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The Big Year is over. It started with  the usual winter birds on the Christmas Bird Count (held on New Year’s Day in Waukegan). Dad and I were assigned the beach so it was like a normal day except a little more thorough. But January 2nd was different. Everyone had to rush down to the beach because a Brant had appeared. The Brant is a small goose that is almost completely black above, with a faint white necklace and streaked sides. It was standing out on the pier, just looking around. This bird hasn’t been recorded in Lake County since 1982. It stayed long enough for most  birders to get a decent look. It’s usual range is along both coasts. 

I was a bit worried about winter finches-Redpolls and Crossbills. These little finches are an irruptive species that moves south in numbers only some years. This is determined by the food supply in the north and the population level. If the birds had a good year last spring reproducing, they may need to spread out more to find food for everyone. But maybe a few were still here from 2020. Fortunately we got our Common Redpoll on January 2nd, at Manville ponds overlook, in the weeds. We have seen them sporadically throughout the early spring and fall. We whiffed on Crossbills. A few birders counted some as heard only but this bird does not have a very distinctive call so I’m not sure of the accuracy of those reports. Beau did get a sighting. 

The next day was Sunday, and we drove out to a subdivision in Grayslake. If you parked at the edge of the subdivision you could enter Rollins Savanna near a dense brushy section. This was the spot to search for the Long-eared Owl. A lot of other people showed up with the same idea. But we all know each other so instead a small party of two or three searching for the owl, we had about eight people. Owls are considered sensitive species and eBird hides the reports. Normally we don’t even make a report until at least a few weeks after the sighting  and the location is deliberately ambiguous.In 2020 we saw that owl with another birder as a guide so we new the general location to look in. We all set out, looking very carefully for these long, skinny owls that like to sit on a small branch right next to the trunk of the tree. It didn’t look we were going to find it  but finally someone located it, hidden in a dense bush. These owls were not seen again at that spot because at some point the forest preserve district decided to clear the brush in that spot. 

In month of January we recorded 63 species. The last bird of the month was the most notable. 

On January 23 a friend had posted a photo taken at the lakefront of a Peregrine Falcon, a bird we routinely see there. Bird guide Josh Engel saw the photo and identified the bird as a Gyrfalcon. This bird is the Peregrine Falcon’s big tough cousin. He’s bigger and heftier than the Peregrine and afraid of nothing. I got the word that it was at the beach and raced down there. I was surprised to find few cars in the parking lot. But I headed out to the pier anyway. I looked up and two raptors were racing toward the shore. The first was an adult Bald Eagle, the chasing bird was smaller than the eagle but still presenting a threat. That had to be the Gyrfalcon! Apparently the eagle was hunting in the area that the Gyrfalcon decided was his. Most of the sightings were taking place near the yacht club. The Gyrfalcon spent time perched on top of the cement elevators, just as he would if he were in Duluth and sitting on a grain elevator. He had his choice of ducks, gulls  and pigeons and was perfectly satisfied for about about two weeks. 

January always has the most species because every bird you count is a year bird. Things calmed down in February when we only recorded 11 new species. This included waterfowl and raptors, the usual winter fare. In March we saw 29 new species. The first shorebird, a Killdeer, arrived on March 3rd. We saw more raptors, woodpeckers, waterfowl, and the expected kinglets and other small birds. In April migration really got started. Shorebirds were coming in daily at Waukegan Beach, Illinois Beach State Park and other nearby spots. The Piping Plover arrived on April first but only stayed a few days. They did not breed in Waukegan this year. They returned in August for 8 days on their way back south. In general, shorebirds were present in Lake County  from March 3rd until September 29 with most sightings in April and May and then again in August and September. The Purple Sandpiper is the outlier. He comes in November, usually around the first week. Everyone gets excited about this one because it doesn’t happen every year. May was our biggest month with 79 birds. All of the smaller birds were arriving in every habitat. We had a good year for some of the difficult warblers, our birder friends keeping us informed of sightings in real time. Warbler season usually requires birding in some of the forest preserves that border the Des Plaines River but this year we got 28 warblers close to home and 2 at Ryerson Forest Preserve bordering the Des Plaines. 

