All events

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Earth Day at the Evanston Ecology Center

Saturday, April 23, 2022

Visit us at our booth at the Evanston Ecology Center as the community celebrates Earth Day.  John Bates will join us with bird specimens from the Field Museum collection.

Air Station Prairie and Techny North

Wednesday, April 20, 2022

 

Air Station Prairie and Techny North.  Meet at 8 a.m. at t he west side of the parking lot across the street (Compass Road) from the Air Station Prairie Interpretive Center. We will look for early migrants including shorebirds, especially Wilson's Snipe there and at Techny North.  Registration required.  Register with Libbyhill@comcast.net.  Leader:  John Leonard.

Field Trip: Air Station Prairie Woodcocks

Friday, April 15, 2022

Come out to see the spectacular aerial displays of the American Woodcock at dusk!  The Air Station Prairie in Glenview is a great location for these displays, and we may even spot a woodcock on the ground. Meet on the deck of the interpretive center at 6:45 p.m.  The parking lot is across the street on Compass Road. Registration required.  Register with libbyhill@comcast.net. Leader: Jeff Sanders.

FIELD TRIP: AIR STATION PRAIRIE WOODCOCKS

Saturday, April 9, 2022

Air Station Prairie Woodcocks.  Come out to see the spectacular aerial displays of the American Woodcock at dusk!  The Air Station Prairie in Glenview is a great location for these displays and we may even spot a woodcock on the ground. Meet on the deck of the interpretive center at 6:40 pm.  The parking lot is across the street on Compass Road. Registration required.  Register with libbyhill@comcast.net.

Leader: Jeff Sanders

PROGRAM: JASON WECKSTEIN: "ARE SPECIES REAL? THE ROLE OF SPECIES DEFINITIONS IN BIOLOGY AND HOW DIFFERENT CONCEPTS OF SPECIES AFFECT YOUR LIFE LIST!"

Tuesday, March 22, 2022

As birders we may think that we all know what we mean when we talk about species, and in the field of biology there are few ideas that impinge on more research than the concept of species.  Species are the currency with which we do our studies as biologists and they are the currency of our birding life lists as well.  Species are how we convey what we learn as biologists and what we see as birders.  We also have laws enacted that protect species.  Yet, it turns out that defining species isn't all that simple, and that there are innumerable ways to define species, and that these different concepts have different utilities as well.  Some of the changes that you see to your life list through lumping and splitting are in part due to different definitions and philosophies being applied to understand and describe avian biodiversity.  Jason Weckstein, Associate Curator of Ornithology at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University,  will talk about species concepts, what are they, how do they differ in their utility, some examples of how they are applied, and what they tell us about the birds that we all love.

Field Trip: Air Station Prairie Woodcocks

Friday, March 11, 2022

Air Station Prairie Woodcocks.  Come out to see the spectacular aerial displays of the American Woodcock at dusk!  The Air Station Prairie in Glenview is a great location for these displays and we may even spot a woodcock on the ground. Meet on the deck of the interpretive center at 5:45 pm.  The parking lot is across the street on Compass Road. Registration required.  Register with libbyhill@comcast.net.  Leader:  John Leonard

NOTE TIME CHANGE!

 

 

PROGRAM: Ben Goldfarb: Dam It: How Beavers Can Save the Planet ( ON ZOOM)

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

In  Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter, environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb reveals that our modern conception of a healthy ecosystem is wrong, distorted by the fur trade that once trapped out millions of beavers from North America’s waterways. The consequences of losing beavers were profound: ponds drained, wetlands dried up, and species from salmon to swans lost vital habitat. Today, a growing coalition of “Beaver Believers”—including scientists, ranchers, and passionate citizens—recognizes that ecosystems with beavers are far healthier than those without them. Ben, who lives in Spokane, Washington, will share his knowledge about these wonderful animals.  

PROGRAM: What's Happening in the Calumet?

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

"Our Calumet Area, Dynamic Changes":  Stephanie Beilke, Carl Giometti, Dan Lory, Walter Marcisz. What's been happening in the way of improvements and innovations in the Calumet region during the past five years? Our panel will discuss some of the many exciting recent developments, to include: a brief history of Calumet birding/conservation; the much-anticipated November, 2021 opening of the Ford Calumet Environmental Center; the 2021 COS Calumet Initiative; the Big Marsh MAPS banding station; and the 2021 Motus tower installation at Big Marsh. All of the presenters are current or former COS board members, and all are enthusiastic Calumet area birders! Stephanie Beilke also notably serves as Senior Manager, Conservation Science for Audubon Great Lakes. 

Waukegan Christmas Bird Count

Saturday, January 1, 2022

Waukegan Christmas Bird Count.  Contact Coordinator Adam Sell, adamwardsell@gmail.com

 

ENSBC Christmas Bird Count

Sunday, December 26, 2021

The ENSBC Christmas Count will be coordinated by John Leonard.  To participate, contact him at 

jleonard5440@gmail.com.

There will be no in-person countdown party this year, again, because of Covid-19, but John plans to host an online Countdown. 

