Hi all! So as I'm sure many of you have already heard, I decided that in 2020 I'll be doing a Cook County big year! Before we get into things, allow me to briefly introduce myself and explain my goal:
My name is Isoo O'Brien and I'm a 16 year old birder from Evanston, Illinois. I've been birding for almost 7 years now, but more intensely for the last 3. I've always had an interest in hardcore birding and listing, and that interest has intensified in the more recent half of my birding career as I've grown old enough to seek further birding opportunities, and as of last fall, finally get my driver's license. In 2018 I made my first valiant effort at a Cook County year list, ending with a total of 261 species. As respectable of a total that may be, I know I can push myself much further. Now that I can drive, this is the year where I truly test my limits. So, as a result, this year I will be going for 275 species in Cook County! The current record is 281 which was set by Aaron Gyllenhaal in 2013, a truly incredible total- without a good year for migration and vagrants it may even be impossible to break. However, that won't stop me from chasing the record, and I know my persistence won't waiver. Without further ado, join me on this crazy and incredible birding adventure!
My name is Isoo O'Brien and I'm a 16 year old birder from Evanston, Illinois. I've been birding for almost 7 years now, but more intensely for the last 3. I've always had an interest in hardcore birding and listing, and that interest has intensified in the more recent half of my birding career as I've grown old enough to seek further birding opportunities, and as of last fall, finally get my driver's license. In 2018 I made my first valiant effort at a Cook County year list, ending with a total of 261 species. As respectable of a total that may be, I know I can push myself much further. Now that I can drive, this is the year where I truly test my limits. So, as a result, this year I will be going for 275 species in Cook County! The current record is 281 which was set by Aaron Gyllenhaal in 2013, a truly incredible total- without a good year for migration and vagrants it may even be impossible to break. However, that won't stop me from chasing the record, and I know my persistence won't waiver. Without further ado, join me on this crazy and incredible birding adventure!
And So It Begins... January!
I decided that I'll be posting long monthly recaps of my adventures- I'd love to post more, but the demands of Junior year and almost daily birding are already pretty demanding. I also would like to apologize in advance for the amount of crappy photos in this post; I hadn't originally planned on blogging so doc shots were my priority, but that will change for future posts.
This year has been an unusually warm winter here in Chicago, which has its advantages and disadvantages. Species that are usually scarce here in the winter become easier to find due to the warmer temperatures, which adds some interesting ticks to my list I might not have expected to add this early in the year. However, the disadvantages may outweigh the advantages; without consistent cold temps and ice, already difficult species become harder, and birds like ducks and gulls disperse as opposed to being concentrated in the few areas of open water. Birds don't rely on feeders like they usually do. The excellent cone crop in Canada doesn't help either, making it one of the worst irruptions for winter finches in several years. I probably won't add generally easy species like Pine Siskin, Red Breasted Nuthatch, Purple Finch or Common Redpoll until next winter, but it will be nice to have that cushion to hopefully carry me through to a strong finish when the time comes. Anyway that's enough said, lets jump into the action!
(1/1) I awoke to the sound of my alarm at 6:00 AM, adrenaline pumping through my body as I got ready to head to my first destination of the year, Chicago Botanic Garden. On the way there I picked up my first bird of the year:
1. Rock Pigeon :(
Although January may be one of the slowest times of the year for birding, it's one of the most fun times too, especially if you're doing a big year! The year list has reset, and no matter how common the species is it's always exciting to add it to your year list for the first time. Within my first few minutes at CBG, I got:
2. Canada Goose
3. American Robin
4. Downy Woodpecker
5. House Sparrow
6. Cedar Waxwing
7. Black Capped Chickadee
8. American Goldfinch
9. White Throated Sparrow
10. Ring Billed Gull
11. Northern Cardinal
12. Dark Eyed Junco
13. House Finch
14. Mourning Dove
15. Mallard
16. Golden Crowned Kinglet
By now I met up with the Tolzmanns and we started looking for the wintering Northern Shrike that's been hanging out around Dixon Prairie. Not even a minute into the search I spotted the shrike fly into a tree. This is a great wintering bird that I didn't see at all last year, so naturally it felt good to add it to the list on day 1!
