White-winged Scoters
Piping Plover (click to see the larger version)
A juvenile Piping Plover was at Montrose Beach on July 26 and 27. Montrose Beach is best known as the home of Monty and Rose, but it also hosts migrant Piping Plovers that are going to or coming from other parts of the Great Lakes and possibly the Great Plains. This Piping Plover was not banded, so where it came from is unknowable.
Sanderlings (click to see the larger version)
An impressive flight of shorebirds took place on the morning of July 24. These birds were probably grounded by the rain that lasted most of the early morning, and may have been moving ahead of an approaching cold front, as migrating summer shorebirds often do. My list includes
Semipalmated Plover – 1
Ruddy Turnstone – 3
Sanderling – 60
Least Sandpiper – 1
Pectoral Sandpiper – 2
Semipalmated Sandpiper – 16
Short-billed Dowitcher – 4
Lesser Yellowlegs – 3
Except for the Sanderlings, most of these birds didn’t stay long. This is typical summer shorebird behavior at Montrose. Link to my eBird checklist for the morning below.
eBird Checklist
July 24, 2022
Yellow-rumped Warbler (click to see the larger version)
July isn’t the most notable month for rarities at Montrose, but this July is proving to be the exception to that rule. On July 18 I found an adult male Yellow-rumped Warbler in full breeding plumage. I can’t think of a month less likely for Yellow-rumpeds in Chicago than July. Yellow-rumped Warblers nest in the northern United States and throughout Canada and that’s where they should be in July. Talk about an anomaly.
Even more anomalous than a July Yellow-rumped Warbler is a July Townsend’s Solitaire. On July 18 Mark Kolasa found one at Montrose. Townsend’s Solitaires are birds of the western United States and Canada and shouldn’t be anywhere near Illinois or the Midwest in July, though they are rare but regular visitors to our state in winter. This bird was seriously misoriented, but remember, the misoriented birds make birding magical.
White-rumped Sandpiper (click to see the larger version)
We’re seeing the expected mid summer southbound migrant shorebirds like Least Sandpipers and Willets, but a White-rumped Sandpiper on July 3 was a surprise. Which way was this bird going? White-rumpeds are late spring migrants; we often see a few well into June but July birds are harder to interpret. I suspect this bird is a very tardy northbound migrant since we were seeing White-rumpeds in mid and late June, and we usually don’t get southbound birds until late August at the earliest.
Even more inexplicable was a Hermit Thrush near the Marovitz Golf Course. Hermit Thrushes are early spring and later fall migrants in northern Illinois. Most spring birds have moved on by early May and the first fall birds don’t start appearing before late September. In other words, Hermit Thrushes shouldn’t be in Chicago in July. Obviously this bird is confused.
eBird Checklist
July 3, 2022
Imani (click to see the larger version)
Imani, the young male Piping Plover and son of Rose and Monty, was still at Montrose in late June. His behavior has changed dramatically however. In late May and early June we would often hear him calling before we saw him and his slow motion flight display over the Dunes was an aerodynamic sight to behold. He was feeling his oats and ready to start a family and carry on Monty and Rose’s lineage. By late June the displaying and aggressive behavior towards other birds had stopped. He became harder to find and even disappeared for a few days. A female Piping Plover never showed up, which is probably the reason for Imani’s more subdued behavior. How long he will stay at Montrose is uncertain. Without a mate and the potential for a family he doesn’t have much incentive to hang around. The good news is that Imani is young, only about a year old, and there’s always next year.
Semipalmated Sandpiper (click to see the larger version)
Here we are, two full weeks into June and we’re still getting a few late spring migrants at Montrose. Historically, Semipalmated Sandpipers are one of the last northbound migrants we see. This one was dancing with its shadow at Montrose Beach on June 17. In just a couple weeks the first southbound shorebirds will start appearing. There almost isn’t a time when migration isn’t happening.