January Happenings

We finally got snow in 2019.  It seems more like winter now!

Today we trimmed the chinquapin oak tree on the left.  Each year we have cut off a few lower branches and this may be the last year to do that.  We will see.  We like to keep some privacy, but don’t want to deal with the mosquitoes in the shade when changing the birdbath water or mowing the lawn under the low branches.

Shadows on the snow

Female northern cardinal on a snowy day.

While I was putting together this post I saw this picture and remembered that we were going to prune back the left side of this American plum tree that is crowding into our yew bushes.  So we just went out and cut that off now.  We keep fighting for sunlight.

On the last warm day, before the cold and snow, Dan turned the compost pile and mixed up all the very wet stuff, very dry stuff and kitchen scraps, so that it will keep decomposing as soon as we get a little more warmth.

We smeared some peanut butter on a knot on the crabapple tree and the squirrel is working on it.

This morning we watched hundreds of Canadian geese on the open waters on Lake Katherine.  We watched one group after another taking off and flying to the east.

Several groups were landing on the grass nearby for their morning munch.

A week ago Dan surprised me with a bouquet of roses and chrysanthemums.  We rarely buy flowers at the store these days, but it was a nice treat for January!

Also, this is the time of year when vendors from work send holiday gifts.  We got one box of chocolates around Thanksgiving and two this week.  I had to take a picture of the beautiful way it was wrapped.

I sure love chocolate!

Cap Sauer Holdings Nature Preserve

We took another walk in the Palos forest preserves today, entering the trailhead for Cap Sauer Holdings at the pull-off on the south side of Route 83.  It was a mild January morning, and we were immediately awed by the beauty of the forest.  Last summer when we were here we did not stay long as the bugs were attaching us.  But this time of year the temperature was just around freezing as the sun was starting to come up.

The path goes by a wetland where frog make loud noises in springtime.  But we headed off the path to the left to where I have occasionally helped with cutting back and burning invasive honeysuckle bushes with a group of volunteers.

We came upon the ashes of a recent fire by the volunteers.  I thought I saw some smoke rising and wondered if someone had been working there this week.

The different kinds of fungi caught our attention.  I love the colors on this one.

Here is another view of a frosty fungus.

Orange fungi

I love the brilliant green of this moss as the sun came up.

Near the end of our walk Dan saw two bucks.  One ran away, but one stood still for a while and Dan was able to get this photo.

As we walked through the words we came to this stream, which was only frozen here and there because of the recent warm weather.

Water flowing over blockage in the stream

Coming up from the stream we followed a small path through the woods.  We were not sure where it would lead.

After a while we came to a large prairie area that was surrounded by woods.  The grasses must have fallen down from earlier snows.  The path eventually led us to a larger trail, though we did not know what trail it was or where it would lead, so we retraced our steps and went back out the way we came in.  In the springtime the floor of the forest in this nature preserve is covered with woodland wildflowers.

Back home again, it does not look like January outside.  Yesterday I saw little bugs flying around in the warm air.

The blue fescue grass looked like it was growing and enjoying the sun.

I heard a bird song and it was this starling singing on top of a pole.  We have had more woodpeckers and white-breasted nuthatches at the suet feeder along with the squirrels….

New Year’s Birding at Montrose

I started the new year with a birding adventure at Montrose Bird Sanctuary in Chicago!  The event was sponsored by the Chicago Ornithological Society.  Because of the holiday the morning traffic was light on the freeway, so I braved the brisk weather to join a group of 20 – 30 beginners to seasoned birders who were eager to identify birds together.

This location has dune grasses, prairie, hedges and woods, and the beach, so multiple habitats for birds along Lake Michigan.  The first order of business was to see if we could find the piping plover, who did not fly south for the winter.  This is an uncommon shorebird, which is unbanded, and I have been following its story over the past months as it continued to be seen at this location.

The waves were choppy and the pounding sound of the surf greeted us.

We headed out into the icy winds looking for the piping plover.

Can you see the small piping plover in the picture above?  I included the ring-billed gull so you can compare the size.

Close-up of piping plover on New Year’s Day at Montrose Beach.

Next we took a trail heading to the “magic hedge” where many migrants stop during spring and fall migration.

I saw my first ever red-breasted nuthatch. This bird was hopping around close to us, but did not stay still long enough for a very good picture.

The red-bellied woodpecker was flying around in the same area.

Some experienced birders pointed out the American Tree Sparrow eating seeds in a brushy area.

Close-up of American Tree Sparrow

Next, someone pointed out an Eastern Towhee sitting quietly in a bushy area.  I could see it, but my camera refused to focus on the right object… Still, I think this might be only the second time I have seen one.

Another new bird for me was a hermit thrush.

Hermit thrush eating sumac seeds

We wandered on through the woods, stopping to look and listen.

In the harbor I spotted my first mallards for 2019.

There were many red-breasted mergansers in the harbor and on the lake.

Close-up of red-breasted merganser.

There were also quite a few common goldeneye ducks.  Sorry for the fuzzy pictures as they were quite far away.

A herring gull was resting and watching on this gray morning.

Happy New Year!  May this be a year full of adventure in whatever way most suits you!

Below is the list of what I saw today, modified from the list sent to us from the COS after the walk, as others saw birds I did not see, and I took those birds off my list.

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula)
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator)
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) (Columba livia (Feral Pigeon))
Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus)
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)
Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus)
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)
American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea)
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)
Eastern Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus)
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)