Field Trip Report: Basin Blitzes
American Coot. Diversey Turning Basin, February 24, 2022. Photo by Katharine Spencer
Edward Warden
Here are COS, we’re always trying to drum up new places to go and types of trips to run. It’s all in the interest of keeping things interesting and giving our community as many ways as possible to engage with fellow birders and enjoy birds. So, with that context in mind, we had quite the aha moment sometime in the summer of ‘22 when I was chatting with our friends at Urban Rivers about, surprise, birds on the Chicago River. Despite years of valiant efforts, much of the Chicago River system is still hard to access, so we were trying to figure out how to help people overcome those barriers. When the proposal to effectively have a road trip that leads curious birders (and other nature enthusiasts) to key points on the river, there was no hesitation. That’s it! The River Basin Blitz was born, and this winter we put the idea into practice.
Chicago’s two major rivers, the Chicago River and Calumet River, are known for a lot of things, most of which stand in opposition to what we think of as places to find nature. But nature is indeed found there, and our rivers are fantastic places to see birds if you know where and when to find them. One feature of these systems, turning basins, are great for winter birding. These artificially expanded and deepened portions of the river are some of the last water bodies to freeze during colder winters. If you time it right, you can see very high densities of ducks, geese, and gulls in these spaces. So, with dates set for January and February, generally the coldest times of year in Chicago, we set out to do just that.
Belted Kingfisher. River Park, January 13, 2023. Photo by Dustin Weidner.
Chicago River
January 15, 2023
A few days before the trip temperatures were below freezing and snow was falling. A few days after the trip, the temperatures were also freezing and snow was falling. But as we gathered at Park 571 on the day of, temperatures had been steadily above freezing, leaving every local waterway with open water. Great for the birds I guess, but not so great for birders hoping to find said birds concentrated in one location. Still, a sizable group of eager birders, augmented by a group from the U of C Chicago Studies Program, gathered on the boat launch to begin our day. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there were not very many birds in the Ashland Ave. Turning Basin, but we started the day solidly enough with a fan favorite, Hooded Mergansers!
After a few more scans and a healthy dose of river history to pass the time, we piled into our cars and caravanned to North Ave. Turning Basin. Parking just outside the Wrigley Innovation Center, we hiked our way up to the Cherry Ave. bridge for a look around. Once again, not much to be found, but we still scooped up a few more species to add to our day list, including Pied-billed Grebe, coots, and a hefty starling flock.
Next up was Diversey Pkwy. Turning Basin. Parking just outside the Lathrop Homes, we made our way along the newly redesigned and landscaped eastern edge of the basin. At this point the sun was high and temperatures were up but the wind still had a cold bite. It was quite pleasant as long as we were behind something. Again, not a ton of birds, but we still managed to get yet more new species not found at the last two sites, including Buffleheads and Goldeneyes.
And last up was River Park. By the time we got here, it was a beautiful day with limited birds. But being able to hang out at this beautiful park with the sound of rushing water and dancing Goldeneyes was more than worth the price of admission. We wrapped the day up with a little bit more river history and scooping up a clearly sick Mallard which was later transferred to the fine folks at Chicago Bird Collisions Monitors. An overall very fun day out if not quite as successful birding as hoped.
Red-breasted Merganser. Steelworkers Park. Photo by Carl Giometti.
Calumet River
February 12, 2023
A few days before the trip, temperatures were below freezing and snow was falling. A few days after the trip, the temperatures were also freezing and snow was falling. Sigh. You probably see where I’m going with this. Once again, fate had other plans for our birding adventures. I suppose that’s the risk when you schedule trips months in advance. It was so frustratingly beautiful outside that many of us began shedding our coats! But undeterred, our group started things off at the Blue Island SEPA station located on the Cal-Sag Canal. The station itself was not operating for some reason, but we still saw a healthy number of birds here including large flocks of geese, Mallards, a few Wood Ducks, and an always welcome kingfisher. At least one person thought they saw Monk Parakeets but we weren’t able to relocate them. Rats.
From here, we made a short skip over to the Bend of the Little Calumet River, a particularly bendy portion of the river known for always having open water even in the worst winters due to warm water effluent from the overlooking steel plant. This was easily the highest density of waterfowl anywhere we visited, but represented by a few key species, mostly mergansers and gulls. It was here we had our first major surprise of the day. Sandhill Cranes! There had been a few scattered reports the days before our trip, but we certainly weren’t expecting this.
Next up was O’Brien Lock and Dam. Our hope was to pick up, among other things, raptors. Bald Eagles in particular are known to perch in the tall trees overlooking the locks. We pulled into the public lot, hit the bathrooms, looked around, and saw, well, nothing. On to the next spot I guess!
We made an unplanned detour to visit “the magic roof” and Turning Basin 5. Despite its reputation being a place where countless gulls roost, there was only one big goose egg. Not one gull. A little annoyed, we walked the short distance down the turning basin where our efforts were far more rewarded. We were greeted by several more crane flocks, a pair of Red-tailed Hawks showing nesting behavior, and another very cool surprise, a Lesser Black-backed Gull!
As we pulled into a corporate adjacent Turning Basin 3, we were greeted by a security guard who asked if this was a funeral. After a lot of confused looks and hearty laughter, we explained what we were here for as we scanned for ducks and gulls. In turn, we were regaled stories of some of the more notable birds she had seen in the area while on duty, including a Snowy Owl some years ago. With only a few Herring Gulls to speak of and a group of Mallards sitting the shallow water of Indian Creek, we didn’t linger long.
Wrapping things, we headed to Steelworkers Park at the mouth of the Calumet River. We were well over time at this point, so we made our way in quickly for a look out onto the breakwaters. Here we were greeted by a handful of Great Black-backed Gulls! Very satisfied with this result, we prepared to leave. As we made our final remarks and goodbyes, we were in for one last surprise of the day. A flock of White-winged Scoters zoomed by and landed within easy view of us! Hot dog! What a great way to end a day full of surprises.