Thirteen people in winter coats, with binoculars, smiling at the camera. They are on an asphalt trail surrounded by tall dry grasses. The Chicago skyline is in the background.

words by Joann Umeki

On Saturday, Nov. 22, COS President Edward Warden led a group of 15 birders on a pre-dawn owl prowl at Park 566 on Chicago’s South Side. Although owl prowls never come with a guarantee, Short-eared Owls are often spotted there and they were a target species.

However, with a Snowy Owl sighting at the park only a few days prior, and with their continued presence at Montrose Beach, anything seemed possible. This out-and-back walk would head southeast, and turn around at North Slip, a popular fishing destination in Steelworkers Park at 85th Street.

The air was quiet as the group headed off in the dark, through restored prairie that was built on the former site of the US Steel South Works facility. Warden explained the importance of the park as a sanctuary for migrating and resident birds as its development continues.

Sparrows soon landed on the trail, but were difficult to identify in the low light. The horizon glowed orange as the sun rose, and all eyes scanned the skies over the tall grasses and native plants for the erratic and humorous flight pattern of the Short-eared Owl that Warden had described and demonstrated.

Flying toward camera, a bird with a brown body and wings, white face with a brown center stripe running down to a black hooked bill, yellow eyes, and white areas on a circular face. — Short-eared Owl. *Photo by Emily Tallo, Park 566, Nov. 6, 2022. This photo was taking using best practices for ethical owl photography. See* *https://chicagobirdalliance.org/blog/2020/12/8/respecting-owls-ethical-owl-viewing-and-photography* *for more information.*

Along the lakefront, he pointed out places where owls like to hang out, such as the rocks along the shore and the breakwater. No owls were spotted, but a view of the Chicago skyline was a reward in itself. As the group walked on, Canada Geese flew over, as well as a few Ring-billed Gulls. Many flocks of fast-moving and unidentifiable ducks moved across the sky in the distance.

The quiet of the morning was soon broken by a series of booms in the distance that sounded like gunfire. How could that be? Warden explained that being close to Indiana, we were hearing the shots of duck hunters.

Sure enough, as we approached a rise at North Slip across from Steelworkers Park, a small boat fitted with a blind came into view. There, a group of hunters fired into the Indiana waters of Calumet Harbor. The group stood incredulous at the sight and sounds, which prompted the shaking of many heads.

Front view of a very round bird, creamy and brown feathers fluffed against the cold, perched on a branch. There is a white patch under the beak and a stripe up its head from the top of the beak, flanked by black stripes and yellow patches. — White-throated Sparrow. *Photo by Alex Muench, Humboldt Park, Nov. 28, 2024.*

Before heading back on the trail, Warden pointed out the backside of the climbing wall across the slip in Steelworkers Park. The site of annual COS hawk watches, the top of the wall offers a unique vantage point of the entire southern tip of Lake Michigan shoreline. Warden described it as an ideal spot for observing raptor migration.

Tree Sparrows and White-throated Sparrows were more easily viewed in full daylight on the way back, and a Merlin was spotted at the top of a bare tree. It gave great looks in the morning sun before taking off southbound.

As we neared the end of the trail, a small flock of American Goldfinches flitted and chirped in the tawny prairie plants, as European Starlings stood watch in trees and on lighting structures. While the prowl did not deliver any owls, for many on the walk, it was an introduction to the beauty and bounty of Park 566. A total of 14 species were observed.

Field trip recap: Owl Prowl at Park 566