One day after the Gull Frolic on February 12th, a small group of birders joined gull expert, Amar Ayyash, and Gull Frolic speaker, Jean Iron, for a day of birding along the Lake Michigan lakeshore. The main target of this excursion was winter gulls and waterfowl. Much like the Gull Frolic finding masses of gulls was extremely difficult without the ice cover that would normally be found on a Chicago winter day along the lake. Birders assembled on this balmy winter day (topping out at 50 degrees) at the Calumet River Turning Basin Number 5 at 8:30 am. Almost immediately at 8:30 am the continuing second cycle California Gull was spotted and gave a brief flyby before disappearing down the river. With few gulls in the area overall, Amar eagerly chummed hoping to bring in something else good for the group to no avail. After the California Gull left us the only other gulls observed were Ring-billed and Herring gulls circling the basin, with a couple Common and Red-breasted Mergansers flying by.
Scoping for Gulls on Lake Michigan
The group then started a caravan for the BP warm water outlet in Whiting, IN. Along the way we made a brief stop on 126th where a Red-shouldered Hawk was spotted perched on a power line along the roadside. After everyone got a look at the hawk the caravan continued to Whiting where about 70 gulls were present near the BP outlet. Among the flock of primarily Herring Gulls we picked up 5 Great Black-backed Gulls and 18 Common Goldeneye out further in the lake. However, those were the only new birds for the day at this stop despite Amar’s effort to chum the beach. From Whiting, the group headed to Calumet Park which lacked in birds other than the couple hundred Canada Geese near shore in the water. After that brief stop the group headed to Jackson Park which netted a few more duck species: Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Greater Scaup, and Bufflehead, in addition to other birds such as American Coot and American Crow. However, there were once again few gulls so this proved to be our last stop of the trip. Maybe not the most exciting winter birding day, but we definitely willed our way to a few good bird species on the day.
Thank you to all that attended the trip and Amar for leading the group down and up the lakeshore!
Species totals:
200 Canada Goose
14 Mallard
3 Redhead
1 Ring-necked Duck
21 Greater Scaup
3 Bufflehead
18 Common Goldeneye
2 Common Merganser
30 Red-breasted Merganser
1 Cooper’s Hawk
1 Red-shouldered Hawk
5 American Coot
40 Ring-billed Gull
60 Herring Gull
5 Great Black-backed Gull
11 American Crow
3 European Starling
1 Red-winged Blackbird
2 House Sparrow
Locations: BP Warm Water Outlet; Calumet Park, Chicago; Jackson Park, Chicago–Inner/Outer Harbors; Jackson Park, Chicago–north lakefront (56th St. to 62nd St.); Lake Calumet area–126th St Marsh/Hyde Lake Wetlands; Lake Calumet area–Calumet River Turning Basin Number 5
At the 2017 IOS Gull Frolic, IOS honored Denis Bohm and Geoff Williamson for their services to both IOS and the Illinois Birding Community. Each was the recipient of donated framed custom artwork, produced by a current or former member of Illinois Young Birders (ILYB).
Denis Bohm (left); Geoff Williamson (right)
Denis Bohm has been a long time fixture with IOS. Denis has served on the Board of Directors, held the Recording Secretary position, and most recently chaired the Recognition Committee. How fitting that he was recognized, right? Denis also continues the thankless job of picking up the IOS mail from its post office box. Denis received a drawing of a Yellow-headed Blackbird by ILYB alum, Nandu Dubey. Thank you, Denis!
Geoff Williamson is a former president of IOS and Board member, and currently the head of the Illinois Ornithological Records (IORC) and Ornithological Records Data Committees (ORDC). Geoff has worked tirelessly to ensure submissions of rare birds are documented and IORC decisions are swiftly communicated to the Illinois birding community. Geoff received a painting of Rufous Hummingbirds by current ILYB member, Luke Haberkorn. Congratulations, Geoff!
Neotropic Cormorant: Fulton (Central) – Corey Lange reported a NEOTROPIC CORMORANT at Thompson Lake in Fulton County on February 26th.
California Gull: Lake (North) – Adam Sell observed a first-cycle CALIFORNIA GULL at Channel Lake in Lake County on February 23rd.
Mew Gull: DuPage (North) – Mike Madsen reported a 2nd cycle MEW GULL from the 83rd St. Fluddle at Greene Valley Forest Preserve in DuPage County on February 18th.
Gyrfalcon: McLean (Central) – On the morning of February 13th, a Gyrfalcon was photographed by Tim Lindenbaum on N 3100 East Rd south of E 2450 North Rd. in Colfax, McLean County. Interestingly, a Gyrfalcon was observed and photographed in the same area last year.
