Tag Archives: Myrtle Warbler

Fall Walks at Thatcher Woods

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I am back from the land of afternoon naps with a short segment.

We’ve had two Saturday morning walks at Thatcher Woods in River Forest, and we will have our final fall migration walk there on October 8. It’s been pretty quiet the last few weeks, but I did manage some photographs of a few birds, so here they are.

Basically, the Red-tailed Hawk was the only bird I captured doing anything on September 10.

Then on our last visit on September 24, the first of season bird of the walk – and for several of us, first of the year – was this Yellow-bellied Sapsucker who was perched somewhat distantly in a tree. This was likely the best long look I will get this year so I took too many photographs. I have since seen a few more of this species but have not been able to photograph them. For me, the placement of white on the wing quickly distinguishes this bird from other woodpeckers.

I must have had a few long moments to photograph the Red-tailed Hawk.

Also notable on the 24th, but impossible to capture well with the camera, were 34 Northern Flickers foraging on the lawn. We didn’t dare bother them by getting any closer.

A murder of about 20 crows flew overhead, which was beautiful to see. I could only capture a few, but to me there is nothing like a crow in flight.

Here are a few more of the sapsucker.

On our last visit we saw some Yellow-rumped Warblers by the parking lot, and after the walk I stayed a moment to get a few photographs.

Here are a few more of the Red-tailed Hawk.

Our last walk at Columbus Park is tomorrow morning. I have much more to report, it’s just been a busy week and I’ve been too tired to sustain many thoughts. I will try harder to be “back” at least while there’s still some activity before winter sets in. Then the birds will be fewer but somewhat easier to see, perhaps. Best to expect the unexpected.

Getting Reacquainted with Yellow-rumped Warblers

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There have been moments in past migrations when it has seemed like all we were seeing were Yellow-rumped Warblers. Specifically, in this part of the country we have the Myrtle variety. The birds look quite different in the fall than they do in the spring, and even contrasts between individuals can be a little daunting. After reviewing the photos I took yesterday morning in Riverside, I’ve come to the conclusion that I had three different individual Yellow-rumped Warblers.

There are a couple field marks beyond the one for which the bird is named, which you can always count on, however, and it was good to review them after my visual brain has been filled with images of all the other warblers I have seen or might see. The undertail pattern is consistent and striking.

The other feature is a split eyering. And there’s just something about a Myrtle’s face after you’ve seen more than a few.

Here are more images of the three individuals. You will see how variable their plumages appear. No. 1 is below, which also is the same bird at the top of the post and directly above.

No. 2 was a little yellower underneath.

And No. 3, sort of drab-looking. But this bird was so cooperative I obliged it by taking way too many photos.

There were a few other warblers I had a harder time capturing as they were way up in their favorite tree again. I had hoped maybe the storm Tuesday night would bring a few more birds down. Here’s a Blackpoll Warbler, one of only a couple warblers I captured clearly enough.

And a Chestnut-sided Warbler.

A few more of the hard-to-see Chestnut-sided Warbler.

And to make things a little bit more confusing, I had a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, which appeared really yellow in this light.

Beyond the few warblers, the Great Egrets were present again just south of the Hofmann Tower. There were eight of them at this spot but I could not capture them all clearly in one photo.

Then as the foot bridge came into view later, there were two more Great Egrets and a Great Blue Heron.

I heard and then saw a Red-bellied Woodpecker in a tree close to the sidewalk. If these birds are anything like they were last fall and into the winter, I will be seeing a lot of them soon.

I had a couple Gray-cheeked Thrushes.

Mallards are few at the moment.

There are still some Double-crested Cormorants on the river. I managed to barely catch this one in flight.

At my feet on the Riverside Lawn trail, a Powdered Dancer Damselfly.

I stayed home today and worked in the backyard while waiting for the tree service to come. I cleared out a huge amount of an invasive species that I had mistakenly assumed was something I planted after I noticed it was bothering the heck out of me and taking over. I will finish digging up what’s left of it over the weekend. The weather was perfect for working outdoors at a coolness ranging from 54 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit. We remain cool tomorrow. Two workers will be back to replace the center post and repair my fence. Life is good.

Looks like Chantarelle Mushrooms were growing atop the old Ohio Buckeye stump
And here’s what was left of the stump after they cut it down – being sent to the grinder.

Back to Mid-April

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In my typical fashion, I have been trying to write this post for the last week and a half. So while we are all wondering how to get through the holidays this year-like-no-other, I feel a sense of loss too, even though I likely would not have had any plans to go anywhere myself. But there’s also a sense of opportunity in any day I really don’t have to think about work.

