Updates on recent birding:
Local Birding
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Recommended Local Birding Sites:We feel that the following sites are some of the best birding areas in Central Illinois. If you know of others that you feel should be included, we welcome your contributions. Send us an e-mail with Directions, Description, Suggested Route/Stops, Commonly Seen Birds, and Specialties and we will add your favorite sites to our list.
Send all feedback including needed corrections to the
Webmaster
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eBird
Maps of Birding Hotspots
Why eBird?
If you haven’t yet visited the eBird website, we encourage you to do so. The web address is simple: ebird.org. The website is managed and owned by the Cornell University Laboratory of Ornithology in Ithaca, New York. It has become an essential place and tool for birders all over the world.
In the above listing of local birding sites, clicking the above links for the eBird Hotspot will take you to an interactive eBird map that is continuously uploaded with the latest sightings of birders. Further, the map can be used to locate additional nearby birding sites where birders have documented the species encountered.
Thousands of people across the globe are now using eBird to log their sightings - local as well as global. The data you enter is also very important and beneficial for science and conservation. Individual checklists are of birds sighted by a person at a particular place and time. On a global basis, the number of listings are increasing in that there were approximately a half million checklists entered into eBird for the month of March 2016. Citizen Science in action!
For convenience and portability in the field, there are free eBird apps (for both iPhone and Android users) that allow you to enter your sightings in the field. Say goodbye to the old pencil and paper!
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Illinois Birding Map
Wide Whole-state Satellite View
This interactive map contains birding sites throughout Illinois. It is also being developed as a means of identifying locations for rare bird alerts (note the different color pushpins). It is frequently updated by several key members of the Illinois Birding Forum.
Since the map is dynamic, click the "zoom in" and "zoom out" icon in the legend to refine the location you desire to learn about. A little practice using the mouse to pan the view will lead to good results.