17: European Starling
18. Northern Shrike
This year has been an unusually warm winter here in Chicago, which has its advantages and disadvantages. Species that are usually scarce here in the winter become easier to find due to the warmer temperatures, which adds some interesting ticks to my list I might not have expected to add this early in the year. However, the disadvantages may outweigh the advantages; without consistent cold temps and ice, already difficult species become harder, and birds like ducks and gulls disperse as opposed to being concentrated in the few areas of open water. Birds don't rely on feeders like they usually do. The excellent cone crop in Canada doesn't help either, making it one of the worst irruptions for winter finches in several years. I probably won't add generally easy species like Pine Siskin, Red Breasted Nuthatch, Purple Finch or Common Redpoll until next winter, but it will be nice to have that cushion to hopefully carry me through to a strong finish when the time comes. Anyway that's enough said, lets jump into the action!
(1/1) I awoke to the sound of my alarm at 6:00 AM, adrenaline pumping through my body as I got ready to head to my first destination of the year, Chicago Botanic Garden. On the way there I picked up my first bird of the year:
1. Rock Pigeon :(
Although January may be one of the slowest times of the year for birding, it's one of the most fun times too, especially if you're doing a big year! The year list has reset, and no matter how common the species is it's always exciting to add it to your year list for the first time. Within my first few minutes at CBG, I got:
2. Canada Goose
3. American Robin
4. Downy Woodpecker
5. House Sparrow
6. Cedar Waxwing
7. Black Capped Chickadee
8. American Goldfinch
9. White Throated Sparrow
10. Ring Billed Gull
11. Northern Cardinal
12. Dark Eyed Junco
13. House Finch
14. Mourning Dove
15. Mallard
16. Golden Crowned Kinglet
By now I met up with the Tolzmanns and we started looking for the wintering Northern Shrike that's been hanging out around Dixon Prairie. Not even a minute into the search I spotted the shrike fly into a tree. This is a great wintering bird that I didn't see at all last year, so naturally it felt good to add it to the list on day 1!
17: European Starling
18. Northern Shrike
19. Herring Gull
20. Red Breasted Merganser
21. Common Goldeneye
22. Red Tailed Hawk
23. White Breasted Nuthatch
We then went to a preserve just east of CBG where I knew a family of Red Headed Woodpeckers was hanging out, another uncommon bird in Cook County. We got it almost instantly.
24. Red Headed Woodpecker
20. Red Breasted Merganser
21. Common Goldeneye
22. Red Tailed Hawk
23. White Breasted Nuthatch
We then went to a preserve just east of CBG where I knew a family of Red Headed Woodpeckers was hanging out, another uncommon bird in Cook County. We got it almost instantly.
24. Red Headed Woodpecker
Heading south, we made some stops along Forestway Drive at Skokie Lagoons where I hoped to add Bald Eagle and some other common waterfowl species. During a brief panic where I was tearing the car apart Iooking for my lost my car keys, (I found them eventually, phew!) we added our targets:
25. Hooded Merganser
26. Common Merganser
27. Red Bellied Woodpecker
28. Bald Eagle
A stop at Skokie Lagoons south of Willow Rd. yielded my first woodland birding of the year. Right off the bat the diagnostic chip note of a Yellow Rumped Warbler alerted me to its presence, quickly followed by a flyover Sharp Shinned Hawk and 3 calling Hermit Thrushes. The benefits of this year's warm winter were certainly evident here. These 3 species are fairly uncommon winter residents which become much easier to find in early Spring.
29. Yellow Rumped Warbler
30. Sharp Shinned Hawk
31. Blue Jay
32. Hermit Thrush
We stopped at some of my local patches in Evanston to search for a Winter Wren I found on the CBC a few days prior, as well as a Cackling Goose wintering in a cemetery a few blocks from my house. Continuing our good luck for the day, we got both!
33. Winter Wren
34. Hairy Woodpecker
35. American Crow
36. Bufflehead
37 Cackling Goose
Heading south into the city we decided to stop at the Lincoln Park Zoo's duck pond and Diversey Turning Basin along the Chicago River. The river's warm water inflow makes it a great place to look for uncommon wintering ducks, which is exactly what we found!
