Frederik Heller

The Bird Conservation Network (BCN) is recruiting new monitors for the annual BCN Survey. Here’s a chance to make a difference for birds by joining the dozens of other birders who spend a few mornings each summer monitoring our breeding birds. DBC is a member of the BCN coalition of 20+ conservation organizations in the Chicago region. BCN monitor Ann Haverstock monitors for birds at a Chicagoland grassland. Photo courtesy of Bird Conservation Network. Now in its 27th year, this important community science project provides land managers and researchers data on bird presence and abundance trends to inform restoration and […]

Warm, sunny weather on February 15 guaranteed a good turnout for the annual Gull Frolic hosted by Illinois Audubon Society. DBC once again sponsored this event, held at the Winthrop Harbor Yacht Club. Most people spent time outside to enjoy looks at Glaucous, Lesser and Great Black-backed Gulls, and an Iceland/Thayer’s among other gulls and waterfowl. Inside, the food was tasty and the camaraderie was strong. The guest speaker was Dexter Patterson, founder of BIPOC Birding (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), who is well-known for his mission to make birding known and enjoyed by all (well beyond those named by

This is our last call for annual dues renewal as we will be publishing the 2026 Member Directory soon. Dues remain $20 for individuals, $30 for families and $10 for students. Your dues fund our annual operations and support a broad range of activities, including field trips, interesting speakers, research grants, and proactive community outreach. Help us stay strong! Renew here: https://dupagebirding.org/join-renew/

Join a morning workday to restore a degraded shrubland at Fermilab and make a difference for birds. We will help clear invasives and restore habitat for Bell’s Vireo, Yellow-breasted Chat, Brown Thrashers, and other shrubland birds. All that is required for Fermilab entry is a Real ID or passport for each person in the vehicle. Further instructions will be provided upon registration. All supplies will be provided as well as snacks. Bring your favorite work gloves and water. The activity will include using a hand saw or loppers to cut down invasive shrubs with a maximum diameter of 3 inches,

Launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, the Great Backyard Bird Count was the first online community-science project to collect data on wild birds and to display results in near real-time. Now, more than 160,000 people worldwide join the count to create an annual snapshot of the distribution and abundance of birds. To participate, tally the numbers and species of birds at a specific location for at least 15 minutes. You can count from any location, anywhere in the world, for as long as you wish! Learn more about the GBBC here: https://www.birdcount.org/. For

In keeping with the DBC tradition of giving, the club provided $2,612 in grants and donations in 2025. This included renewal of our coalition membership in the Bird Conservation Network and an IOS grant of $2,462 to student Auriel Fournier, who will develop and test automated processing for recordings that can detect King Rails. Here is the full abstract of Auriel’s proposal: Development of automated processing for recordings to detect King Rails King Rails have experienced significant population decline over the past several decades, especially in the Upper Mississippi River/Great Lakes Region and action is needed to sustain King Rails across the region