Lark Sparrow

The Lark Sparrow is a striking sparrow, common in the west, but scarce in the east. Coles County is right on the edge of its' range. They like to frequent bare ground near brushy areas. They display a strong face pattern, dark spot on the chest, and have white edges and corners on a long tail. A courting male Lark Sparrow crouches on the ground, holds his tail at a 45 degree angle, showing off the white edges. If the female is receptive, he gives her a stick before copulation. I show a picture of the male with the stick but the rest is up to your imagination.

White-thoated Sparrow

Because people consider sparrows to be common, like the House Sparrow, many sparrows are overlooked. That is really too bad because many sparrows are actually quite handsome. The White-throated Sparrow is a beautiful bird with an equally beautiful song. They are migrating through Illinois at this time heading for their breeding area of Canada. They forage on the ground as well as tree tops. Today I saw them eating dandelion seeds and elm tree buds and sipping on the sap of Maples. (I made that last part up.)

Sora

A few years ago, Douglas Hart Nature Center built a wetland and many birds use it as a stopover during migration or as a permanent home. It was reported to me that an American Bittern was loitering around the wetland last week but today, it wasn't to be seen. Fortunately, there were a handful of Soras. These Rails are not quite as secretive than most and I got a good look at the one pictured.

Killdeer

I was leaving work a few days ago and, close to a machine shed, I spied some baby Killdeer. There were 4 babies and one adult. The babies were very young, probably not over a couple of days old and I was surprised to see them this early in the year. One photo is a picture of one of the babies (very cute)and another photo shows the adult pretending to be hurt so I would chase her and leave the babies alone. As I was getting ready to leave, a second adult showed up and was apparently viewed by her as an intruder. What followed was something to see. The mother Killdeer really put up a fight - none of that "Look at me, I have a broken wing" strategy this time. I snapped a picture of Mother Killdeer biting the rump of the other interloper. What is not shown is that after the altercation, the mother Killdeer walked off with a mouth full of the intruder's tailfeathers!

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Pictured is a Yellow-rumped Warbler, the first warbler we have seen this year. They are probably one of the more common warblers and most easily identified because, as the name implies, they have a yellow patch on their rump and also a yellow patch on each side in front of the wings. Even though not considered rare or unusual, they are a very beautiful bird. The one pictured doesn't show the yellow rump but does show the yellow patchs in front of the wings and the underneath side as it flies up to a branch to grab an insect. We also saw a Northern Parula today, making our total warbler species two for this spring.

American Pipit

In a bean stubble field south of our house, I spotted a flock of small birds. After checking them closely with my Stokes binoculars, I wasn't sure what they were. I suspected that maybe they could be American Pipits. After checking my bird book, I felt certain that my first instinct was right. This is not only a new species for our property but also for our life list. This bird is a long distance migrant and is heading for the northern tundra where it will nest. They usually travel in flocks and are often seen wagging their tails up and down as they hunt for insects or seeds in old fields.

Horace's Duskywing

Nature has many ways of protecting itself from the enemy. One method is to blend in with the surroundings, just like this Horace's Duskywing does. We were travelling along Highway 62 this morning in southern Indiana enjoying the spring colors of Redbuds and Dogwoods and pulled off to look at on old abandoned bridge crossing the Blue River. We saw several butterflies, including the one pictured.

Baby Owl 8 Weeks Old

This guy left the nest about a week ago. At this time of his life, he just sits around on a tree branch waiting for someone to bring him a meal. Since he doesn't fly much and mostly sits on branches of trees, he is sometimes referred to as a "brancher". Owlettes usually leave the nest when they are between 6 and 7 weeks old and start to hunt on their own at about 9 to 10 weeks. I believe this baby to be about 8 weeks old. I got fairly close to this guy, probably less than 20 feet. I can't turn my head 270 degrees like owls but I did keep looking behind me to make sure mom didn't mistake me for the enemy. His sibling is still in the nest. Either he is enjoying the extra space or he is like me - a little afraid of flying. Do mother owls go through "empty nest syndrome"? Somehow you have to believe she does.