Hello everyone,

It was a lovely morning to be out birding.  We heard our Yellow-billed Cuckoo but couldn’t find it once again. We noticed that there were only a few Red-winged Blackbirds, and they were all females or juveniles, so this confirms that autumn is approaching.  We saw Indigo Buntings and Ruby-throated Hummingbirds but our friendly pair wasn’t in their usual spot.  Did the buddies have a falling-out? We also saw many juvenile Orioles, although we weren’t sure if they were Baltimore or Orchard, but it’s nice to know that we welcomed several more Orioles into the world.

BIRDERS:  Brendan, Jim, Cheryl, Marian, Eric, Marisa, Karin, Jennie

TIME:   8:00am to 10:45am    

WEATHER: Sunny and in the 70s

Thank you to Cheryl for sharing her list.

 Canada Goose   43

Wood Duck     3

Mallard       15

Yellow-billed Cuckoo   1   Details: Heard calling by the Music Bridge

Chimney Swift   9

Ruby-throated Hummingbird  2

Spotted Sandpiper   1

Caspian Tern 2 

Double-crested Cormorant   2

Great Blue Heron   2

Great Egret   2    Details: 1 Flyover, 1 in the water SE corner of Lagoon

Green Heron   2

Red-tailed Hawk   1      Details:  Flyover- Being chased by smaller birds

Downy Woodpecker 2

Northern Flicker   1

Eastern Phoebe   2

Eastern Kingbird   5

Warbling Vireo    2

Black-capped Chickadee   2

Northern Rough-winged Swallow  2

Purple Martin X

Barn Swallow   X

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher   7

House Wren   2

European Starling   5

Gray Catbird   3

Eastern Bluebird   1   Details: On the ground near the Purple Martin houses

American Robin   20

Cedar Waxwing   8

American Goldfinch   11

Chipping Sparrow   1

Song Sparrow   3

Baltimore Oriole   9

Red-winged Blackbird   9

Brown-headed Cowbird   1

Yellow Warbler   5

Northern Cardinal   2

Indigo Bunting   2

Corrections, additions and comments are welcome.

Recordings are not used to attract birds.

The Walks are free and open to one and all. They are held year ‘round. Newcomers are warmly welcomed. 

Saturday morning walks: Start at 8:00 a.m. and cover a distance of two miles.  Birders walk from the meeting spot counterclockwise onto Wooded Island. Exiting Wooded Island at the south end, the birders walk along the soccer field and enter the south end of Bobolink Meadow. The Meadow’s path leads to the Music Bridge. After crossing the Music Bridge birders walk through the parking lot and around the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon) and return to our meeting spot.  In late fall, winter and early spring, the birders check for birds on the lakefront at the Outer Harbor near LaRabida Hospital and the Inner Harbor after the Wooded Island walk.

Meeting Spot:  Birders meet on the west shore of the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon).  Park on Stony Island Avenue near 59th Street, walk east across the parkland area, then cross Cornell Drive to reach the spot.

Good birding everyone,

Jennie

Photo: Eastern Kingbird by Robert Bunch/Audubon Photography Awards