Last Saturday, Joann and I did a walk organized under the auspices of the Cook County Forest Preserves at Eggers Grove on the far southeast side. It was advertised as a “Bird the Preserves” event. I need some occasional prodding to get me out of my rut and this proved to be a pleasant experience.
Although we were close to the Calumet Region we had visited earlier, this was instead a walk in the woods. We could, however, see birds flying over the marsh. First we saw a Broad-winged Hawk.
A Caspian Tern flew by with a fish a little bit later.
An American Herring Gull also flew by at a distance.
Then we were treated to a couple Red-headed Woodpeckers. There may have been three individuals total. I grabbed photos of the two that were closest.
A couple Downy Woodpeckers were interacting farther from the trail.
Two Red-shouldered Hawks flew over the marsh. I captured one.
We saw a couple Eastern Wood-Pewees and heard at least one. This one appears to be a juvenile and was therefore the cutest.
There weren’t a lot of birds to photograph, but it was a nice morning and I’m always happy to get good looks at Red-headed Woodpeckers.
Below are photos of a couple birds observed around my house. On August 2, a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird sat preening in my apple tree in the front yard. The apple tree has grown to twice if not three times the size it was last summer. There is a hummingbird feeder on the front porch which is well-hidden by this tree and a Schubert’s Chokecherry, but the hummingbird knows exactly where it is. The middle photo gives you a better idea of her size in comparison to the tree and the house.
On Wednesday morning, I looked out through the back porch window and saw an Ovenbird under the feeder in the middle of the yard. I grabbed my camera and walked outside, to find it perched on the back fence, I didn’t get great shots, but it was nice to see this bird in my yard. According to eBird, I had one in my yard two years ago in October.
A couple days ago, I found a grasshopper in the front yard while I was pulling out some of what I believe to be Tall Goldenrod. I took this photo with my phone.
I was outside earlier today only to do a little yard work. It’s 92 degrees F. as I write this. Rain and thunderstorms have been in the forecast off and on all day to no avail, but now it looks like we have a better chance of getting some weather in a few hours, and we are promised cooler temperatures along with it. It’s the middle of August and the days are getting shorter. My favorite season – autumn – is just around the corner. The Oak Park Migration Bird Walks start in two weeks. There is something reassuring about taking note of all the obvious things in life that are still true.