopping at this point, but I decided to stuff one more morning’s photos in here. March 26 was cloudy, nothing new there. By now I was hearing and seeing two Eastern Phoebes.

The clouds called to be noticed.

Then I encountered a burst of color from an Early Crocus. There was a brave insect checking out the right-most blossom,

Two Canada Geese got into a brief disagreement.

Near the end of my walk, I encountered a couple Brown Creepers. It’s the first time I’ve captured one in flight.

I didn’t expect it would take me so long to get around to these photos, but I’m taking a break this morning from most outdoor activities. I have been quite busy draining my sinuses from a cold that started to challenge me on Thursday. I am keeping up with WFMT’s spring pledge drive, and I plan to check out the live videos of the protests. I wasn’t planning on joining a protest today, but it didn’t seem quite right to go for a walk in the woods either if I’m not feeling up to par. I’d rather get over the cold.

In any event I will be back with more recent excursions and maybe I can manage a walk tomorrow, as every day more and more migrants are showing up. The plots thicken on all fronts.

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.