WhenToBird

Birding spot · Fulton County, Illinois

Birding at Thompson Lake (historical): What You'll See Each Week

In November, the birds most often reported at Thompson Lake (historical) are Ring-billed Gull (83%), Mallard (80%), and American White Pelican (77%). It is busiest in spring, when 104 species turn up on at least 1 in 20 checklists, and species counts peak in the second week of May (112 species). 219 species have been reported here across 1,235 complete checklists from 466 birders.

Species by week

0255075100125Jan 1-7: 57 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsJan 8-14: low data (6 checklists)Jan 15-21: low data (7 checklists)Jan 22-31: low data (8 checklists)Feb 1-7: 46 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsFeb 8-14: 43 species on 5%+ of 23 checklistsFeb 15-21: 50 species on 5%+ of 20 checklistsFeb 22-28: 53 species on 5%+ of 32 checklistsMar 1-7: 53 species on 5%+ of 35 checklistsMar 8-14: 57 species on 5%+ of 37 checklistsMar 15-21: 62 species on 5%+ of 33 checklistsMar 22-31: 53 species on 5%+ of 29 checklistsApr 1-7: 70 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsApr 8-14: 58 species on 5%+ of 23 checklistsApr 15-21: 79 species on 5%+ of 27 checklistsApr 22-30: 83 species on 5%+ of 44 checklistsMay 1-7: 108 species on 5%+ of 45 checklistsMay 8-14: 112 species on 5%+ of 52 checklistsMay 15-21: 97 species on 5%+ of 52 checklistsMay 22-31: 103 species on 5%+ of 38 checklistsJun 1-7: 89 species on 5%+ of 31 checklistsJun 8-14: 62 species on 5%+ of 28 checklistsJun 15-21: 89 species on 5%+ of 20 checklistsJun 22-30: 60 species on 5%+ of 29 checklistsJul 1-7: 78 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsJul 8-14: 59 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsJul 15-21: 63 species on 5%+ of 23 checklistsJul 22-31: 73 species on 5%+ of 36 checklistsAug 1-7: 65 species on 5%+ of 50 checklistsAug 8-14: 81 species on 5%+ of 35 checklistsAug 15-21: 77 species on 5%+ of 30 checklistsAug 22-31: 66 species on 5%+ of 54 checklistsSep 1-7: 62 species on 5%+ of 32 checklistsSep 8-14: 75 species on 5%+ of 35 checklistsSep 15-21: 77 species on 5%+ of 33 checklistsSep 22-30: 63 species on 5%+ of 32 checklistsOct 1-7: 86 species on 5%+ of 18 checklistsOct 8-14: 65 species on 5%+ of 22 checklistsOct 15-21: 57 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsOct 22-31: 77 species on 5%+ of 20 checklistsNov 1-7: 65 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsNov 8-14: 71 species on 5%+ of 11 checklistsNov 15-21: low data (9 checklists)Nov 22-30: 69 species on 5%+ of 16 checklistsDec 1-7: 64 species on 5%+ of 10 checklistsDec 8-14: low data (7 checklists)Dec 15-21: low data (4 checklists)Dec 22-31: 47 species on 5%+ of 23 checklistsJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Number of species reported on at least 5% of complete checklists, by week (4 per month). Grey bars: fewer than 10 checklists, not counted.

In November: what to expect

  1. 1Ring-billed Gull83%
  2. 2Mallard80%
  3. 3American White Pelican77%
  4. 4Northern Shoveler72%
  5. 5Gadwall68%
  6. 6American Coot65%
  7. 7Great Blue Heron62%
  8. 8Northern Pintail62%
  9. 9Ruddy Duck62%
  10. 10Canada Goose58%
  11. 11Green-winged Teal53%
  12. 12Song Sparrow53%
  13. 13Double-crested Cormorant52%
  14. 14Killdeer52%
  15. 15Bonaparte's Gull47%

Share of complete checklists at this spot that reported the bird in November. The sparkline is the whole year, with this month highlighted.

Season by season

Winter 56 species

  1. Bald Eagle84%
  2. Canada Goose80%
  3. Snow Goose72%
  4. Mallard66%
  5. Ring-billed Gull63%

Spring 104 species

  1. Red-winged Blackbird87%
  2. Canada Goose79%
  3. Killdeer77%
  4. Mallard73%
  5. Mute Swan72%

Summer 72 species

  1. Red-winged Blackbird82%
  2. Double-crested Cormorant82%
  3. Killdeer77%
  4. American White Pelican74%
  5. Cliff Swallow67%

Fall 81 species

  1. American White Pelican88%
  2. Ring-billed Gull77%
  3. Double-crested Cormorant76%
  4. Great Blue Heron73%
  5. Great Egret70%

Specialties

Birds reported far more often here than across Illinois.

Nearby spots

Frequency is the share of complete checklists at this location that listed the bird, 2016–2025. Busy places report more of everything, and the weekly chart counts species on at least 5% of checklists so a few stray reports do not inflate it. How to read it.