Improvements made possible by funding from The Nature Foundation
Bird-watching is one of those pastimes that is accessible to all. You can do it in your backyard or even from your kitchen table, enjoying the birds that come and go from your yard, or you can turn it an adventure, trekking to bird hotspots near and far to see what species you can add to your list of observed birds.
Birding is also a popular activity in the Will County forest preserves and Forest Preserve District visitor centers. Beginner and advanced birders alike spend time looking and listening for birds of all kinds, both on their own and as part of interpretive programs led by Forest Preserve staff and volunteers.
One such recent program was Birds and Beans at Isle a Cache Museum in Romeoville, during which a group gathered in the museum’s library to enjoy bird-friendly coffee and breakfast while watching birds come and go from the newly revamped bird-feeding station.
The enhancements to the bird-feeding area at Isle a la Cache were funded by The Nature Foundation. Additional funding also paid for a bird-feeding station at Hidden Oaks Nature Center in Bolingbrook as well as outdoor seed-storage bins at Four Rivers Environmental Education Center in Channahon.
Tara Neff, executive director of The Nature Foundation, hopes the bird-feeding stations open doors for people, whether it’s learning about a new bird species or finding a new hobby they can enjoy in the preserves.
“This is really about inspiring discovery,” Neff said. “It’s just another way of building connections with nature.”
Interpretive naturalist Sara Russell, who led the Birds and Beans program, said the new bird-feeding station is much more expansive than what they previously had, providing more opportunities for people to see and experience our local bird species up close.
“The goal (of Birds and Beans) is to allow people a relaxed atmosphere to enjoy birding and enjoy nature and enjoy our facilities,” she said, adding people of all birding backgrounds are welcome. “I want people to feel like they can ask questions and don’t feel like they have to know a lot to come out.”
During the program, feathered visitors included black-capped chickadees, dark-eyed juncos, downy woodpeckers, house sparrows and white-breasted nuthatches. Among those in attendance were Kathy and Jim Stearns of Joliet, who chatted with other attendees about the birds at the museum’s feeders and also shared photos of birds that have visited their backyard feeders.
This was the second Birds and Beans program Kathy Stearns has attended, and this time she decided to bring her husband along.
“I enjoy being able to see the different birds in their natural setting,” she said, adding that before attending her first Birds and Beans program she had never visited Isle a la Cache Museum before.
She said she enjoys the casual approach of Birds and Beans, and she hopes to attend more birding programs, including a birding hike, to further her knowledge of our local birds.
Russell said the support of The Nature Foundation to fund amenities such as the bird-feeding stations allows interpretive naturalists to better connect people and nature.
“Nature is incredible and awesome, but it is fickle. It isn’t going to do what you want it to do when you want it to do it. By the Foundation building this structure for us, it gives us a much higher than average chance of seeing nature right before our eyes,” she said, adding that those close encounters people have with wildlife allow them to better understand and appreciated nature.
Russell said the bird-feeding area is a draw not just for programs but for everyday museum visitors as well. She said they often have visitors, both regulars and newcomers, who will take a seat in the comfortable chairs in front of the library windows to enjoy birds flitting to and from the feeders.
“People will sit in front of the windows and watch the bird feeders, sometimes for hours,” she said.
The hope is the same at Hidden Oaks, where the bird-feeding station is part of the extensive renovations and upgrades that will be unveiled to the public in spring 2025.
“We see this as a teaching tool for visitors during future programs and in passing conversations,” said program coordinator Suzy Lyttle.
At Hidden Oaks, visitors will be able to enjoy the viewing area indoors, with a front-row seat for the action. They will have ID guides and binoculars on hand for people to get a better look, and staff look forward to chatting with people about who they are seeing at the feeders, Lyttle said, adding that birding programs will be included in the program offerings at Hidden Oaks as well.
She said that including the bird-feeding stations is an approachable way for people to learn more about the world around them, and she hopes that having them at the Forest Preserve visitor centers helps turn more people into self-proclaimed “bird nerds.”
“Birdwatching becomes so contagious. The birds have their own personalities that are easy to fall in love with,” she said. “I am so excited to have a set up that visitors can use as inspiration to add at home.”