In June the migrants have passed through and the breeding birds are left. We had already counted most of these birds already in the preceeding months so getting a year bird in June is a challenge. We got 6, and these were grassland birds. In July we had even  fewer FOYs (first of year) -5. But they were very good birds. The Northern Bobwhite was calling at dawn at Rollins Savanna, so getting there by 6:30 was early enough to hear it. Then, in July, someone was canoing in Chain-o-Lakes State Park and found a Limpkin! Here is a link to a friends list with photos. https://ebird.org/checklist/S91737121

All birders were forced to get into a canoe or kayak, or to walk a swampy trail, to see a lake county rarity. Were rented a canoe and on a windy day, in the company of two other birders in their own canoe, we paddled out to the marsh and saw the bird. The water was a bit rough so I left my camera in the car. That’s when I decided to add a tiny instamatic camera to my gear bag. 

A week later, Dad and I were on our daily tour of Waukegan Beach. By now there were a good number of terns and gulls hanging around, as well as killdeer and other sandpipers. There was a tern that seemed to stay away from the other terns further north on the beach. I didn’t think much of it except I noticed it didn’t look well. It seemed to be missing it’s tail. A while later I looked more closely at it and realized it was a Royal Tern. This is only the second sighting of this bird at Waukegan Beach, the last sighting being in 2015, which was also my discovery. It was great to get a rare bird and ironic that Dad and I already had seen this bird in Lake County. 

August had a lot of birds but only three were new for the year. The most outstanding bird was the Mexican Violetear. This is a hummingbird whose normal range is in southern Mexico. EBird records show that it is prone to wandering north with sightings as far north as Canada. The bird was coming to a feeder at a private residence. The news of this bird spread by word of mouth to prevent a deluge of birders descending on the homeowners. Fortunately, Beau Schaefer thought of us and let us know. Most birders were considerate and went to see the bird, staying a short time and then leaving so that the yard did’t get too crowded. 

September and October had the migrating birds that had already passed through in the spring. This is our chance to get anything you may have missed at that time. We had the usual hawks taken care of by then, but we added Broad-winged Hawk to the list. 

So what’s left? Winter finches, winter waterfowl and owls and the Purple Sandpiper. I was birding the beach every morning and finally the Purple Sandpiper appeared. This bird shows up  in early November, when a layer of algae appears on the wet areas of the pier. I believe it eats tiny bugs that are attracted to the algae. It is a Waukegan specialty and is nearly always seen in the same place, known by many as “the Purple Sandpiper Pier”. 

Then there are the unexpected birds. We had a very lost bird at the lakefront, near the water plant. A birder had posted on Facebook a photo of a flycatcher that she couldn’t identify. The birding community experts identified it as a species of Elaenia that lives in south America. After many observations and photographs by birders from all over (it was busy down there) it was decided that it was a Small-billed Elaenia. The Illinois Ornithological Society is still not putting on the checklist but they at least have confirmed the species. Lake County recorded 226 observations of the bird. 

It is the end of the year. Things are winding down. The habitat of the Long-eared Owl was gone, so we would probably not see that bird again in Lake County. Hmmm-this is a chance to get all the Lake County owls in one year. So, with some help from our birder friends, we got current locations for the two owls we still needed, Barred Owl and Northern Saw-Whet Owl. Barred Owl is usually not that hard out in the county but we had missed it all year. Fortunately some birders found it in a preserve that we were unfamiliar with. We raced out there to catch up with Steven Hurst, who was making a video of the birds. We had good looks and Dad even got some good photos. Finally, on New Year’s Eve, we made a pre-dawn trip to McDonald Woods. Andy said there might be a Saw-Whet Owl there. We parked in the neighborhood and entered the preserve, starting a 1.25 mile trail. We circled around a small lake and then climbed uphill to an area with tall pines. We stopped to play the call of the Saw-Whet, as we had been doing in various spots along the trail. This time we got a response. First a kind of snarl, then long drawn-out toots. It was our last FOY of the year but a very exciting one. To recap the owl list: Eastern Screech Owl, Great Horned Owl, Snowy Owl, Barred Owl, Long-eared Owl, Short-eared Owl and Northern Saw-Whet Owl. Just that list is a first for us!!

