Gauging interest - birding by bike

So, along with being obsessed with cycling, I'm also a birder, albeit not a super hardcore life-lister-type birder. I've been toying with the idea of getting some like-minded cycling folks together for a ride out through some birding hotspots to maybe see what we can see, what with Fall migration getting underway. Anybody else up for something like this? All you'd need would be a bike, binoculars, and the bird guide of your choice.

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Permalink Reply by Gene Tenner on September 28, 2012 at 7:25am

There are birding smartphone apps for apple and android. I tried iBrird Pro for android but had problems with the downloading, so I got a refund and bought Audubon's. Both were $2.99. Sibley's was $14.99. The best part is they have the recorded sounds that play on the phone. Amazingly fun and cool.

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Permalink Reply by Anne B. on September 28, 2012 at 12:10pm

Awesome- thanks for the info. I thought I had seen a colony out by the Ikea but have no idea how to get there and it's good to know about the Skokie Lagoons, even if it won't work out in terms of bike access. I was so excited to see a Black Crowned Night Heron my first summer after moving here, not far from where you described!

kiltedcelt said:

Oh yeah, and all of the Blue Heron rookeries that I know of are only accessible by boat. There's a huge one down on the Mazon River near the confluence with the Illinois River, and up at Skokie Lagoons they have nests all over the big islands out in the lagoons. Unfortunately I don't know of any that you can see from bike. However, with that being said, you can see Black Crowned Night Herons nesting in the pond and adjacent trees south of the farm at Lincoln Park Zoo. Of course all the Night Herons have packed up and left for the year, but they'll be back next Spring.