snowy owls

[Ann Maine]

We had planned to go into the city for an event tomorrow and thought if the snowys are still at Montrose Harbor we'd go early and try to see them.  Are they still hanging around Sunday Nov 23?

Ann

[Chuck Berman]

They were there today on the fishhook pier.

Good luck. They are stunning. The photo is from Saturday.

Chuck Berman

Oak Park

On Sun, Nov 23, 2025 at 9:48 PM Ann Maine <maine...@gmail.com> wrote:

We had planned to go into the city for an event tomorrow and thought if the snowys are still at Montrose Harbor we'd go early and try to see them.  Are they still hanging around Sunday Nov 23?

Ann

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[tinakachold]

Yes

Sent from Samsung Galaxy smartphone.

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[Tamima Itani]

Hello all, 

The Chicago Tribune had a feature article on these owls recently, and there are reports from birders on the Illinois Montrose channel on Discord of huge crowds, as well as reports of people, including birders and photographers, behaving irresponsibly, getting too close to the owls to the point of risking disturbing them.

Of note, the owls have tried resting on the protected and public beaches but were flushed by people (including photographers) and dogs.

When visiting, kindly provide the owls a safe distance, 100 ft or more. If you observe people getting too close or bothering the owls, please say something gently.  Many visitors may not understand that these birds need to be able to rest, feed and look out for threats to their lives.  Two Peregrine Falcons have been harassing them periodically.

I have reached out to the Chicago Park District to see if the hook portion of the pier can be closed off to foot traffic.  People could still view and photograph owls, but from a safe distance.  

Thank you everyone for collaborating to create a safe environment for these owls.  I can't even start to imagine traveling from the landscape of the Arctic Tundra to the landscape of the Chicago concrete, steel and glass jungle!  We are so fortunate to have them among us.

Tamima Itani

Cook Co.

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From: ilb...@googlegroups.com <ilb...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Chuck Berman <cberm...@gmail.com>
Sent: Sunday, November 23, 2025 10:59 PM
To: Ann Maine <maine...@gmail.com>
Cc: ilb...@googlegroups.com <ilb...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: [IBET] snowy owls

 

They were there today on the fishhook pier.

Good luck. They are stunning. The photo is from Saturday.

Chuck Berman

Oak Park

On Sun, Nov 23, 2025 at 9:48 PM Ann Maine <maine...@gmail.com> wrote:

We had planned to go into the city for an event tomorrow and thought if the snowys are still at Montrose Harbor we'd go early and try to see them.  Are they still hanging around Sunday Nov 23?

Ann

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[LORRA RUDMAN]

THANK YOU TAMIMA! Thank you 🙏 

Sent from my iPhone

On Nov 24, 2025, at 5:44 AM, Tamima Itani <tamim...@hotmail.com> wrote:



To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ilbirds/BN6PR19MB0083333DB5B794EE7D5CD0F8A9D0A%40BN6PR19MB0083.namprd19.prod.outlook.com.

[Betsy R. Brill]

Hi All - I would suggest that for those of us who are stewards of our feathered friends that we take responsibility when we are "visiting" owls.  There are organizations that we are all members of (Chicago Bird Alliance, Illinois and Chicago Ornithological Society and many national organizations) that are very clear about how best to protect owls and mitigate harm.  

WE should be taking responsibility for sharing that message "on site" when we are going to see and photograph owls.  Some people will balk but please be a messenger so we can do our part to protect them!

Betsy

     ____________________________

 

     BETSY BRILL | 312-953-7568

 

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From: ilb...@googlegroups.com <ilb...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Tamima Itani <tamim...@hotmail.com>
Sent: Monday, November 24, 2025 5:43 AM
To: Chuck Berman <cberm...@gmail.com>; Ann Maine <maine...@gmail.com>

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ilbirds/BN6PR19MB0083333DB5B794EE7D5CD0F8A9D0A%40BN6PR19MB0083.namprd19.prod.outlook.com.