WhenToBird

Birding spot · Lake County, Illinois

Birding at Volo Bog: What You'll See Each Week

In November, the birds most often reported at Volo Bog are Black-capped Chickadee (84%), Dark-eyed Junco (79%), and American Robin (71%). It is busiest in spring, when 87 species turn up on at least 1 in 20 checklists, and species counts peak in the second week of May (95 species). 177 species have been reported here across 864 complete checklists from 448 birders.

Species by week

020406080100Jan 1-7: low data (6 checklists)Jan 8-14: low data (9 checklists)Jan 15-21: 32 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsJan 22-31: 29 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsFeb 1-7: low data (7 checklists)Feb 8-14: low data (6 checklists)Feb 15-21: low data (7 checklists)Feb 22-28: 32 species on 5%+ of 16 checklistsMar 1-7: 47 species on 5%+ of 19 checklistsMar 8-14: 48 species on 5%+ of 20 checklistsMar 15-21: 66 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsMar 22-31: 52 species on 5%+ of 25 checklistsApr 1-7: 59 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsApr 8-14: 72 species on 5%+ of 17 checklistsApr 15-21: 62 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsApr 22-30: 64 species on 5%+ of 39 checklistsMay 1-7: 78 species on 5%+ of 42 checklistsMay 8-14: 95 species on 5%+ of 33 checklistsMay 15-21: 94 species on 5%+ of 48 checklistsMay 22-31: 74 species on 5%+ of 43 checklistsJun 1-7: 62 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsJun 8-14: 74 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsJun 15-21: 64 species on 5%+ of 27 checklistsJun 22-30: 60 species on 5%+ of 26 checklistsJul 1-7: 73 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsJul 8-14: 73 species on 5%+ of 19 checklistsJul 15-21: 72 species on 5%+ of 13 checklistsJul 22-31: 73 species on 5%+ of 27 checklistsAug 1-7: 71 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsAug 8-14: 69 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsAug 15-21: 69 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsAug 22-31: 67 species on 5%+ of 18 checklistsSep 1-7: 67 species on 5%+ of 11 checklistsSep 8-14: 79 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsSep 15-21: 77 species on 5%+ of 14 checklistsSep 22-30: 58 species on 5%+ of 30 checklistsOct 1-7: 68 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsOct 8-14: 74 species on 5%+ of 28 checklistsOct 15-21: low data (9 checklists)Oct 22-31: 65 species on 5%+ of 19 checklistsNov 1-7: 51 species on 5%+ of 24 checklistsNov 8-14: 44 species on 5%+ of 12 checklistsNov 15-21: 51 species on 5%+ of 15 checklistsNov 22-30: low data (7 checklists)Dec 1-7: low data (8 checklists)Dec 8-14: low data (7 checklists)Dec 15-21: 34 species on 5%+ of 11 checklistsDec 22-31: low data (7 checklists)JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
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. 1Black-capped Chickadee84%
  2. 2Dark-eyed Junco79%
  3. 3American Robin71%
  4. 4American Goldfinch64%
  5. 5Mallard64%
  6. 6House Finch62%
  7. 7Red-bellied Woodpecker60%
  8. 8Sandhill Crane60%
  9. 9Downy Woodpecker59%
  10. 10White-breasted Nuthatch59%
  11. 11Northern Cardinal57%
  12. 12American Tree Sparrow55%
  13. 13Blue Jay55%
  14. 14Canada Goose47%
  15. 15American Crow45%

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 34 species

  1. Black-capped Chickadee84%
  2. Dark-eyed Junco74%
  3. Northern Cardinal74%
  4. American Tree Sparrow68%
  5. White-breasted Nuthatch65%

Spring 87 species

  1. Red-winged Blackbird93%
  2. American Robin84%
  3. Canada Goose83%
  4. Sandhill Crane82%
  5. Song Sparrow73%

Summer 66 species

  1. American Robin91%
  2. Red-winged Blackbird84%
  3. Gray Catbird82%
  4. American Goldfinch81%
  5. Great Egret73%

Fall 70 species

  1. American Robin80%
  2. Black-capped Chickadee75%
  3. Blue Jay74%
  4. American Goldfinch73%
  5. Sandhill Crane69%

Specialties

Birds reported far more often here than across Illinois.

  • Virginia Rail8.1% of checklists here vs 0.4% statewide: 21.4×
  • Sandhill Crane63% of checklists here vs 4.4% statewide: 14.2×
  • Marsh Wren17% of checklists here vs 1.7% statewide: 10.2×
  • Sora11% of checklists here vs 1.2% statewide: 9.1×
  • Willow Flycatcher13% of checklists here vs 2.0% statewide: 6.5×
  • Purple Martin21% of checklists here vs 3.4% statewide: 6.2×
  • Swamp Sparrow37% of checklists here vs 6.4% statewide: 5.8×
  • Great Egret47% of checklists here vs 8.5% statewide: 5.5×

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.