Take your binoculars to the park and enjoy watching the many feathered residents. The largest is a red-tailed hawk who can be seen hunting most any day. Also reported (January 06), a pair of nesting barn owls with babies; (April 04) nesting pair of Cooper's Hawks; nesting Bluebirds. And a recent report of Mallard ducks, a maile and female, visiting the pond. So far, the list of birds in the spotted in the park is a whopping 87 species. Check out the list below and see how many you can see on your walks through the park.
Owl Factoids:
Well developed visual accuity enables an owl to see equally well on moonless nights and bright sunny days.
It is believed that owls see only in black and white.
The eyes of an owl are fixed and so the owl must turn its head to see in different directions. An adaptive result allows the owl to swivel its head from side to side as much as 270 degrees.
Owls hear in 3-dimensions - side-to-side and up and down and front to back. Their ears are on either side of their head but one is higher than the other. Extra large ear cavities catch the slightest of sounds. This adaptation enhances hunting success on those moonless nights.
The following list of birds spotted in, around or above Grant Park is submitted by Todd Morrell, Jay Davis and Phillip Northman. Some of the birds are year-round residents, others are seasonal visitors and still others are rare sightings. If you spot birds (in the park) not listed here, please let us know.
American Robin
American Redstart
Barn Owl
Barred Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Blackburnian Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue Jay
Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Brown Headed Cowbird
Brown Creeper
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Brown Thrasher
Canada Goose
Cape May Warbler
Cardinal
Carolina Chickadee
Carolina Wren
Cedar Waxwing
Chimney Swift
Chipping Sparrow
Common Grackle
Common Nighthawk
Cooper's Hawk
Crow (Common)
Dark-Eyed Junco
Double Crested Cormorant (flyover)
Downy Woodpecker
Eastern Bluebird
Eastern Phoebe
Eastern Screech-owl
Eastern Towhee
Fish Crow
Flicker (Yellow-Shafted)
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Goldfinch
Grackle (Common)
Gray Catbird
Great Crested Flycatcher
Green Heron
House Finch
House Sparrow
House Wren
Indigo Bunting
Magnolia Warbler
Mallard Duck
Mockingbird
Mourning Dove
Northern Flicker
Northern Oriole (Baltimore Oriole)
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Palm Warbler
Peregrine Falcon
Pilated Woodpecker
Purple Martin
Red-Bellied Woodpecker
Red-eyed Vireo
Red-Headed Woodpecker
Red-Shouldered Hawk
Red-Tailed Hawk
Red-Winged Blackbird
Rock Dove
Rose-Breasted Grosbeak
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Rufous-Sided Towhee
Pine Warbler
Rock Dove (Pigeon)
Sand Hill Crane (seen on overflight)
Scarlet Tanager
Screech Owl
Sharp-Shinned Hawk
Song Sparrow
Starling (European)
Summer Tanager
Tufted Titmouse
Turkey Vulture
White-Breasted Nuthatch
White-eyed Vireo
White-throated Sparrow
Wood Thrush
Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker
Yellow-Crowned Night Heron (first year)
Yellow-Rumped Warbler
Yellowthroated Vireo
Yellowthroated Warbler