There was or is a black-bellied whistling duck at Hennepin-Hopper lakes.
On IBET, the birding network for Illinois, I saw a report by Doug Stotz, conservation ecologist/ornithologist for the Field Museum, that the site manager had seen the black-bellied whistling duck.
I hadn't talked to site super Rick Seibert in awhile, so it gave me an excuse to catch up.
``There was no mistaking it,'' Seibert said.
After it was kicked up Tuesday--he was out with two others, one of whom is also a good duck person--he checked in his Sibley field guide.
``You know how it is when you see something unusual,'' he said. ``The orange bill really stuck out. And the patches on the wings.''
Here's the description pulled from the online listing for black-bellied whistling ducks by Cornell Lab of Ornithology:
``A striking and gregarious duck of the Neotropics, the Black-bellied Whistling-Duck reaches the United States only in the very southern parts. Its long neck, long legs, black belly, and white wing patch make it a distinctive-looking waterfowl.''
Hennepin-Hopper is just south of Hennepin, about half an hour from Starved Rock. I highly recommend using any excuse, even this sighting, to stop by and see the site.
There's such things as a white-faced ibis too. Seibert said traditionally this is about the time the hummingbirds really start showing up.
The site story and directions are posted here.
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