38. American Coot
39. Green Winged Teal
40. Northern Pintail
41. American Black Duck
42. Wood Duck
We then tried for a roosting Long Eared Owl and some other owls in the Palos area, but unfortunately to no avail due to unexpected strong winds. However, a pair of Short Eared Owls and multiple Northern Harriers graced the darkening sky at Bartel Grassland to conclude an overall great first day.
43. Northern Harrier
44. Short Eared Owl
I had until the 6th before I had to head back to school, so I continued to bird hard for the rest of the week. By the end of break I had over 70 species, which is the vast majority of our winter residents.
(1/2) The next day I covered all of southern Cook County with my friend visiting from Indianapolis. We started in Calumet and made our way to Palos in the afternoon, ending with a total of 50 species! The warm weather definitely helped diversify our waterfowl list:
45: Ruddy Duck
46. Greater Scaup
47. Monk Parakeet
48. Northern Flicker
49. American Tree Sparrow
50. Lesser Scaup
51. Ring Necked Duck
52. Redhead
53. Canvasback
54. Gadwall
55. Mute Swan
56. Double Crested Cormorant
57. Great Blue Heron
58. Tufted Titmouse
59. Cooper's Hawk
60. Song Sparrow
61. Brown Creeper
62. Trumpeter Swan
(1/3) I decided to chase some targets closer to home. I started at the North Shore Channel around the Evanston/Chicago border, adding Swamp Sparrow and Black Crowned Night Heron to the list.
63. Swamp Sparrow
64. Black Crowned Night Heron
Tom Lally was counting up to as many as 6 Merlins in St. Adalbert Cemetery in Niles, so that was my next stop. I only had 1, but it was nice to get suck great looks at this otherwise uncommon wintering falcon.
65. Merlin
25. Hooded Merganser
26. Common Merganser
27. Red Bellied Woodpecker
28. Bald Eagle
A stop at Skokie Lagoons south of Willow Rd. yielded my first woodland birding of the year. Right off the bat the diagnostic chip note of a Yellow Rumped Warbler alerted me to its presence, quickly followed by a flyover Sharp Shinned Hawk and 3 calling Hermit Thrushes. The benefits of this year's warm winter were certainly evident here. These 3 species are fairly uncommon winter residents which become much easier to find in early Spring.
29. Yellow Rumped Warbler
30. Sharp Shinned Hawk
31. Blue Jay
32. Hermit Thrush
We stopped at some of my local patches in Evanston to search for a Winter Wren I found on the CBC a few days prior, as well as a Cackling Goose wintering in a cemetery a few blocks from my house. Continuing our good luck for the day, we got both!
33. Winter Wren
34. Hairy Woodpecker
35. American Crow
36. Bufflehead
37 Cackling Goose
Heading south into the city we decided to stop at the Lincoln Park Zoo's duck pond and Diversey Turning Basin along the Chicago River. The river's warm water inflow makes it a great place to look for uncommon wintering ducks, which is exactly what we found!
38. American Coot
39. Green Winged Teal
40. Northern Pintail
41. American Black Duck
42. Wood Duck
We then tried for a roosting Long Eared Owl and some other owls in the Palos area, but unfortunately to no avail due to unexpected strong winds. However, a pair of Short Eared Owls and multiple Northern Harriers graced the darkening sky at Bartel Grassland to conclude an overall great first day.
43. Northern Harrier
44. Short Eared Owl
I had until the 6th before I had to head back to school, so I continued to bird hard for the rest of the week. By the end of break I had over 70 species, which is the vast majority of our winter residents.
(1/2) The next day I covered all of southern Cook County with my friend visiting from Indianapolis. We started in Calumet and made our way to Palos in the afternoon, ending with a total of 50 species! The warm weather definitely helped diversify our waterfowl list:
45: Ruddy Duck
46. Greater Scaup
47. Monk Parakeet
48. Northern Flicker
49. American Tree Sparrow
50. Lesser Scaup
51. Ring Necked Duck
52. Redhead
53. Canvasback
54. Gadwall
55. Mute Swan
56. Double Crested Cormorant
57. Great Blue Heron
58. Tufted Titmouse
59. Cooper's Hawk
60. Song Sparrow
61. Brown Creeper
62. Trumpeter Swan
(1/3) I decided to chase some targets closer to home. I started at the North Shore Channel around the Evanston/Chicago border, adding Swamp Sparrow and Black Crowned Night Heron to the list.
