All photos taken in the Hyde Park (Chicago) area during the last few weeks unless noted otherwise.
These photos were mostly taken in the area around 63rd and Hayes: Hayes beach, the inner harbor, the outer harbor and La Rabida
A male red-winged blackbird
Front-end view of displaying red-winged blackbird taken March 30, 2013
A back-end view of a displaying male red-winged blackbird. The females haven’t arrived yet.
Cardinals have already been singing their spring song for a couple of months
This white-throated sparrow is puffed up because it is a cold spring day
meadowlark singing
meadowlark
dark-eyed Junco
song sparrow
redhead
ring-necked duck ( it is a mystery to me why people agreed to this common name!)
It was great fun having the white-wingd scoters come into the outer harbor again this winter. This one is posing in the blue, blue water of Lake Michigan just after most of the ice melted
A close-up of the white-winged scoter’s bizarre bill.
horned grebe
Two red-breasted mergansers doing courtship displays for the female swimming next to the second male.
This video shows some serious courtship moves of 4 male mergansers. The female is sitting on a piece of ice
Damage done by wood boring insect.
Eggs are laid where you see the straight line, the grubs then eat their way through the wood. Notice the lines get thicker as the grubs move away from the original straight line. This is because the insect is getting bigger.
maple tree flowers in snow storm
maple tree flowers in snow storm
Pass It On Chicago! 