Your November 2023 newsletter is here!

November’s bird of the month arrived to Illinois in only the 1970s and is now a common visitor to backyard feeders year-round. The species is vulnerable to an illness that affects its eyes, and we encourage you to help stop the spread.

This past Thursday, CCAS Conservation Chair Zak Sutton led a bird walk for Urbana High School’s new Outdoor Adventure Club, using the new binoculars recently purchased by CCAS for guided bird walks.

This unique Urbana park features multiple habitat types in a small area, with forest, prairie, and wetland supporting migratory birds who use the park as a crucial stopover site.

Each year, CCAS funds grants to support bird research, education, and conservation. To simplify accounting and increase flexibility, we are merging existing separate funds into a single fund.

October’s bird of the month is the most frequently sighted hawk in Champaign County, and the most common of all the 28 birds of prey that spend at least part of their lives in North America.

Join CCAS Conservation Chair Zak Sutton for a guided bird walk on the following Saturdays: September 23, October 7, and October 14, 2023.

The new Location of the Month series by CCAS President Colin Dobson features brief descriptions of birding spots within 50 miles of Champaign. Busey Woods is a great place to find migrating warblers!

One of Champaign County’s six nesting woodpeckers, this distinctive species increases in numbers during the fall as birds that nested and hatched north of Illinois migrate through.

One of Champaign County’s latest breeding songbirds, this colorful species can be seen year-round, with males shifting from winter’s dull gray-green to spring’s brilliant yellow and back again.

You may not have seen this month’s star songster hidden in dense thickets, but you’ve likely heard its rapid chorus of songs and distinctive mewing!

Congratulations to this spring’s 2023 Mini-Grants for Educators awardees!

Thank you to all who supported this year’s annual fundraiser for the Kendeigh Memorial Fund! Our four participating teams saw a total of 142 species!

Your June 2023 newsletter is here!

Congratulations to our 2023 Kendeigh Grant awardees! This year’s funded projects will study why only some female House Wrens lay two clutches of eggs in a season and how prescribed burns affect nest predation by snakes.

June’s bird of the month nests in colonies that can range in size from just a few nests to more than 500, all located high in tall trees, and will come back to these nests year after year.

Our CCAS Volunteer Planting Day on April 29 was a success, with over 200 live stakes of native shrubs planted at Busey Woods. Thank you to all of our volunteers!

Your May 2023 newsletter is here!

One of the brightest, boldest, most colorful members of the avian family is coming to our area this month, all the way from Central America.

CCAS Conservation Chair Zak Sutton recently expanded a planting project near the Anita Purves Nature Center to help create wintering habitat for owls.