Chasing Rare Birds in Milwaukee & McHenry County Saturday 6-28-25

[Al Stokie]

Hello Bird People,

I know this site is supposed to be for reports of Illinois birds but
Milwaukee is pretty close & maybe some folks would like to know about
such a nearby interesting bird.
So today Dave Johnson, Bob Erickson & I made the hour trip from Dave's
house to the Milwaukee Coast Guard Impoundment where you look through
a wire fence at Gulls on the roof of a large building. And there
(along with Illinois birders Suzy & Graham D) we looked at the KELP
GULL which has been at this location for some time now & may even have
been here last year. The Gull looks like a Great Black Backed Gull but
has yellow legs & isn't quite as big.
You'll have to look up Ebird Wisconsin for directions as getting here
is a mystery to me.

Besides the lone Kelp Gull we saw 66 Herring Gulls, 1 Killdeer, a
Mourning Dove, 15 Cliff Swallows & 3 Red Winged Blackbirds. While here
we got word of a Black Bellied Whistling Duck that arrived at the
Walmart Retention Ponds in Johnsburg so that's where we went next.

Walmart Retention Ponds (11:15-11:45 a.m.)

Arrived to see about 5 birders already here, several with scopes, all
looking at the BLACK BELLIED WHISTLING DUCK among the many Mallards &
other water birds.

Great Blue Heron (6)
Great Egret (10)
Mute Swan (2-AD & 1 baby))
Canada Goose (2)
BLACK BELLIED WHISTLING DUCK (1)
Mallard (31)
Killdeer (15)
Caspian Tern (1)
Tree (1), Rough Winged (1) & Barn (4) Swallows
Red Wings (3)

So only 15 species for the day but 2 of them were top level birds.
Bird-Of-The-Day for Wisconsin will be the Kelp Gull & for Illinois the
Black Bellied Whistling Duck. I guess Runners-Up can be the Swan
family.

Al Stokie
In Milwaukee & McHenry County today finding some rare birds