Sun 21 Sep 2008
Barbara and I drove over to Bloom School around 9:15 on Sunday morning. John Longhenry and Mary Kay Rubey were there with their cameras already set up. Vic and Ann Berardi, from the IL Beach SP hawkwatch, were there, too.
The juvenile kite was perched in the dead branches at the top of a Siberian Elm, where he sat for almost the entire hour that we were there. After nearly 25 minutes, the adult male Kite came in with food about 3-4 times to feed it. Mary Kay reported that 3 kites were seen by her husband on Saturday morning, so the female must have still been around, although we did not see her in the hour that we were there today.
About 9:30, a lot of raptor activity started. Migrating Broad-winged Hawks started to fly up from the north, so they must have been leaving their overnight migration roosts. I counted 24, but there could have been a few more or less. Also seen was an Osprey and a Peregrine Falcon. The Osprey circled in a kettle of Broad-wings, but the falcon zoomed through at high speed, flapping all the way. One of the neighborhood Cooper’s Hawks made a brief appearance around 10:15.
Given all of the migrating raptors seen from this site, it seems to be a good hawk watch location.
September 22nd, 2008 at 12:57 am
About 15 minutes after Dan & Barbara left, we watched Junior do some fancy flying as he went after his own food. Couldn’t tell what he caught. Didn’t see the female.
September 23rd, 2008 at 8:23 pm
Barbara was at Bloom for 30 minutes today between 2-2:30 p.m. and did not see a kite of any age. I was there briefly around 12:45 for about 10 minutes and also did not see a kite. If anyone is/was there since Sunday, please post if you see a kite. Else, they may have migrated.
September 24th, 2008 at 9:31 am
I was there aprox 4:30 and no kites!
September 24th, 2008 at 11:09 am
Gee Gee,
You must have left shortly before I arrived. I stopped by around 9:45 and the juvenile was perched in the dead branches of the Siberian Elm. It flew out and caught a Monarch and ate it. No sign of the adults, but I was only there 10 minutes or so.
September 26th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
Yesterday I stopped by Bloom around 1pm and did not see any kites. Today (Friday) I spent more time there around 10:30, checking sky and trees, with no luck. There were 3 Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers near the Siberian Elm, and a large flock of waxwings.
September 28th, 2008 at 9:21 am
Still no kites??? Are they really gone
??
September 29th, 2008 at 7:43 am
I was there on the morning of the 27th and was unable to locate them as well. I searched the immediate area checking out their favorite perches, but no such luck.
Once, I did hear what I thought was the call of the juvenile to the NW of the park/school, but I did not hear the call again and it very well could have been some other bird.
Alan Stankevitz