We finished the year tied at #2 for the county, seeing 90% of the birds reported in that time frame. Another birder came in 2 birds ahead of us at 264 birds. The next highest was Gustavo at 253. Two people had 93% in 2020, Andy had 93% in 2019, and in 2017 Andy had 281 birds, one of the highest counts in recent history. The Big Year was a challenge and it really got me to get out and bird.

Lake County Lifers 

Brant

Gyrfalcon

Black-legged Kittiwake

Eurasian Tree Sparrow

Limpkin

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron

Mexican Violetear

Whooping Crane

Small-billed Elaenia

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We all had a great time in Btown this weekend. Here are a few shots.

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We returned to Yellowstone Park that morning, stopping at beautiful Swan Lake. We continued down the road next to a rushing stream, with Josh listening carefully. Soon we pulled over and bushwhacked to the edge of the water. The American Dipper was singing loudly, in between hunting and feeding her three chicks.

We carried on into Idaho on our way to Twin Falls. We intended to check the lake at Harriman State Park. We saw a pair of Trumpeter swans, American Wigeons, Phalaropes, grebes and other waterfowl.

While we were returning from the lake we met a photographer/birder from Washington State. She described in detail how to find a group of Saw-whet Owl chicks right in the park not far away. As we got close to the location we were unsure about how to proceed. The birder showed up and took us straight to the spot. I was first in the group walking along a narrow path. Someone said stop!-look up! There was an owl right in front of me! We had to speak quietly and move carefully to avoid disturbing them but they remained perched while we all took photos. The bird in the second photo appears to have traces of blood around it’s mouth, probably left from breakfast. This was a real bonus sighting and unexpected. While this species was not a lifer for us, we still rarely see them.

We weren’t finished looking for owls. After dinner we left our hotel and headed for Magic Mountain Ski area outside of Twin Falls Idaho. By the time we got there it was starting to get dark.

Joshed played the call of the Flammulated Owl, and we heard it respond. We were in that general area from 10:10 pm until 11:30. In that time we heard four different Flammulated Owls but we never saw them. But “heard only” still qualifies the bird for the eBird list, giving us another lifer!

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We stopped here for a quick breakfast before heading to Wyoming and Yellowstone National Park. Bill was on his toes and got a photo of the Clark’s Nutcracker.

Shoshone National Forest, Cody, Wyoming

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A few photos from the red Lodge area.

  We stopped at a lot of places looking for various high elevation birds. There was a lot of sage brush and we found two birds named after it, the Sage Thrasher and the Sagebrush Sparrow, below.       The Gray Flycatcher was found here in Bear Canyon along with the Mountain Chickadee.

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The tiny blue dot shows where we were the morning of June 18th. There is grass as far as you can see until the foothills appear. 

 This is almost lush compared to the short, dry grass we saw yesterday. The difference in habitat means we’ll find different birds. Our first sighting of the Sprague’s Pipit came soon after we got here. This description from the Montana Government website describes what we witnessed. “The bird is most easily detected by its unique flight song given high overhead (as high as 75 meters); a high-pitched, thin “jingling” sound that can continue for as long as an hour (Peterson 2002, King 1981). Johnsgard (1992) notes that the species’ spectacular circular song-flight display around its territory, during which its white outer tail feathers are conspicuously spread, compensates for its particularly inconspicuous plumage.” No photos of this bird since it was high in the sky when we saw it. Another lifer was the Chestnut-collared Longspur (left). This is a sparrow-like bird with a black breast, a golden face and a bright chestnut-colored collar. 

We drove to another spot nearby, with the same type of habitat, and we heard another Sprague’s Pipit. We heard Western Meadowlarks, Savannah Sparrows and Thick-billed Longspurs and finally- Baird’s Sparrow,  Singing his heart out.  

Our next stop was to look for the owl that makes its home underground. He was easy to find-just look for Prairie Dog! The Burrowing Owl nests in abandoned Prairie Dog burrows.  The dogs and the owls seem to get along just fine.

We continued to travel east and south, stopping here and there for roadside birds, Josh keeping his window cracked, listening for any bird singing. We stopped at Pictograph Cave State Park where we saw the Rock Wren, Lazuli Bunting and a few other species. No Canyon Wren which was too bad because it has a beautiful song.

