ML646278134

Observation details

*Rare. Found this morning by Jacob Drucker and Cameron Rutt, and one of only a handful of recent records for Cook County over the last decade. A county lifer for me. Arrived on the scene at the same time as Woody Goss, we wandered around for a bit before finding the fruiting trees that Jacob and Cameron had had the bird in earlier (in the NW portion of the park). Eventually we focused on them, and Woody quickly spotted the bird perched up on the top of one of the trees. It moved around a bit, then flew across the road and landed high in a tree on an isolated branch, surveying the area. More birders were able to get on it, it dropped and had a quick bite of fruit, and then flew to the east and disappeared. About 30 minutes passed and I had thought the bird would return to the area, but eventually decided to try wandering to the east and see if the bird was over there. On the NE side of the park (here: 41.7222778, -87.5290000), I coincidentally found the solitaire perched in a fruit tree very still and content. I called all the birders over, but a squirrel then flushed the bird when people were arriving. Fortunately, Rohan Tripathi re-found the bird in a deciduous tree next to the fruiting tree, and all 20+ birders present were able to get great looks at it - both there and when it dropped back in to feed on the fruits. A sleek, robin-sized thrush with a small stubby black bill, white eye-ring, overall grayish plumage, buffy edges to the primaries and secondaries showing a wing-stripe in flight, and a long tail with a white underside. Many photos taken.