Barb Dougan

The DBC Board is pleased to present Mini-Tutorials on the DBC YouTube Channel. Mini-tutorial offering guidance on sharing the location of a bird with birders in your group. First lesson: don’t actually point! Old standbys like the face-of-a-clock approach and “V” in trees are covered, then we take things one step further. The key: get everyone to the same starting point and then use features in the landscape to get everyone on the bird.  For more on birds and birding in DuPage County, visit https://www.dupagebirding.org​. NOTE: YouTube has instituted new terms of service and is now occasionally running ads on […]

The DBC Board is pleased to present Mini-Tutorials on the DBC YouTube Channel. Seven species of vireos can be found in DuPage County: White-eyed, Red-eyed, Yellow-throated, Warbling, Blue-headed, Philadelphia, and Bell’s. They tend to like woodlands and woodland edges, although the Bell’s Vireo is an exception, preferring shrubby areas. Two vireos—the Blue-headed and Philadelphia—only migrate through DuPage, while the others can be found nesting here. Vireos look quite similar and are often high in the trees, but differences in field marks and habitat preferences can help with identification. The easiest way to tell these birds apart is through their distinctive

The DBC Board is pleased to present Mini-Tutorials on the DBC YouTube Channel.   Five spotted thrush species appear in DuPage: Hermit Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, Gray-cheeked Thrush, Wood Thrush, and Veery. The first three pass through our area in spring and fall migration. The Wood Thrush is a fairly common summer resident and nesting species here, while the Veery is a migrant that sometimes also breeds here in summer. Although these thrushes look similar, with practice they can often be distinguished by sight. But thrushes often skulk in woodland undergrowth, so knowing their songs and calls is very helpful. They

The DBC Board is pleased to present Mini-Tutorials on the DBC YouTube Channel. Five species of empid flycatchers (genus Empidonax) can be found in DuPage County: the Least, Alder, Willow, Yellow-bellied, and Acadian Flycatcher. They look quite similar, but subtle differences in field marks can help with identification. When and where they’re found and how commonly they are seen can also help with ID. But the fast track to telling these birds apart is by learning their distinctive songs and calls! Join Joe Suchecki, the Springbrook Birder, as he details how to distinguish each of the five species, finishing up

The DBC Board is pleased to present Mini-Tutorials on the DBC YouTube Channel. Join Denis Kania for a leisurely bird-focused hike around McKee Marsh in DuPage’s Blackwell Forest Preserve. Some species aren’t too fussy about habitat, while others than be quite particular; Denis introduces you to many summer residents you’ll see at this special preserve. Prepare for your outing on eBird, and then hit the trail to explore the varied landscapes (and birds!) this preserve offers, from habitat generalists in the parking lot to waterfowl and more in the marsh itself. Discover what might be singing or lurking in the

  The DBC Board is pleased to present Mini-Tutorials on the DBC YouTube Channel. Mini-tutorial describing the Spring Bird Count (SBC), an annual daylong count of birds that coincides with peak migration. Joe Suchecki, aka The Springbrook Birder, provides a portrait of the Illinois count, focusing on the DuPage count which is coordinated by the DuPage Birding Club. Spring brings many species of birds and birds in great abundance, so it’s an exciting time to be out looking for them. Joe covers how the counts came about in (IL in 1972, DuPage in 1973), how it is organized, and how

  The DBC Board is pleased to present Mini-Tutorials on the DBC YouTube Channel. Mini-tutorial covering DuPage’s two cuckoos to consider, the Yellow-billed and Black-billed Cuckoo. Their differences go beyond the color of the bill, and remember that individuals can vary from the typical. And then there’s a chance you’re looking at a juvenile bird, which can differ considerably from an adult… The general build of the bird, the flight feathers, and the skin around their eye (aka, the orbital ring) are good indicators. Most important: the pattern on the underside of the tail. Next time you see a cuckoo