We drove on to Beartooth Pass. We hiked to an area with huge red boulders.                                    Flitting around were some small very dark birds that showed some pink as they flew. These were Black Rosy-Finches, only seen at high elevations. Also seen were Mountain Bluebirds!

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We had an uneventful flight and were in the van birding by 1:20 pm Mountain time. Our first stop was a yard with feeders at the foot of some mountains. Here we saw some old friends (Calliope Hummingbird, Evening Grosbeak, Western Tanager) and our first lifer-the Cassin’s Finch. It looks like a Purple Finch but the details of the plumage differ. We had good looks at all the birds and plenty of time for photos.

We then continued to drive up into the mountains where we got some of the usual western birds, including Ravens and Western Grebes. We had dinner that night at a brewpub.

The morning of the 17th we got up early and headed for the Bridger Mountains, There we found another lifer, the MacGillivray’s Warbler. We missed the Three-toed Woodpecker however.

We stopped at a reservoir that had a beautiful view of the distant mountains but we were all looking at birds!

By mid-afternoon we were in the shortgrass prairie northeast of Bozeman. The landscape was flat and dry and sparsely covered with short tufts of dry-looking grass. Not beautiful scenery but exactly the habitat preferred by the Mountain Plover. It didn’t take long for Josh to spot the adult plover in the distance, foraging in the grass. After closer observation we saw that she had two chicks with her. This species has a status of “near-threatened” and Josh was excited to document a bird with young. Heat shimmer and distance prevented a better photo.

Also seen here was McGown’s Longspur, recently renamed Thick-billed Longspur. We checked a few more spots on the prairie and found Chestnut-collared Longspur, Horned Larks, hawks, and Long-billed Curlew. We finished the day with a Sage Thrasher and a Merlin, Prairie subspecies.

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Here is a recap in photos of a great celebration. Thanks everyone for sharing the photos and videos.

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140 Days, 193 Species

Dad and I have been getting out and seeing a lot of birds. Our day starts at Waukegan Beach at ten minutes before sunrise, CDT. We usually catch up with Nat and Gustavo, who are always a little bit ahead of us. They are both in their late forties, husbands and fathers, who manage to spend their early mornings on the beach. Both are very good birders. I’m not sure we would find half as many species without their help. Nat is a skilled photographer and Gustavo is a bird guide transplanted to Lake County from Honduras, via Canada. We usually see other birders as the morning progresses but we sometimes have the beach to ourselves. There have been a few days where I have birded somewhere else and I always miss something good at the beach. Waukegan Beach is mainly famous among birders for it’s many shorebirds. Sandpipers, Plovers, Dowitchers, Phalaropes and Godwits all fit into this category. The Wilson’s Phalarope is the current rare bird at Waukegan. I missed them yesterday but I was lucky and it stayed around for everyone to see them today. In breeding plumage the female is the bright, showy bird and the male is drab. This is because the male incubates the eggs and needs to be more camouflaged. They won’t breed here, they’re just passing through.

Yesterday we had Short-billed Dowitchers, nearly fifty of them. They arrived in groups of about fifteen, flying low over the dune. We rarely see them on the beach.

Another rare shorebird, discovered by Gustavo, was the Marbled Godwit. A large shorebird with a very long bill, it is called marbled as a description of it’s brown patterned plumage.

Warblers have been slow in arriving. The beach doesn’t have habitat for all the warbler species but many do stop on their way up north. They hang around the trees near the parking lot and along the channel by the water plant.

I will have to continue this tomorrow, as I can hear Dad slicing and dicing in the kitchen.

Hope all is well with everyone. Can’t wait unti June!!

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With this bitter cold weather we have been staying in and monitoring our bird feeders. We added a few new ones and put new seed on the feeder Jessica gave us. Here is a shot from the library window showing all the birds at once!

This involved learning some new processes in Photoshop via YouTube. Always something to learn.

Dad and I are fine. We are going to Greenbelt Forest Preserve Cultural Center tomorrow to get the first of our Covid Vaccine shots. The clinic was made possible by partners including AbbVie. Thank you Roger for encouraging us to get this done.

And Congratulations to Max!!! Way to go! We’ll be watching Tuesday night.