Tag Archives: Long-eared Owl

April 24, 2021 – Quite the Day

The forecast for April 24 called for rain, so I planned on spending the day inside doing chores and such. When I woke up and checked the news, the forecast indicated most of the rain would occur south of Chicago, so I headed over to Montrose for some late April birding. Good choice as it turned out to be the best day of the spring so far. The trees and shrubs were dripping with Swamp and White-throated Sparrows, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Hermit Thrushes, and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. Many of these birds were in the tops of trees feasting on swarms of small insects. I ended up with 66 species in almost four hours, and about 80 species were reported to eBird by all observers. I had multiple personal first-of-spring sightings. My highlights include

Willet – 3
White-faced Ibis – 1, first site record
Long-eared Owl – 1
Grasshopper Sparrow – 1
Northern Parula – 1
Pine Warbler – 1

The White-faced Ibis was on the protected beach early in the morning. It did not stay long. We’ve had multiple Long-eared Owls in the last week in what has been one of the best springs I can remember for them. Link to my eBird checklist for the morning below.

eBird Checklist
April 24, 2021

April 23, 2021 – A Strange Day

Virginia Rail

Virginia Rail on the revetment (click to see the larger version)

You know you’re doing well when you see a Short-eared Owl, two Long-eared Owls, and a Virginia Rail within a couple hours on the same day. All four were at Montrose on April 23. The Short-eared was flying over Lake Michigan, as Short-eareds are wont to do at Montrose during migration. The Long-eareds were roosting in vegetation and were pointed out to me by different people. The biggest surprise was the Virginia Rail. I saw it walking on the concrete revetment at the southeast corner of the Point, not exactly prime rail habitat. In addition to these morsels, there were also good numbers of Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. The southwest winds the night before did us and the birds good. Over 70 species were recorded by all observers on eBird, the highest daily total of the year so far. My eBird checklist has more photos, URL below.

eBird Checklist
April 23, 2021

Long-eared Owl, February 21, 2020

Long-eared Owl

Long-eared Owl (click to see the larger version)

Black-capped Chickadees brighten cold Chicago winter days with their energy and charm. They’re also good at finding roosting owls. Without the scolding of the local chickadees, I would have walked right by this Long-eared Owl. I said this before and it’s worth repeating: if you hear complaining chickadees, pay attention and see what they have. There might be a pleasant surprise waiting for you. Back in November, these chickadees found a Northern Saw-Whet-Owl for me.

eBird Checklist
February 21, 2020

Long-eared and Short-eared Owls, April 1, 2014

I had both Long-eared and Short-eared Owls this morning, April 1. The Short-eared Owl flushed from the dunes at the east end of the beach and flew out over the lake. This is fairly typical behavior for Short-eareds at Montrose. The Long-eared owl was roosting comfortably in the protected area on the east side of the Point. I saw nothing else of note.

Long-eared and Short-eared Owls, April 13, 2013

Long-eared Owl. Photo by Kanae Hirabayashi. (click to see the larger version)

Both Long-eared and Short-eared Owls were at Montrose on Saturday, April 13. The Long-eared Owl was roosting in a vine tangle near the Magic Hedge and the Short-eared Owl was flying around the point. Two Long-eared Owls were in the same area the day before. Seeing both Asio owls in the same day at Montrose is unusual, and I can’t remember the last time I’ve done this. It continues to be an unusually cold spring in the Midwest and as a result migration is behind schedule.