California Gull: Cook (North) – A continuing second cycle California Gull was observed February 12th on the Calumet River near Deadstick Pond in Chicago, Cook County by Amar Ayyash and several observers.
IOS hosted the 16th annual Gull Frolic on Saturday, February 11th, at the Winthrop Harbor Yacht Club in the northeast corner of the state. As temperatures soared toward 50F degrees and without any ice for the gulls to rest on, despite our best efforts to chum them in, it quickly became apparent that gulls would be hard to come by on this day. Still, scoping Lake Michigan early in the morning, birders were treated to good views of a flyby Great Black-backed Gull, a handful of Long-tailed Ducks and about a dozen White-winged Scoters.
Jean Iron
Back inside the yacht club, attendees listened intently as Jean Iron passionately told of her shorebird surveys on the vast mudflats and coastal marshes of James Bay. Jean’s presentation focused on her shorebird research and James Bay’s specialty birds, including rufa Red Knots and Akimiski Island Marbled Godwits that were surprisingly found to winter in the Baja California, Mexico. Wow!
In addition to Jean’s presentation, several exhibitors had interactive tables at the event. Attendees could examine specimens of shorebirds and gulls with the Field Museum’s Doug Stotz or learn about Josh Engel’s new tour company, featuring trips to South Africa or northern Minnesota.
Of course, the food was not to be missed. Volunteers, Janice Sweet and Karen Lund, served up pizza and salad and the specialty of the Gull Frolic, seagull stew.
During lunch, IOS President, Matthew Cvetas, recognized long time IOS members, Denis Bohm and Geoff Williamson, with custom framed artwork by young birders, Nandu Dubey and Luke Haberkorn. Denis received a striking Yellow-headed Blackbird by Nandu and Geoff, a painting of Rufous Hummingbirds by Luke.
Gulling typically picks up after lunch and this year was no exception. Despite there being only about 100 gulls present, birders were still able to spot 2 Thayer’s Gulls and a Iceland (Kumlien’s) Gull in the feeding flock at close range. Many were able to obtain great photos of these white-wingers.
IOS would like to thank Amar Ayyash, Jean Iron, all our exhibitors, and volunteers for helping us put on another successful Frolic.
Join us next year for the premier gull watching event in the United States.
Join us for our annual LOONAPALOONZA with veteran “Loon Ranger,” David B. Johnson, as we travel in style on a mini-coach bus in search of migrating loons on the glacial lakes of Lake and McHenry Counties. Fee is $30/person. Space is limited to 24 participants.
California Gull: Cook (North) – On February 4th, a second cycle California Gull was photographed by Andrew Aldrich at Deadstick Pond in Chicago, Cook County.
The first thing I saw was a bird flying over me with a bright red belly. I got my binoculars on it and saw it land. The next thing I saw was a blue head and a green back, which is when I freaked out.
I went from confused to surprised to floored in what seemed like a second. It was an emotional roller coaster. I had trouble getting out an intelligible sentence because I was stunned. Luckily, I was able to get Ted Wolff on the bird, and only then was I able to take in what I was looking at. My heart was pounding in my chest while I was staring at this beautiful bird that I had hoped, but did not expect, to see. My breathing bordered on hyperventilation, but somehow I had the sense to snap a few pictures to confirm the sighting. That reflex proved to be unnecessary, however, because the bunting flew from the dense cottonwood tree above us to an exposed power line, where it perched in full view, singing for nearly ten minutes. I was in a state of euphoria watching this bird.
The moment I rediscovered the bunting is one that will be etched in my mind forever.
Background
Painted Bunting by Douglas Hommert
I should provide some background on the trip to East St. Louis, and the sighting of the Painted Bunting on May 29, 2016.
I actually had this bird on my state list for a few years. Early in my birding career my family stopped at Front Street in East St. Louis during our vacation. We heard a distant Painted Bunting singing, but never saw it. At the time I decided that was enough to count it. While going through my state list a few years ago, I chose to remove the Painted Bunting because, while I heard what I thought was its song, I was not sure I could eliminate other similar songs due to my lack of experience. Thus Painted Bunting became one of my biggest nemesis birds. The number of sightings in surrounding states, combined with the lack of sightings in Illinois, began to annoy me, so I decided to check the place most likely to have them.
I was not convinced they were still around. In fact, I was convinced that the buntings left years ago. However, this is the only place in Illinois where they were reliable at in the past, so I figured it would be the best place to start looking for them.
The last sighting I can remember of Painted Bunting in the state was in Iroquois County, in 2012, and I believe that bird was on private property. The last sighting in East St. Louis was in 2011, about a mile south of where we re-found the bird. I chased the 2011 bird, but my dad and I struck out. I believe the last time that breeding was confirmed along Front Street was 2008.
