Field Trips - April 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008 - 06:30 PM
Woodcocks at Wolf Road Prairie Nature Preserve
Leader: Craig Taylor 708-579-1622 or tnemec1 [at] ameritech [dot] net
We will meet in the early evening to see the American Woodcocks display at dusk. Save your appetite for dinner afterwards at Paul’s http://www.pauls-pizza.com/home.html.
Directions: You can park in one of three lots along the north side of 31st Street, just west of Wolf Road.
Saturday, April 12, 2008 - 09:45 AM
Give Back to Birds - Field Trip and Workday
The Bird Conservation Network is sponsoring its first Give Back to Birds – Field Trip and Workday at the Lost Mound Unit of Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife Refuge in Savanna, IL. The preserve contains the largest remnant sand prairie in the state and hosts impressive numbers of grassland birds. We will remove cedars from a 50-acre field that is being rapidly degraded as grassland bird habitat.
The trip will be held April 12, 2008. A workday from 9:45 -12:15 will be followed by a lunch cooked by the refuge staff, and then a birding tour from 1:00 – 3:00. We should have great views of eagles as we work, and see early grassland sparrows, meadowlarks, and other migrant landbirds on the tour. A variety of migrant waterfowl should be visible from the site’s overlook on the Mississippi River.
Please contact Joan Bruchman at pjbruchman [at] comcast [dot] net or 847 253-4128 to RSVP and to arrange to be part of a car pool. Birders are encouraged to car pool. For those who would like to arrive on Friday night and bird the Mississippi River bluffs early Saturday, contact Dick Riner at 708-601-5683 (cell) or dickriner [at] gmail [dot] com. For directions, see www.bcnbirds.org
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Prairie Chickens and More
Leader: Jenny Vogt - jmvogt2003 [at] yahoo [dot] com or 847-408-0444 (Pre-registration required)
This trip begins in the pre-dawn darkness as we enter the observation blind at the Prairie Ridge State Natural Area in Jasper County, Illinois. As the sun rises we will witness the Greater Prairie Chicken courtship display on the lek. We’ll hear the morning chorus of birds and a Northern Harrier may even cruise through. Afterwards, we will search for early migrant passerines and other local specialties, including Red-headed Woodpecker, American Golden Plover, Short-eared Owl, Loggerhead Shrike and perhaps American Pipit or Smith’s Longspur.
We recommend you book accommodations in Effingham for Saturday night. We can give you info on recommended motels and restaurants easily accessible from I-57 & I-70. The trip will conclude by mid-afternoon Sunday.
PLEASE NOTE: The Prairie Chicken observation blind accommodates only 12 people and thus limits the number of participants. There is a $15 fee associated with this trip. The fee covers a donation to Prairie Ridge. For more detail contact Jenny Vogt 847-408-0444 jmvogt2003@yahoo.com.
Saturday, April 19, 2008 - 06:30 AM
Willow Slough FWA and TNC Kankakee Sands, Newton County, Indiana
Leader: Jed Hertz 815/937-9530 or jhh_60910 [at] yahoo [dot] com
This popular trip is getting to be an annual event. Venture to NW Indiana to Willow Slough FWA, The Nature Conservancy’s Kankakee Sands Preserve, and Pembroke Twp, Kankakee Co to view a wide variety of birds from many families, possibly including American Bittern, rails, Northern Harrier, Rough-legged Hawk, Sandhill Crane, American Golden Plover, Upland Sandpiper, Lark Sparrow, Henslow’s Sparrow and Lapland and Smith’s Longspurs. Bring your scopes, snacks, walkie-talkies and boots (16”) if you have them. Latecomers should look for birders at HQ Bldg – we will check back at about 7:30 a.m..
Directions: Meet at Willow Slough FWA which is ~3.5 miles south of 7000S Rd on Stateline Rd., then East on entrance Rd. to the Parking Area east of the HQ Bldg.