Joel Greenberg will coordinate the Feeder Count.  (Some forms will be available at Wild Birds Unlimited at 1460 Waukegan Road in Glenview.)  Please email the results of your feeder count to 

 joelrgreenberg@gmail.com

Feeder Count Form below

 

EVANSTON NORTH SHORE CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT

Sunday December 26, 2021

 

Your Name    _______________________________________________________

 

Address______________________________________________________

 

Phone # _____________________________________________________

 

E-mail ____________________________________________________

 

Time spent watching feeders__________________________________

Species                                                            Number of Individuals

 

Canada Goose_____________________________________________

Mallard___________________________________________________

Cooper’s Hawk____________________________________________

Red-tailed hawk______________________________________________

Mourning Dove_____________________________________________

N Flicker____________________________________________________

Hairy Woodpecker___________________________________________

Red-bellied Woodpecker_________________________________________

Downy Woodpecker ____________________________________________

Blue Jay _____________________________________________________

Crow______________________________________________________

Black-capped Chickadee______________________________________

White-breasted Nuthatch______________________________________

Red-breasted Nuthatch_______________________________________

Robin____________________________________________________

Cedar Waxwing_______________________________________________

Starling______________________________________________________

House Sparrow_________________________________________________

Cardinal_______________________________________________________

American Goldfinch_____________________________________________

House Finch__________________________________________________

Dark-eyed Junco___________________________________________

 

OTHER _________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

 

Chicago Lakefront Christmas Bird Count

Saturday, December 25, 2021

Contact Joel Greenberg, joelrgreenberg@gmail.com for more information

Christmas Bird Count Chicago Urban Count

Sunday, December 19, 2021

Chicago Urban Christmas Bird Count  Contact Coordinator Jeffrey Sanders   yellowstart5@yahoo.com

 

PROGRAM: Heather Skeen, “Kirtland’s Warblers’ Microbiomes”

Tuesday, November 23, 2021

What is a microbiome? Within each bird there are communities of micro-organisms that interact with each other, the host bird, and the environment.  This community is known collectively as the microbiome.  Kirtland’s Warblers offer a unique opportunity to understand how the changing environments of migratory birds impact the composition of the microbiome.  In her presentation, Heather Skeen, of the Integrative Research Center at the Field Museum  will describe research centered around the microbiomes of individual Kirtland’s Warblers that were tracked using geolocators from The Bahamas to Michigan

Field Trip: Jeff Sanders Annual Fall Specialty Trip

Sunday, November 21, 2021

North Shore lakefront. 51st Annual Jeff Sanders’ Fall Specialty Trip.  Gillson Park, Maple Park, Tower Road Park, Park Ave., Rose Beach in Highland Park, and other areas as time permits. Meet at 8:00 a.m. at Gillson Park Beach.  If you want to see way out onto the lake, bring your own scope.

For more details and to sign up, contact Jeff Sanders at yellowstart5@yahoo.com

PROGRAM: Peggy McNamara, “Evolution of the Artist in Residence at the Field Museum.”

Tuesday, October 26, 2021

Peggy Mcnamara was an Art History major with little scientific experience.  Circumstances brought her to the Field Museum in her mid-to-late 20s. She came every day and drew from the exhibits, eventually landing in birds.  Birds charmed her.  Her subject matter evolved from birds in museum cases into birds in their habitat, then birds migrating and birds nesting, and on and on.  She published four books with the University of Chicago Press.  She will tell the rest of her story during her program.

Northwestern University Campus

Sunday, October 10, 2021
Expect to see plenty of sparrows as October is their peak migration time. Also look for late fall warblers like Orange-crowned, Yellow-rumped, and Palm, both kinglets, Brown Creepers, and Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers.  With luck and some strong strong eastern winds, we might see jaegers or Franklin's Gulls on the lake.  Meet at 7:30 a.m. NEW PARKING AND MEETING LOCATION:  We will meet at the north end of campus.  Turn east on Lincoln Street into the campus. You will be on Campus Drive. Stay on Campus Drive,  which winds around several buildings until you get to the parking lot by the lake.  Leader:  Vlad Nevirkovets and Sarah Flax.
 

 

Register at libbyhill@comcast.net.

Cape May FULL

Thursday, September 30, 2021

Special for the Evanston North Shore Bird Club

Tour leaders: Josh Engel and Jason Weckstein

$1420 per person sharing; $320 single supplement)

Maximum 14 participants

 

Cape May is a magical place in fall. Birds pour south along the east coast, and many of them end up at the bottom of New Jersey. The diversity of habitats means that there's always birds to look at, whether it's songbird migrants, shorebirds, saltmarsh specialties, ducks, arriving seabirds, or the incredible raptor migration. This is an easy trip, staying at one hotel the whole time and enjoying Cape May’s charming restaurants in addition to its mouthwatering birding.

 

 

 

 

 

PROGRAM: John Bates, "Why, and How do Birds Molt their Feathers?"

Tuesday, September 28, 2021

During development and as part of their annual cycles all birds change their feathers through molts.  Across all birds, this has led to a wide array of molt strategies in different species.  John Bates, Curator of Birds at the Field Museum, will give an overview of how, when, and why birds molt, emphasizing how community scientists can participate in documenting molts as you go birdwatching throughout the year.

Northwestern University Campus

Saturday, September 25, 2021

Northwestern University Campus.  The NU campus has long been a stopover for migrants of all kinds headed south. Park on the lakeside of the upper deck of the south parking lot off of Sheridan Rd. and Clark St., north of Clark St. beach, at 8:00 a.m. Leaders: Libby Hill, Sarah Flax and Owen Woodhouse.

Perkins Woods

Thursday, September 23, 2021

Perkins Woods. Look for fall warblers, thrushes and other migrants.  Meet at 7:30 a.m. corner of Ewing Ave. and Grant St.  Leaders: John Bates and Josh Engel.

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