White-winged Scoters
Peregrine Falcon with Northern Flicker (click to see the larger version)
As I was leaving Montrose on Sunday I noticed some movement almost directly above me just under the canopy of a tall Honey Locust. When I looked with my bins I saw a juvenile Peregrine Falcon grasping a deceased Northern Flicker. The Peregrine had captured the Flicker and was eating it in comfort under the cover of the canopy. I took a few pics and let the bird eat breakfast in peace.
The Birds of Illinois list on the Illinois Ornithological Society website has been updated to reflect taxonomic changes and recent additions and removals. The list is available for downloading as Word, RTF, Excel, and PDF documents. Go to the Birds of Illinois page on the IOS website.
Montrose was fairly slow this morning, September 22, at least compared to the reports from the day before. It seems like it’s always like this. My best find was a Nelson’s Sparrow in the meadow northeast of the Magic Hedge, the first of hopefully many more to come. I also had a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, a somewhat early Golden-crowned Kinglet, and a couple American Pipits on the beach.
On a side note, today’s Nelson’s Sparrow represents a birding milestone for me, the first time in 35 years at this game that I’ve seen all 7 Ammodramus sparrows in the same year. I had Baird’s Sparrow in North Dakota in May, Saltmarsh and Seaside Sparrows in Delaware in August, and LeConte’s, Henslow’s, and Grasshopper Sparrows in the Midwest in the spring.
Olive-sided Flycatcher (click to see the larger version)
I walked around Montrose for a little while this morning. I didn’t see any unusual shorebirds (a Buff-breasted Sandpiper was seen on 8/29) but there was activity around the water feature and Magic Hedge. Best was an Olive-sided Flycatcher that moved between the water feature and adjacent Honey Locusts. I also had a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Least Flycatcher, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, a couple Swainson’s Thrushes feeding on mulberries in the Magic Hedge, Tennessee Warbler, and American Redstart.
Yellow-headed Blackbird (click to see the larger version)
A Yellow-headed Blackbird, probably an immature male, was on the beach inside the protected area at Montrose this morning.
Other birds seen at Montrose this a.m. include 2 flyby juvenile Forster’s Terns, 3 Semipalmated Plovers, and a flyover Common Nighthawk.
If you go to Montrose at this time of the year I wouldn’t recommend wearing short pants as the flies can be particularly vicious.
Two Whimbrels flew over the east end of Montrose Beach this morning. This was about 6:30. They continued southeast over Lake Michigan and didn’t act like they were going to stop or come back. This is prime time for Whimbrels along Lake Michigan.
Other birds seen at Montrose Beach this a.m. include 9 Semipalmated Plovers, 2 Baird’s Sandpipers, a Lesser Yellowlegs, 2 Sanderlings, single Least and Semipalmated Sandpipers, and a group of about 8 Forster’s Terns.
I went back out in the afternoon and had a Lark Sparrow in the native planting area near the tower. This was most unexpected as Lark Sparrows are very rare at Montrose in the summer and fall.