Tag Archives: Rusty Blackbird

March 30, 2021 – Lots of Migrants

Rusty Blackbird

Rusty Blackbird (click to see the larger version)

As expected, the strong south winds brought a lot of migrants to Montrose Point on March 30. I ended up with 41 species in a little over two hours of effort, and 57 species were reported on eBird by all observers. Most impressive were the numbers of Northern Flickers coming in off Lake Michigan early in the morning. These birds were migrating north over the lake at night, and when the sun rose they started to head inland towards land and safety. No passerine or other landbird worth its life wants to get caught over Lake Michigan when the sun comes up. The local Peregrine Falcons and Herring Gulls relish hunting these tardy migrants as they make their way to shore. I also had multiple first of spring sightings, including Caspian Tern, Belted Kingfisher, Hermit Thrush, and Lapland Longspur. Link to my eBird checklist for the morning below.

eBird Checklist
March 30, 2021

March 8, 2021 – Sprung is Spring

Turkey Vulture

Turkey Vulture. Photo courtesy of Tamima Itani. (click to see the larger version)

It’s axiomatic among Chicago lakefront birders that southwest winds in spring produce lots of migrants. Today, March 8, reaffirmed that maxim. I ended up with 42 species in a couple of hours of birding, including a number of new birds for the year. Large numbers of blackbirds and Canada Geese were moving on the south winds, and we had a number of unusual sightings. Best for the morning were

Greater White-fronted Geese – 27
White-winged Scoter – 1
American Woodcock – 1
Turkey Vulture – 1
Merlin – 1
Rusty Blackbird – 2

The favorable conditions will continue for at least three more days, so birding should be good at Montrose for most of the rest of the week.

eBird Checklist
March 8, 2021

Montrose Unleashed, Part II, May 1, 2018

Franklin's Gull

Franklin’s Gull (click to see the larger version)

I took today off in anticipation of what I expected to be a great day of birding at Montrose Point in Chicago. It was fantastic, exceeding even my own optimistic expectations. The southwest winds brought in a ton of migrants – I’ve lost track of all the FOS’s I snatched up today. A review of eBird reports from Montrose shows about 125 species reported from about 20 submissions. This will probably go down as one of the best days this spring. My highlights include

Baird’s Sandpiper – Probably the same bird from yesterday. A very good spring bird for us.
Willet – 2
Franklin’s Gull – Older immature bird on the beach
All 6 regularly occurring swallows
All Catharus thrushes plus Wood Thrush. Excellent numbers of Swainson’s Thrushes.
19 species of warblers highlighted by Pine, Hooded, Blackpoll, Chestnut-sided, and Blackburnian
Grasshopper Sparrow – 1
Le Conte’s Sparrow – 1
Dickcissel – 1
Bobolink – 1
Orchard Oriole – 1
Rusty Blackbird – 1

I ended up with 102 species for the day, only the fourth time I’ve cracked the century mark at Montrose in the 30+ years of been birding the place.

eBird Checklist
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S45143092

White-winged Scoters and Long-tailed Duck, February 27, 2017

I spent about an hour and a half at Montrose this morning, February 27. I haven’t been birding Montrose much this winter, but I had the day off, so I thought I’d take advantage of it. I ended up with 27 species, highlighted by 2 northbound White-winged Scoters and a drake Long-tailed Duck, both seen from the end of the fishing pier as part of a brief lakewatch. I spent most of my time checking the lake and harbor, so my landbird total isn’t that impressive, but I did see a couple of Rusty Blackbirds near the Magic Hedge and an Eastern Meadowlark in the native planting area. Link to my eBird checklist below.

eBird Checklist
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S34839898

December 21, 2016

Northern Harrier

Northern Harrier (click to see the larger version)

I spent about an hour and a half at Montrose this morning, December 21. It certainly looked and felt like winter, with a thin layer of ice on Lake Michigan all the way to the horizon. As expected for this time of year, diversity was low. I ended up with 25 species, highlighted by a nice adult male Northern Harrier, the continuing female Rusty Blackbird, and hundreds of Common Mergansers. When I think of an emblematic Lake Michigan winter bird, I think of the Common Merganser, a hardy duck that can survive our brutal winters with just a little open water to find fish to eat. Link to my eBird checklist below.

eBird Checklist
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S33128914

December 11, 2011

Savannah Sparrow

Savannah Sparrow (click to see the larger version)

I took advantage of the break in the snowstorm to get some birding in this morning, December 11. I don’t expect to see much at this time of the year, but I did have a few surprises, highlighted by a late Savannah Sparrow near the mouth of the harbor. I also had an immature Northern Harrier in the Dunes, 15 Redheads, 2 American Pipits that probably wish they had flown south, and a Rusty Blackbird. Several American Pipits have been holding on in the native planting area for a few weeks. Link to my eBird checklist below.

eBird Checklist
http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S32965309