Even though it was a cool, late spring and in the middle of the pandemic, there’s something oddly comforting these days about looking back.The Portage looks about like this now – no leaves on the trees, everything muted in browns and grays – but the birds are different in appearance, and most of these species have left for the winter. I took way too many photographs on this day, which might explain why it’s taken me seven months to process them. I won’t be doing a lot of explanation…that might take me another seven months. just hope you enjoy the images.

It will be a while before male American Goldfinches look like the one below.

Out over the Des Plaines River that day, there were three Belted Kingfishers flying around. I didn’t do a very good job of capturing them, they were quite far away. But at least one flew close enough to be recognizable.

A returning Song Sparrow
A Blue Jay, blending in with the sky and the barren tree
Waiting to come back to life.
  • Eastern Phoebe

I keep trying to get a decent photograph of the golden shafts on a Flicker and usually fail, but this time I got close.

There were a couple Blue-Winged Teal hanging out with the Mallards.

One Ring-Billed Gull flew over low enough to be identifiable.

Robins started coming back to their territories. The one in the second photograph is barely discernible from the tree it’s in.

Of course nothing says spring like the return of Red-Winged Blackbirds.

It was early enough in the morning to encounter a couple deer.

Please forgive me, I took way too many pictures of Golden-Crowned Kinglets. They are all gone now, but it was a joy to see them return in April.

Downy Woodpecker – the Portage’s most numerous resident woodpecker

Here’s a thrush I don’t see often – a Veery.

I took a few too many pictures of this Ruby-crowned Kinglet too, but at least I did get somewhat of a shot at the ruby crown.

A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker…

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

I am always happy to see a White-Breasted Nuthatch, even though they are with us all year long. I never tire of them.

The light was nice on this Red-Bellied Woodpecker.

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Brown-headed Cowbirds are…what they are.

The pair of Eastern Bluebirds this year were such a welcome sight. Although I saw them for several weeks, I don’t think they wound up staying to breed. I can only hope they give the Portage a second chance next year.

The first warbler to show up in the spring, and the last to leave in the fall… the trusty Myrtle, or as long as it’s still lumped with Audubon’s (last time I checked), it’s a Yellow-Rumped Warbler.

I will be back with more from last spring (!) and some more current observations. I hope you are safe and well, wherever you are. And I hope you continue to find moments of peace and solace. There is still a lot to be thankful for.

Last of the Late Fall Warblers

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YRWA 09-30-17-9009

Yellow-Rumped Warbler

I haven’t seen many warblers this fall for various reasons but from what I can gather numbers have been down, if not sightings of individuals. So it’s not just my itinerant schedule but factors like weather and habitat changes play in.

So right about now the “last” warblers are most visible, led by the Yellow-Rumped (Myrtle) (above) and Palm Warblers. Below are a couple pictures of my most cooperative Palm Warbler at the Chicago Portage last weekend.

Two weeks ago I was fortunate enough to join Chicago Ornithological Society’s walk at Humboldt Park, a location I had always wondered about but never gotten to, and we were fortunate enough to have a little flurry of Black-Throated Green Warblers. I have missed seeing this favorite of mine for a couple years or more. They were always easy to find when my most-frequented haunt was Daley Bicentennial Plaza.

Below is a Blackpoll Warbler I managed to capture Thursday afternoon at the Boeing garden down by the Chicago River, only a few blocks away from my new office location. While I am not wildly ecstatic about the limited opportunity offered at this place, it gives me hope for the future if I can manage to take a walk after noon. The garden was less congested with lunchers than it would have been under the noonday sun, and my little flurry of warblers happened just as I turned around to head back to the office.

Often confused with the Blackpoll above this time of year is the Bay-Breasted Warbler below, thus the name “Baypoll”. This Bay-Breasted I managed to see the one early morning I paid a visit to Lake Shore East Park before work.

BBWA 09-25-2017-5704Except for the bird perched in the oak tree below, this Nashville Warbler was foraging radiantly at the Chicago Portage on September 30.

And the Wilson’s Warbler below was not in the best of light that early morning at Lake Shore East Park, but I have consistently seen Wilson’s down there for a couple years so I have to wonder if it is one of the same individuals.

WIWA 09-25-2017-5678The last of the American Redstarts to come through were girls.

Still a Magnolia Warbler here and there, also a likely female.

Not a warbler, below, but when the flocks of Ruby-Crowned Kinglets start coming through, it’s a sure sign of the end of fall warbler migration. This one was also down by the river at the Boeing garden.

A couple more photos…not very sharp but lingering like the birds.

BTGW 09-23-17-8375YRWA Portage 09-30-17-8620We’ve had some rain now, temperatures are still warm during the day although falling blissfully at night, doesn’t look like we’ll be hitting the 80’s again as the days are getting shorter… But the sunshine was surprisingly warm yesterday around 10:00 AM. I’ll be back soon with new discoveries from the Chicago Portage.