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Question for raptor enthusiasts.

6K views 35 replies 13 participants last post by  grems 
#1 ·
A secluded retention pond I frequent had one, now four as of yesterday, large totally black raptors I've never seen before.
Imagine a red tail hawk and everything it's behavior entails, but slightly larger and quite skittish. I pulled up to the parking
lot, where they rested in the trees and were gone on the thermals instantly. All I can see is black and big. Anyone have an
idea what they are? They don't seem interested in the water, but soar high above it.
 
#3 ·
Totally black and large? Could be Ravens

But Rich is spot on about the Turkey Vultures, they LOVE riding thermals. Only problem is they're not all black- but from a distance they can look all black.

Its also possible that its a group of juvenile raptors of some kind which havent developed their mature colors yet
 
#4 ·
Black Vultures. All black with faint white on the trailing edges of their wings. Soar on thermals. Much more common around here than Turkey Vultures. Not as big as Turkey Vultures & have black, not pink heads.

I was wetting a line on Salt Creek yesterday. There were a bunch of high school kids hanging around. A Black Vulture flew over & one said, "Look - a hawk!". Didn't bother to correct him.

Whenever one flies over me I tell him, "not my time yet - get lost". :D
 
#7 · (Edited by Moderator)
If they look like like their heads were torched they likely were T vultures passing through....
If you don't know much about sighting birds (and really weren't soaring) they may have been cormorants
Those are your 2 options for big black birds...(if they were crows you would know it and ravens aren't around here)

If not either of those than it was probably this..

potter.jpg
 

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#11 ·
So many great birds coming back to the area. Over this past winter all of my Fox outings involved bald eagle sightings, with one of my spots seemingly home to a resident osprey.

Last week, in Warrenville, I drove by two sandhill cranes, just standing by the side of the road next to a small pond. I slowed down to look at them in disbelief.

Very cool, very much appreciated.
 
#12 ·
Skifish1 said:
ravens aren't around here
I know theyre not supposed to be here according to range maps but I'm 99.99% sure I've seen a pair in northern IL. Could have been passing through temporarily.
 
#13 ·
Rambler said:
Black Vultures. All black with faint white on the trailing edges of their wings. Soar on thermals. Much more common around here than Turkey Vultures. Not as big as Turkey Vultures & have black, not pink heads.

Whenever one flies over me I tell him, "not my time yet - get lost". :D
Rambler is correct with that analysis. Years ago we used to see them out on the Mississippi River, then about 10 years or so ago we started seeing them out on the Rock River. About 5 years ago, we started seeing them around here- the first couple years they only were around in the warmer months, but now they seem to be year round.

And Rambler, you remind me of my dad, as he has said the same thing for years whenever any vultures were overhead... "It's not my time ya bastards, get lost!" :)

But speaking of Raptors... Henrieta Red Tail Hawk is building her nest in a big old Maple tree about 50' from our back door. It's been fun watching her the last few weeks picking up branches and such from our yard for construction.

Every time she lands in the yard, the tree rats freeze like statues and hold their breath while she's on the ground. As soon as she heads back to the nest, they all breathe a collective sigh of relief. :lol:
 
#17 ·
Rich D said:
So many great birds coming back to the area. Over this past winter all of my Fox outings involved bald eagle sightings, with one of my spots seemingly home to a resident osprey.

Last week, in Warrenville, I drove by two sandhill cranes, just standing by the side of the road next to a small pond. I slowed down to look at them in disbelief.

Very cool, very much appreciated.
Spring migration is definitely on. Took a stroll along Salt Creek yesterday - looking for signs of fish. No fish but lots of birds. Usual Cardinals, Robins, etc. But Kinglets, Warblers and some Kingbirds too. They'll be sorely disappointed if it turns really cold again but they'll get by.

Saw another Turkey Vulture as well. Told him to get lost.
 
#19 ·
Turkey Vultures are extremely common in Illinois. This year I am noticing really big numbers. I have never seen a black vulture in my life. To my knowledge the Chicago are would be out of their range, way out.

Here is a shot of a turkey vulture I took out in California. Pretty good close up.
Turkey Vulture by Mark Kasick, on Flickr

A raven in the Chicago area would be an extremely rare thing also WAY out of range. Here is a pic of one, also out in Ca. Note the tuft of hair on the bill. That's the give away ID.
Raven 1 by Mark Kasick, on Flickr
 
#20 ·
UglyStick said:
Thanks Rambler. With the area I live in, over fished Crook county, that makes perfect sense.
Used to have ospreys, now we have vultures.
Osprey are doing great. I was at Sagnaskee Slough last weekend. The nest (visible from the parking lot on Willow Springs Rd) is occupied by a pair. One douche bag fishing directly below the platform despite the sign saying to keep your distance. The osprey was really nervous- flying back and forth. Was hoping it would take nice fishy dump right on his head.
Here is a pic from a couple years ago.
Osprey by Mark Kasick, on Flickr
Not only is that nest occupied but the platform at Little Red School House seems to have potential tenants. The female was cleaning the platform off and it looks like both were buildinga nest.
 
#21 ·
KankRat said:
WAY out of range


winter map (source- USGS)

Rare, but not unheard of. Maybe we'll start seeing them around.

Unrelated but it looks like a crows are starting to make a big comeback after the huge die off years ago. Seeing lots of adolescent groups hanging out.

KankRat said:
Osprey are doing great
So happy to hear this. Great picture of an absolutely gorgeous bird. Hopefully Ill see one in the near future.
 
#23 ·
Not to disagree Mark but I've been a birder for going on 50 years. Back in the day we didn't see vultures - Black or Turkey - around Chicago. These days I see Blacks all the time - Turkeys less so. It might have something to do with where we are. In the Cook Cty FPs I find Blacks are more common.

Phil6 said:
Unrelated but it looks like a crows are starting to make a big comeback after the huge die off years ago. Seeing lots of adolescent groups hanging out.
Crows and their cousins, Blue Jays are highly vulnerable to West Nile Fever. The big die off a few years back was due to this. When I hear crows & jays in the woods during the Summer I'm happy not just because they're there but also because it means there's probably no West Nile virus around.
 
#25 ·
Rambler said:
Crows and their cousins, Blue Jays are highly vulnerable to West Nile Fever. The big die off a few years back was due to this. When I hear crows & jays in the woods during the Summer I'm happy not just because they're there but also because it means there's probably no West Nile virus around.
I wasnt aware that it had killed off Blue Jays, but now that you mention it I have seen a lot more of them than I ever did when I was younger.
 
#26 ·
Bassin' Ted said:
I'm not a fan of Fords but I saw this one up close and it is a badass machine! The color is gorgeous.
That truck is insane. 450HP 3.5L V6. WTF??? You could hawl a lot of shit at very high rates of speed with that setup. Assuming of course you don't mind spending over $50k (just for starters) on A FREAKING PICKUP TRUCK!!! :lol:
 
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