snowy owl

Arctic Birds Wintering in the Midwest

Arctic Birds Wintering in the Midwest

While some migratory birds are leaving, others are just arriving. Birds from the Arctic Circle make their grand entrance. Arctic migratory birds can have very specific winter locales, including the east and west coastlines or hotspots occurring within select states. Others are common residents throughout much of the lower forty-eight and even more common throughout the Midwest.

The Snowy Owl at the Harbor

The Snowy Owl at the Harbor

On the south side of Chicago, I walked across snow-covered sand on an icy lakeshore. The ice that had formed where water met beach lowly creaked as water moved underneath it. The winter day was cold, but, thankfully, there was a lack of wind whose harshness would have only been magnified by traveling across Lake Michigan.