63. Swamp Sparrow
64. Black Crowned Night Heron
Tom Lally was counting up to as many as 6 Merlins in St. Adalbert Cemetery in Niles, so that was my next stop. I only had 1, but it was nice to get suck great looks at this otherwise uncommon wintering falcon.
65. Merlin
A quick stop at Chevalier Woods near O'Hare Airport got me an unexpected Carolina Wren! This is a tough bird in Cook County, only frequenting one area where it is already really tough to pin down.
66. Carolina Wren
66. Carolina Wren
(1/4) Simon and I tried for another Long Eared Owl at Deer Grove. We looked around in the snow for over 3 hours to no avail, it honestly was a pretty miserable experience. My only addition that was an American Kestrel, but at least I avoided a 0 day.
67. American Kestrel
(1/5)
I decided to go back to Calumet with hopes of finding some of my missed targets and added:
68. Red Shouldered Hawk
67. American Kestrel
(1/5)
I decided to go back to Calumet with hopes of finding some of my missed targets and added:
68. Red Shouldered Hawk
69. Iceland Gull
70. American Wigeon
I was under 10 minutes from home when Jeff Skrentny texted me saying he had a Greater White Fronted Goose at O'Brien Lock and Dam, just 5 minutes from where I was birding in Calumet earlier. Greater White Fronted Goose is a regular but very uncommon bird in the county, so of course I had to turn back around to make the near hour drive to O'Brien. I would probably have another shot at this species in the future, but on a big year one should never assume of second chances. If a rare/very uncommon bird is present then you should go, enough said. So glad I got the bird and didn't turn all the way back around for nothing, a strong way to end winter break!
71. Greater White Fronted Goose
70. American Wigeon
I was under 10 minutes from home when Jeff Skrentny texted me saying he had a Greater White Fronted Goose at O'Brien Lock and Dam, just 5 minutes from where I was birding in Calumet earlier. Greater White Fronted Goose is a regular but very uncommon bird in the county, so of course I had to turn back around to make the near hour drive to O'Brien. I would probably have another shot at this species in the future, but on a big year one should never assume of second chances. If a rare/very uncommon bird is present then you should go, enough said. So glad I got the bird and didn't turn all the way back around for nothing, a strong way to end winter break!
71. Greater White Fronted Goose
(1/12) After not gaining any new birds during the week, this weekend treated me well. Our first burst of extreme cold had run its course the day before, and I was hoping that finally some gulls were pushed south with the colder temps. They were. I was on my way to the south side to check when I got a message saying there was a LeConte's Sparrow at Rainbow Beach! This small and elusive sparrow is a fairly uncommon migrant during spring and fall, but to have one in the dead of winter is extremely unusual. When I first got to Rainbow I immediately noticed the amount of gulls on the beach. An adult Great Black Backed Gull caught my attention, followed by a first cycle Glaucous Gull and multiple "Thayer's" type Iceland Gulls. When it comes to birding, weather is everything and will often determine the quality of your day, especially during migration. On top of that, I successfully got the LeConte's Sparrow, probably my most unexpected and out of season bird this month.
72. Great Black Backed Gull
73. Glaucous Gull
72. Great Black Backed Gull
73. Glaucous Gull
74. LeConte's Sparrow
Saying the middle of January kicked my ass would be an understatement. From the 12th to the 25th I only added 2 birds despite all my effort. The most frustrating thing without a doubt has been Long Eared Owl. Within the last month I've gone for 3 different Long Eared Owls a total of 9 times (all of which have been 40 or more minutes away) and have never been successful despite frequent other sightings in between my several attempts. To further piss me off, my dad and I got back at 1:30 AM from a whole night of owling in Palos with NOT A SINGLE OWL despite perfect owling conditions. I've also gone for local screech and Great Horned Owl 3 times with no luck. At this point I'm guessing you're probably questioning my birding ability. Anyway, birding wouldn't be fun if you got everything, right? I'll go for the damn Long Eared Owl every day until I get it, and that's fine. On the bright side, my 2 additions during this time period were some pretty quality birds. Tundra Swan definitely ranks among one of my best birds this month.
