Birding at IBSP South Unit takes you through marsh, dune, swale, oak woods and Lake Michigan beach habitats, providing a rich mix of passerines, waterfowl and raptors. Special sightings can include Brewer’s Blackbirds, which are uncommon nesters in Lake County, and Blue Grosbeak, which have been seen at this site for the past several years. Other possibilities range from hard-to-find species Sedge Wren to European Goldfinch as well as late migrants and resident and nesting birds.
Directions: IBSP South is located between Bowen Park in Waukegan and North Point Marina in Winthrop Harbor. From Sheridan Road (IL 137), turn east on Wadsworth Rd. a few blocks north of Emily’s Pancake House and drive 2 miles into the park. Park in the Nature Center parking lot. (Be sure you go to the South Unit – also called Adeline Jay Geo-Karis Illinois Beach State Park – and not the North Unit at 17th Street.)
Leader: CiCi Birnberg 847-945-8500
Please register for the IBSP South Unit field trip here so that we can get a head count and contact you in the event of a date change due to weather conditions.