Field Trip Report: Horner Park Nighthawk Watch

words and photos by Edward Warden

August 27, 2023

So much of predicting migration is guesswork. Sure, we get better at it by the day with new technologies, better communication, and simple experience. But as educated as it may be, planning still requires a healthy dose of guessing, especially when it comes to trying to plan a trip for a large group in advance around a highly weather dependent migrant. And guess we did as we declared a date for the second annual Nighthawk Watch!

As Common Nighthawks gather in kettles and make their way south for the winter, there are many places in Chicago where one can witness their spectacle. If you pick a night where the winds are right, bugs are plentiful, and a little luck is in your favor, then a front row seat can by anywhere with a view of the sky, even your font porch! While that’s fine for solo endeavors, there are slightly different requirements for a group of picnicking nighthawk fans. Horner Park really is perfect for this purpose, with a massive lawn to spread out on, a panoramic view of the sky, and large ball field lights to attract bugs. And so on a cool Sunday evening, some 30 of us gathered and waited.

A few early arrivals spotted a few early moving birds before the rest of the group arrived. This gave us hope that we had chosen a good nigh for movement, but also some anxiety that we might have a repeat of last year’s watch which only coughed up a few migrants. But as everyone slowly trickled in and made small talk, a horde of Chimney Swifts serenaded us to pass the time. Within a few minutes, the first nighthawk was spotted in the distance!

Flying low on the distant horizon, no markings were visible but the lanky and erratic flight among distant lamps was unmistakable. As sunset transitioned to dusk, the numbers of swifts rapidly dwindled and nighthawks began to appear almost as rapidly to take their place. Before long, some 40 nighthawks made themselves visible. Some wasted no time as they flew relentlessly south while others took meandering routes through the park and along the Chicago River. Before long, darkness had fallen and only a few nighthawks made themselves known as they flashed in and out of stadium lights.

Our group broke camp to approach the empty ballfield and had our short hike rewarded with approximately a dozen nighthawks flying low in pursuit of bugs and giving killer looks at their subtle plumage. Not to be outdone by the visitors, two nocturnal residents came out to cap the evening. An Eastern Red Bat wove in and out of the tree line, and a lone Coyote hustled across the baseball diamond as our thrilled band of night birders wrapped up and headed home. You couldn’t ask for a better night in the presence of some of Chicago’s finest urban wildlife.