I finally had an opportunity to bird the popular migrant trap in Chicago known as Montrose. Operated by the Chicago Park District and part of Lincoln Park, Montrose is a mixture of habitats adjacent to the Lake Michigan. The park has grown from the famous “Magic Hedge” to a rather large area of trees, shrubs, meadow, beach, and dunes with numerous crisscrossing trails for birders.
Chicago skyline looking south from Montrose
Stacia and I met up with her family friends and excellent birders Owen & Janice McHugh who live in Chicago. Together we scoured nearly every inch of Montrose and discovered 65 species of birds. Some highlights: Peregrine Falcon, Gray-cheeked Thrush, Veery Cape May, Blackburnian, Canada, Black-throated Green, and Chestnut-sided Warblers, and Caspian and Forster’s Terns.
Left to right: Ring-billed Gull, Forster’s Tern, and Caspian Tern
Caspian Terns (Ring-billed Gull preening)
Veery
The Chicago Park District has done an excellent job blending numerous recreation opportunities at Lincoln Park. Part of the beach is used for volleyball, a large section is reserved for dogs to run loose and swim in the lake, and a large section is set aside for nature. Several rare plants are protected along with shorebird nesting grounds. We met up with numerous birders throughout the morning which is always nice to see.
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Savannah Sparrow
We birded Jarvis Bird Sanctuary, also part of Lincoln Park, where we heard a few new species for the day but I didn’t get any more photos. It was fun to fully immerse Stacia into more migration-birding and she really loved seeing the terns.
Cape May Warbler
Excellent photo series! Love the Terns!
What a cool place to bird! I hope more people take advantage of it.
I have a couple of terns at my local beach in chicago. Thanks for helping me to identify with your great photos!