North Central Illinois Ornithological Society

This morning, Barbara and I took a long walk around the trails at Sugar River Alder Tract. The parking lot is on Haas Road, the same road on which Colored Sands FP is located. There is a small parking lot on the north side of the road and a trail head that leads north into the property.

We recorded 75 species of birds (including Prothonotary and Yellow-throated Warblers at Sugar River FP on the way). At the sand prairie nature preserve, on the north side of the property, were 3 male Henslow’s Sparrows calling on territories, 3 pairs of Lark Sparrows carrying food to nests, 2 Grasshopper Sparrows, 7 pairs of Field Sparrows carrying food, a pair of Song Sparrows carrying food, and a Kentucky Warbler in the oak forest on the east side of the prairie. Other species and numbers of note in the preserve were: 4 Orchard Orioles, 30+ Field Sparrows (total #), 4 male Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (all perched in tiny dead sticks holding territories), 4 Chestnut-sided Warblers, a Willow Flycatcher, an Acadian Flycatcher, calling Ovenbirds, a pair of Eastern Wood-pewees building a nest in a Black Walnut tree, a pair of Red-headed Woodpeckers excavating a cavity in a dead tree in one of the prairie areas, a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers, and a pair of Cooper’s Hawks, and a Yellow-billed Cuckoo (which flew in but was silent). Great Crested Flycatchers, Baltimore Orioles and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks had to compete with many, many Indigo Buntings (which were deafening) to be heard. Turkeys were heard (1 seen by Barbara).

This morning there was a Lark Sparrow in our driveway when I walked out to get the paper.  Steve Gent reported another on IBET from Colored Sands FP.  I see the start of a comment pending posting on this list that there was another seen at Sugar River Alder FP, which is just N of Colored Sands FP.  I found yet another west of Rochelle in a corn field east of the intermodal ponds on IL 38.  The sandy soils in the Colored Sands/Sugar River Alder area make those the best places to find this species in Winnebago County (I believe that they nest at the sand prairie on the north side of Sugar River Alder) , and they can also be found along Yale Bridge Road because of the sandy soils there.  The Christmas tree farms usually have them each summer.  The conifers like the same sandy soils.