75. Long Tailed Duck
Saying the middle of January kicked my ass would be an understatement. From the 12th to the 25th I only added 2 birds despite all my effort. The most frustrating thing without a doubt has been Long Eared Owl. Within the last month I've gone for 3 different Long Eared Owls a total of 9 times (all of which have been 40 or more minutes away) and have never been successful despite frequent other sightings in between my several attempts. To further piss me off, my dad and I got back at 1:30 AM from a whole night of owling in Palos with NOT A SINGLE OWL despite perfect owling conditions. I've also gone for local screech and Great Horned Owl 3 times with no luck. At this point I'm guessing you're probably questioning my birding ability. Anyway, birding wouldn't be fun if you got everything, right? I'll go for the damn Long Eared Owl every day until I get it, and that's fine. On the bright side, my 2 additions during this time period were some pretty quality birds. Tundra Swan definitely ranks among one of my best birds this month.
75. Long Tailed Duck
76. Tundra Swan
(1/25-26)
Don't worry, my luck turned around and I had a crushing weekend to finish the month. On Saturday I added:
77. Belted Kingfisher
78. Eurasian Collared Dove
On Sunday morning during one of my attempts at the Long Eared Owl a Eurasian Tree Sparrow was found at Park 566- the first rarity of the year! I sprinted back to the car and made it to 566 as fast as I could. The bird was reported to be hanging out with a big flock of American Tree Sparrows on the North end, and when I arrived I immediately began to pick through them. However, due to the presence of multiple raptors in the area much of the flock had dispersed upon my arrival. I looked for an hour, and no Eurasian Tree Sparrow was to be found. I probably missed it by 5 minutes, which was extremely disappointing and frustrating. Despite this, I had an overall great day and had luck with almost every other target:
79: Peregrine Falcon
80. Sandhill Crane
Don't worry, my luck turned around and I had a crushing weekend to finish the month. On Saturday I added:
77. Belted Kingfisher
78. Eurasian Collared Dove
On Sunday morning during one of my attempts at the Long Eared Owl a Eurasian Tree Sparrow was found at Park 566- the first rarity of the year! I sprinted back to the car and made it to 566 as fast as I could. The bird was reported to be hanging out with a big flock of American Tree Sparrows on the North end, and when I arrived I immediately began to pick through them. However, due to the presence of multiple raptors in the area much of the flock had dispersed upon my arrival. I looked for an hour, and no Eurasian Tree Sparrow was to be found. I probably missed it by 5 minutes, which was extremely disappointing and frustrating. Despite this, I had an overall great day and had luck with almost every other target:
79: Peregrine Falcon
80. Sandhill Crane
81. White Winged Scoter
82. Rough Legged Hawk
82. Rough Legged Hawk
83. Red Winged Blackbird
84. White Crowned Sparrow
84. White Crowned Sparrow
85. Brown Headed Cowbird
86. Horned Lark
And that was it for January! 86 is a January month record for Cook County, not to shabby, especially with no winter finches around! As for February, my priorities are going to be owls. When I'm not looking for owls I plan to be spending all my time in southern Cook County (starting tomorrow morning) looking for Ring Necked Pheasants, Wild Turkeys, and hopefully some white geese. These birds are extremely hard to find so it might be a total crap shoot, but the success of my year will depend on how many hard/rare birds end up on my list, so of course I'm gonna give it my best effort. Hopefully a much needed winter rarity will make an appearance this month as well! Making it my goal right now to be at 100 by the end of February. It will be hard, but I know I'll make it happen somehow, persistence is key.
See you in a month,
Good birding!
Number of species seen this month: 86
Number of year birds gained this month: 86
86. Horned Lark
And that was it for January! 86 is a January month record for Cook County, not to shabby, especially with no winter finches around! As for February, my priorities are going to be owls. When I'm not looking for owls I plan to be spending all my time in southern Cook County (starting tomorrow morning) looking for Ring Necked Pheasants, Wild Turkeys, and hopefully some white geese. These birds are extremely hard to find so it might be a total crap shoot, but the success of my year will depend on how many hard/rare birds end up on my list, so of course I'm gonna give it my best effort. Hopefully a much needed winter rarity will make an appearance this month as well! Making it my goal right now to be at 100 by the end of February. It will be hard, but I know I'll make it happen somehow, persistence is key.
See you in a month,
Good birding!
Number of species seen this month: 86
Number of year birds gained this month: 86
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