The Day of the Hawk: 12 Nov 2019
Hey all!
It was an undeniably beautiful day here in northeast Illinois. It was chilly (high of 18°F and felt several degrees colder with the wind chill), but the sunlight reflecting off of yesterday's snow made everything so bright. I spent a few hours birding with the time split between the North Unit of Illinois Beach State Park, the Spring Bluff Forest Preserve, and the Chiwaukee Plain Nature Preserve in Wisconsin (which encompasses the northern portion of the Chiwaukee Illinois Beach Lake Plain Ramsar site). I saw a variety of birds today, a few of which were new to me.
I'm referring to this day as the "The Day of the Hawk" because I saw more today than I've seen on all of my other outings combined. I wasn't able to get great pictures of each one, but it was incredible to see so many. Also, the waves and cold air created some amazing ice formations along the shoreline. In spite of the cold, I had a great time exploring. Here are some of the highlights:
Not pictured are new species to my eBird database: Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula), Greater Scaup (Aythya marila), and Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum).
It was an undeniably beautiful day here in northeast Illinois. It was chilly (high of 18°F and felt several degrees colder with the wind chill), but the sunlight reflecting off of yesterday's snow made everything so bright. I spent a few hours birding with the time split between the North Unit of Illinois Beach State Park, the Spring Bluff Forest Preserve, and the Chiwaukee Plain Nature Preserve in Wisconsin (which encompasses the northern portion of the Chiwaukee Illinois Beach Lake Plain Ramsar site). I saw a variety of birds today, a few of which were new to me.
I'm referring to this day as the "The Day of the Hawk" because I saw more today than I've seen on all of my other outings combined. I wasn't able to get great pictures of each one, but it was incredible to see so many. Also, the waves and cold air created some amazing ice formations along the shoreline. In spite of the cold, I had a great time exploring. Here are some of the highlights:
Look closely at the horizon for a glimpse of the Chicago skyline.
Lake Michigan's high water has overwhelmed the breakwaters along Illinois Beach State Park's North Unit.
Male Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)
I startled this guy after I took the first picture so he flew to another tree and hid on the other side of the trunk. Every so often he would pop his head out like this to see if I was still there. This went on for a few minutes - he had me laughing the whole time!
He soon realized I wasn't a threat and resumed his duties.
This Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) was kiting over a shallow pond in the Illinois Beach State Park North Unit. I only saw it flap its wings a few times in almost five minutes. Very cool to watch!
Red-tailed Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Tree Sparrow (Spizella arborea)
American Tree Sparrow
Red-tailed Hawk
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)
Red-tailed Hawk and one of two American Crows that chased it away a few moments later.
Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)
Female Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)
Not pictured are new species to my eBird database: Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula), Greater Scaup (Aythya marila), and Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum).
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