Photo: Yellow-billed cuckoo by Helen Aikman
Hello everyone,
It was a very hot and humid morning – we were all melting by the end of the walk. But, we managed to find 35 species which isn’t too bad for an unpleasant summer day when the birds and their watchers were moving slowly.
The Green Heron juveniles have left their nest and moved on to their adult adventures. We found the Cedar Waxwing on its nest again this week and we look forward to seeing the chicks when they arrive. A number of Cliff Swallows were perched on the museum, including several juveniles.
An Eastern Kingbird ate a cicada that was almost as large as its head. And we spotted a flyover Peregrine Falcon who was being unmercifully harassed by swallows (which were too far away for a positive ID).
BIRDERS: Kristin, Leslie, Cheryl, Marian, Mike, Mark, Jennie, Jim, Lillian, Joy, Ryan, Eric, Letty, Jane, Ezra, Becky, Tracy, Miyoko, Peter, Marisa and welcome to Elizabeth, Stone and Yuntao.
TIME: 8:00am to 11:15am
WEATHER: Sunny, 70s to 80s, very humid.
Compiler: Cheryl
Photographer Extraordinaire: Tracy
Canada Goose Number observed: 19
Wood Duck Number observed: 5
Mallard Number observed: 1
Chimney Swift Number observed: 13
Ruby-throated Hummingbird Number observed: 2
Ring-billed Gull Number observed: 1
Caspian Tern Number observed: 2
Double-crested Cormorant Number observed: 3
Great Blue Heron Number observed: 4
Great Egret Number observed: 1
Green Heron Number observed: 4
Black-crowned Night-Heron Number observed: 1
Peregrine Falcon Number observed: 1
Eastern Phoebe Number observed: 2
Eastern Kingbird Number observed: 8
American Crow Number observed: 12
Black-capped Chickadee Number observed: 2
Purple Martin Number observed: 53
Barn Swallow Number observed: 14
Cliff Swallow Number observed: 15
White-breasted Nuthatch Number observed: 1
House Wren Number observed: 4
European Starling Number observed: 3
Gray Catbird Number observed: 2
American Robin Number observed: 2
Cedar Waxwing Number observed: 3
House Sparrow Number observed: 3
House Finch Number observed: 3
American Goldfinch Number observed: 4
Song Sparrow Number observed: 3
Baltimore Oriole Number observed: 6
Red-winged Blackbird Number observed: 3
Yellow Warbler Number observed: 2
Northern Cardinal Number observed: 2
Indigo Bunting Number observed: 1
If you’d like more information about a bird, check out the All About Birds ID guide:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/
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