Research
I wanted to do more than drive to Front Street and start looking, so I did some research. My two main sources of information were the IBET archives and eBird. Together these made me confident that I had not missed any reports. I then messaged the people that seemed to have the most experience in finding the buntings for advice on where to look. A few years prior, when my dad and I tried for the bunting to no avail, I had messaged multiple southern Illinois birders. I therefore knew that Dan Kassebaum and Keith McMullen would be the most likely to help, both because of their general birding knowledge, their specific knowledge of the Metro St. Louis area, and also because of their generous spirits; it seems like they are always willing to share their knowledge and help out other birders. Dan has been checking for the buntings multiple times every year, so he was able to give me as much information as I needed.
Memorial Day birding trip
I got in touch with Ted Wolff, with whom I have had good luck chasing birds, from our first trips in 2013 for a Harlequin Duck at 63rd Street in Chicago and the Spotted Redshank at Goose Pond, Indiana, which was our first long-distance trip,
This trip had a major, but not a single, focus. We hoped to see a number of rarities, knowing full well we had little to no chance of getting some, but if you don’t look you definitely won’t see!
The bird we thought we had the best chance of getting was a Brown Pelican that had been seen at Melvin Price Lock and Dam in Alton, on the Mississippi River, but unfortunately it has not been reported for a week prior to the trip. We went there first on Saturday afternoon, May 28, and missed it. We went back Saturday evening, and again Sunday morning before seeing the Painted Bunting, but we missed it every time.
Other target birds included White-winged Dove (reported outside of Springfield the day before we left), Western Kingbird, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Black Rail (the unlikeliest of them all), and more southern Illinois specialties.
Ted picked me up early in the morning, and we left Oak Park and headed for the White-winged Dove spot in Menard County, where we ran into Phil Doncheck and enjoyed the hospitality of the birder and homeowner, and passed a pleasant hour on his deck looking at the feeders, but without seeing the dove. We left for East St. Louis, and just past Lake Springfield I saw a report on IBET of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks at Lake Springfield. We turned around, got to the lake, and quickly found the group of ducks on the far bank, near the power plant, in the shade of some trees.
We then continued to Alton, where we failed to refind the Brown Pelican early Saturday afternoon; headed to Front Street in East St. Louis, where we dipped on the bunting; and then back late Saturday afternoon for another miss on the pelican. We went one last time early Sunday morning, hoping to get there before the fishermen showed up and disturbed the bird, but again there was no pelican.
After dipping for the last time we headed to Front Street in East St. Louis where this time, after an hour of viewing and listening, we first saw the Painted Bunting singing and giving great looks on the power line near the Illinois American Water Company facility.
Mission accomplished!
After I calmed down I texted a few of my birding buddies to let them know that the bird had been refound, and we decided to continue our trip to southern Illinois for the other specialties.
The rest of the trip
We headed south, and after just a few miles we saw Black-Necked Stilts in a roadside wetland. Ted stopped the car, backed up, and we got the stilts in view on the far side of the wetland. Then I looked down on the near bank and there, partially hidden by the vegetation, was a group of three Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks! It’s always great to see an uncommon species, but it’s so much sweeter to discover the bird on your own. This was icing on the cake of an already great morning. I texted Keith McMullen, who lives nearby in Fallon, as I was sure he’d rather drive for fifteen minutes to see the ducks than drive all the way to Lake Springfield.
Other good birds on the trip included Western Kingbird at the casino in E. St. Louis and at the substation outside Havana, the Whimbrel found by Kevin Richmond, also outside Havana, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, King Rail, and Least Tern.
Birds we missed were the Brown Pelican, Black Rail, Upland Sandpiper, Glossy Ibis, White-faced Ibis, and Western Sandpiper.
A little bit about me
Aaron Gyllenhaal
I used to be a lot bigger on chasing than I am now. Now most of my birding time is spent at the former US Steel South Works property on the south side of Chicago, which I call the “87th Street steel mills.” This includes Steelworker’s Park and Park 566.
The only potential target birding I currently have in mind is a hunt in southern Illinois this winter for a Great-tailed Grackle. I don’t have any other specific birding plans at the moment, but I can never turn down a good trip.
I am going into the second semester of my sophomore year at Illinois State University. I have settled on public relations as my major with a minor in math and business analytics. Beyond that, my interests mainly lie in music and birds. I hope to have an internship this summer at a public relations agency and continue working at Wonder Works Children’s Museum in Oak Park. However, I always find time to go birding, mainly because my sanity requires it.
