Big Year Update- April So Far

Spring in northern Illinois. Is there even a word in the english language that can describe what happens in northern Illinois in April? Absolutely! The word is unpredictable! As an example, our high temperature this past Saturday, was 78 degrees. Two days later, our lows were in the mid-20's and we were dealing with over an inch of snow accumulation! But unpredictability has its upsides as well, as we never know what goodies are in store for us. Birders and birdwatchers keep a keen eye on the weather. Warming temperatures mean that migration is quickly coming. Now is the time where many radars and wind maps are looked at and scrutinized by people who wish to maximize their time outdoors, searching for the birds that brighten up the landscape throughout the Spring and Summer. Southerly winds overnight, will usually mean more birds the next day, and more diversity. But it is that diversity, that we can only guess about. Nobody knows for certain what that next southerly flow will bring! Unpredictable is the word. But there is another...

Exciting.

April has brought mostly expected species to Kane County. But, there have been some notably early arrivals per my observations. Below is how April 1st-15th broke down for me. You can see the date of the outing, and what the outing produced in terms of new year birds.

April 2nd

Sharp-Shinned Hawk
Winter Wren

Brown Thrasher

April 4th

Bonaparte's Gull

April 5th

Ross's Goose
Western Meadowlark
Eastern Towhee
White-Throated Sparrow
American Golden-Plover (a little early, but there it was)

April 7th

Ring-Necked Pheasant

April 10th

Chipping Sparrow
Barn Swallow
Ruby-Crowned Kinglet
Great Egret

Osprey

April 11th

Northern Rough-Winged Swallow

April 12th

Purple Martin
Savannah Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow

April 13th

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher
Swamp Sparrow

All in all, a total of 21 new birds in a span of 15 days. Not too shabby. But, by far and away, my favorite day of birding so far this month, was today (the 16th).

Tuesday night I was game-planning for what would hopefully be a productive morning of birding. I knew that I had to go for something hard, rather than something easy. Seeing as I completely dipped on the Louisiana Waterthrush Scott C. had found on the 13th, I had to give it another try. So the plan was to hit Gunnar-Anderson and Fabyan in the a.m. It was at this time, I found out fellow Kane County birder, Marion M., was planning on birding tomorrow morning as well. We both planned on checking different areas for Louisiana Waterthrush, and would give each other a call should one of us be successful.

Wednesday morning was very cool, with moderate winds out of the south. Not too bad of a morning for birding if you had layers (thankfully I did). As I approached the Gunnar-Anderson ravine, a pair of Wood Ducks flew into the tree right above me, and two Chipping Sparrows chased each other on the open lawn. Oh yeah, this was going to be good. And just before entering the woods, a low-flying Osprey gave me a great look at it. I love this day already!

The ravine was surprisingly quiet overall, with not even a Yellow-Rumped Warbler heard or seen. But as usual, the ever-present Winter Wren was a delight. Not much else was going on, so it was time to head out. As I headed back to the parking lot, I saw that the Chipping Sparrows had added a couple of friends to their little group. They turned out to be another Chipping Sparrow, a Song Sparrow, and my first of year Field Sparrow! So it was productive after all! And now, onwards to Fabyan!

Fabyan Forest Preserve would be a good hike to get back to where I needed to be. But along the way, Hermit Thrushes kept me company, as did Black-Capped Chickadees. As I got closer and closer to the creek I heard and saw more and more. Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers were all over, along with a Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, many Red-Bellied Woodpeckers, and another Winter Wren. A Yellow-Rumped Warbler sat just above the creek, and three Eastern Phoebes flew up and down the creek corridor. Still no Louisiana Waterthrush. I headed to the west end of the creek, and saw something in the water. Two Hermit Thrushes were splashing about in the creek, and another bird flew and headed for cover. This bird however, was not very good at hiding, as it kept bobbing its backside up and down, it had to be it!

And it was! The Louisiana Waterthrush! Even more special because it was not only a year bird, but a lifer, my first ever of this species!!

Louisiana Waterthrush

I enjoyed the bird for 10-15 minutes, and gave Marion a ring, feeling triumphant. There was no answer at first, but she called back soon enough and we planned to meet at the parking lot so I could take them to it. I took one more look, and headed back up the trail. Fifteen minutes later we were on our way back to the creek. I led the way at a rather brisk pace, in order to get them to it before it disappeared. We made good time back to the spot, and were on the way back to it, until Marion called out that she had something else...

"I think I have a Kentucky (Warbler)."

(Slow, and excited turnabout.)

"What?"

"I think I see a Kentucky Warbler"

"Where?"

As I struggled to get on the bird, the anticipation of possibly another lifer began to get to me. I scrambled, frantically scanning with my binoculars. Then, a flash of brilliant yellow...

"I think it's actually a Hooded Warbler." I said with absolutely no disappointment whatsoever because either bird would be a great find and a lifer. And after photographing it, and talking it over, the chinstrap sealed the deal, a male Hooded Warbler!

Hooded Warbler

April 16th, and my warbler list for the year consists of Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, and Hooded Warbler. Two of those three are outstanding, especially before even getting a Palm Warbler!! But in all the excitement of having a Hooded (which sat in exactly the same spot on the forest floor for the next 10 minutes), Marion and I had forgotten to look for the Louisiana Waterthrush. Thankfully, Rich M. was all over it, as when the thought occurred to me, he called out "Louisiana".

We joined him, and Rich and Marion were able to enjoy good looks. Congratulations to Rich for the lifer too! We later lost track of the Hooded, but as we watched the Louisiana Waterthrush, it magically reappeared downstream. For a brief time, we had both warblers in the same binocular view! Both warblers were vocal at times, and the Hooded Warbler was actively hawking over the creek. Great way to get two lifers!! Another Winter Wren just added to the pure bliss I was feeling.

This concludes the first half of April for me, as I end the 16th sitting at 131 for the year, an increase by 24 since the 1st of April! I will be out of state for a little while, but that just means that I'll be writing about new places elsewhere! Stay tuned, we're just getting started...