The buzz

Birding can be a rewarding experience, but it can also be tricky to get those identifications right.

The yellow-bellied sapsucker is the only woodpecker in the eastern United States that is fully migratory, so their time in northern Illinois can be fleeting. Look for them in the spring and fall as they migrate through our area.

To not have heard the buzz about this year's cicada emergence you would have to have been where the cicadas themselves are right now — underground. Why all the hype? This year is the first time since 1803 that two broods of cicadas will have emerged in Illinois at the same time.

You can define Earth in many ways, but above all else it is home. Here is your chance to learn all about our home planet.

Gardening with your kids can be a great way to make them good stewards of the environment.

For those of you eagerly anticipating the arrival of ruby-throated hummingbirds, it won't be long now. The tiny birds have been spotted in Will County and elsewhere in Illinois.

Are the birds waking you up before dawn? There's a good reason for their morning concert. 

Meet Michelle Cipiti, an interpretive naturalist at Hidden Oaks Nature Center.

Northern flickers look a little different than most of our local woodpecker species, and we see them on the ground much more than you might expect for a woodpecker.

Several birds are known for their aggressive behavior, but perhaps none as much as the red-winged blackbird, a bird that isn't afraid to pick on creatures much larger than itself.