Photo: Eastern Bluebird by John Larson
Hello everyone,
Choosing the highlight for today’s report was easy – we had a flyover adult Bald Eagle! The Canada Geese that were lounging on the east lagoon suddenly and noisily took flight so we knew a predator was about, and sure enough, there was the eagle flying northwest over the park. It was paying no attention to the geese and looked like it was anxious to get somewhere.
It was nice to have a few Common Goldeneye in the lagoons and we were treated to a Merganser trifecta (to replace the summer Heron trifecta), with Hooded, Red-breasted and Common Mergansers.
It was a lovely morning!
BIRDERS: Jim, Lillian, Mike, Kristin, Marian, Lucy, Rob, Jennie, Karin, Cheryl, Leslie, Jane, Eric, Bruce, Ellen, Venyar, Wendy, Renate.
TIME: 8:00am to 11:30am
WEATHER: Sunny, low to mid 30s
Compiler: Cheryl
Wooded Island/Bobolink Meadow
Canada Goose Number observed: 223
Wood Duck Number observed: 3
Mallard Number observed: 12
Bufflehead Number observed: 2
Common Goldeneye Number observed: 3
Hooded Merganser Number observed: 5
Common Merganser Number observed: 4
Red-breasted Merganser Number observed: 29
Ring-billed Gull Number observed: 4
Great Blue Heron Number observed: 5
Bald Eagle Number observed: 1
Belted Kingfisher Number observed: 1
Red-bellied Woodpecker Number observed: 1
Downy Woodpecker Number observed: 4
Hairy Woodpecker Number observed: 1
American Crow Number observed: 3
Black-capped Chickadee Number observed: 4
European Starling Number observed: 1
American Robin Number observed: 1
House Sparrow Number observed: 24
American Goldfinch Number observed: 5
Dark-eyed Junco Number observed: 1
White-throated Sparrow Number observed: 1
Northern Cardinal Number observed: 10
Inner Harbor
Canada Goose Number observed: 63
Greater Scaup Number observed: 14
Bufflehead Number observed: 6
Red-breasted Merganser Number observed: 18
Ring-billed Gull Number observed: 30
Herring Gull Number observed: 2
Black-capped Chickadee 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