September 12, 2026 – Marquette Park
It was a beautiful sunrise at the south end of Lake Michigan when the 10 participants assembled along the dunes at Marquette Park. The warm September day with south winds was great for the birders but is not what is sought for a lake watch. In order to push the waterfowl and jaegers towards the shore, you usually need strong NW or NE winds. But learning how to partake in a lake watch was the goal, and our leaders, John Cassady and Richard Garrett, were very helpful and informative.
The group had a few fun surprises with two American Golden Plovers landing in front of us and one Buff-breasted Sandpiper. There were several groups of Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal that flew by. We got nice looks at some juvenile Bonaparte’s Gulls along with Ring-billed and American Herring Gull.
Sometimes when at a lake watch, it is important to look behind you in the grasses that cover the dunes. Hiding in there was a Lincoln Sparrow and several Tennessee Warblers. Around the time we were looking at them, we heard the announcement that there would be a marathon going through the park and we wouldn’t be able to get out for hours. We all grabbed our belongings and most of us drove to Grant Street Marsh, on the west side, to look for shorebirds.
That was a great shorebird habitat with 10 varieties of shorebirds seen. Some included Short-billed Dowitcher, Wilson’s Snipe, Stilt Sandpiper, and Black-bellied Plover to name a few. We added Northern Shoveler and American Wigeon to our ducks for the day. To top off the day, we had one lone American Pipit that was adept at hiding in the mud.
The participants and BACI greatly appreciate John Cassady and Richard Garrett for making the trek to Marquette Park to share their knowledge and expertise with us.