2009 Fermilab Bird Report

Winter

White-winged Crossbill (Photo by Joe Sucheki)

The 2008 Christmas Bird Count produced 51 species which was a little higher than the 10 year average of 47.3. However, the individual count of 1867 was the lowest number since 1993. This was due mainly to an extremely low Canada Goose count of 87 that was well below the average of 4689. The last time we had such a low number was back in 1978. Also contributing to the poor total was the record low tally for Mallards. We recorded 46 which is to be compared with a 10 year average of 206. The reason for these low numbers is hard to ascertain since there was sufficient open water to attract them. In fact the Common Goldeneye count of 331 doubled last year's record high of 154.

The remainder of the winter produced a new bird for the site list when White-winged Crossbills were found feeding in spruce trees along Wilson rd on Feb. 8. This find was not entirely unexpected as there was an irruption of this species into the Chicago area that produced many reports throughout the Kane and Dupage counties. Named for their unusual bill structure, these elusive finches are specialists at extracting seeds from spruce cones. They remained on site until mid March.

There were again no Long-eared Owls or Short-eared Owls recorded on site this winter.

Spring

American White Pelican (Photo by Greg Vogel)

The early Spring migration was anything but typical this year. It not only produced some rare species such as the White-winged Scoter and Franklin's Gull that were both found on the Main Ring Lake on April 8, but also a couple of rare phenomena. One was the huge mixed flock of blackbirds along east Wilson st on March 8 that contained more Brewer's and Rusty Blackbirds than I have ever seen in one spot. The other was the large flock of American White Pelicans that visited the site in early April. They first appeared on March 31 when a flock of 18 was seen on Lake Law. The next morning there were 50-60 birds feeding on A.E.Sea and by the end of the day the flock had grown to 200 birds. Their numbers slowly dwindled over the next two weeks as they moved around the site, spending most of their time on Lake Logo and Main Ring Lake.

The late Spring migration was also anything but typical. However, in contrast to March and April, May was unusual in the lack of birds. It was easily the worst warbler and shorebird migration that I can recall in over 20 years.

Summer

Osprey (Photo by Greg Vogel)

It has been an exceptional year for breeding birds on site. The two most notable events were our first breeding record for Ospreys and our first record of Whip-poor-will on the site. The latter was heard singing just after sunset from the area between Dusaf pond and the site's eastern border. It was first noticed at the end of May and was recorded through to June 29. Most of the records, including the inital report, came from neighbors whose property backs onto the area.

In early June a pair of Ospreys were observed performing a courtship display and building a nest on a power pole by the Main Injector moat. One or both birds were regularly seen near the nest site throughout the month, however the nest did not look very substantial and I was not sure if it contained a chick. However, on July 1 three birds (presumably the two adults and their offspring) were seen perched together in some dead trees by the Indian Creek wetlands. Over the course of the next two months at least one bird (probably the youngster) were seen near the nest site and to my surprise, they continued to work on the nest so that by the end of August it was looking much better than when it was being used. They eventually departed in early September.

There were three other rather unusual summer residentrs this year. A White-eyed Vireo was found in the small woodlot west of the Education Center on the Spring Bird Count. It was then seen or heard near there every week through to the 19th of July. Of the few summer records of this species this was easily the most consistent and it is likely that the bird was breeding in that area. Whilst searching for the vireo in late July we found a singing male American Redstart. The male and also a female redstart were recorded in the same location several times up until the middle of July. This is only the second time this species has been recorded on site during the summer months. The last time was in 1988 when a pair were confirmed as breeding on site. Finally, a pair of Red-headed Woodpeckers bred successfully in the savannah near Lake Logo. This species was once a reliable summer resident, but in recent years they have become rather rare on site.

In addition to the extraodinary records mentioned above, the usual high quality breeding birds were back again in fairly normal numbers. The only exceptions were Grasshopper Sparrows which were more plentiful than usual in the north Eola rd. grasslands.

Fall

Carolina Wren (Photo by Dave Spleha)

Fall migration was extremely poor. Heavy rain in late August managed to keep the lakes and ponds full enough to prevent any mudflats from developing. The lack of good habitat meant that very few shorebirds were seen on site this Fall. September was equally disappointing with respect to the warbler migration. For reasons unknown, instead of being alive with warbler chipnotes,the woodlands on site were eerily silent. Things started looking up in October as the sparrows started coming through. On October 25 a Harris's Sparow was found in ELM-14, but the best record of the season was of three Carolina Wrens that were found in the Big Woods. Another first for the site, they remained in the area through to the end of November.