News Release
Eagle Nature Foundation, Ltd.
300 East Hickory Street, Apple River, IL 61001
Phone: 815-594-2306 Fax: 815-594-2305 Web Site: eaglenature.com
e-mail: eaglenature.tni@juno.com Tax Exempt No. 36-4015400
| For Immediate Release | May 14, 2019 |
Results of Big Bird Day
On Saturday, May 11, Terrence Ingram, Executive Director of the Eagle Nature Foundation, ENF, conducted his Spring Big Bird Day for 2019. Spring Big Bird Day was orginally started as an attempt by Mr. Ingram to document the loss of bird life due to Roundup and other chemicals that are used by the commercial farmers in the area. This information was used last fall when he wrote Silent Fall. This day is also used as a fund raiser for ENF with people pledging $$ to ENF for every different species seen.
May 11 was a cold dreary day with occasional periods of rain throughout much of the day. On this day Mr. Ingram only saw 42 different species of birds from dawn to dusk. Four years ago he saw 54 different species on his Spring Big Bird Day.
It was too cold for most insects to be flying, so there were no flycatchers and only one swallow and one warbler seen on that day. Only two hawks were seen. Almost no birds were seen migrating north all day, but at about 3:30 in the afternoon a flock of 27 brown pelicans was observed migrating north.
Only one individual bird was seen of 19 different species, including wood duck, turkey vulture, red-tailed hawk, nothern harrier, barred owl, common flicker, yellow bellied sapsucker, barn swallow, house wren, catbird, brown thrasher, common grackle, prothonotary warbler, indigo bunting, pine siskin, white throated sparrow and song sparrow. In another year or two if the trend continues, many of these species may not be seen on Big Bird Day.
For more information contact: Terrence N. Ingram, Exec. Director, Eagle Nature Foundation, 300 East Hickory St., Apple River, IL 61001 Phone 815-594-2306