Imani at Montrose Beach, April 2023. (Courtesy of Matthew Dolkart)

There’s a love triangle brewing at Montrose Beach, where Imani the piping plover has been joined by a mystery bachelor and … a female.

Imani at Montrose Beach, April 2023. (Matthew Dolkart)

Chicago’s birders are celebrating the arrival of Imani at Montrose Beach. The piping plover is a 2021 chick of Monty and Rose.

Eaglet heads poke above the top of their nest. (Will County Forest Preserve / Chad Merda)

After months of great eggs-pectations, the Forest Preserve District of Will County has announced the arrival of five baby bald eagles.

(Danne / Pexels)

Scientists calculated the biomass of various groups of mammals, and humans’ impact weighs heavily on the planet.

(WTTW News)

It will be up to the next mayor to decide how to respond to Chicagoans’ growing frustration with these mega-events.

A bald eagle is pictured in a file photo. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

Forest Preserve District staff and volunteers have been keeping a close eye on the nests of two mated pairs of eagles and recently confirmed that at least one of the couples is sitting on eggs.

John James Audubon's illustrations are still revered, but the naturalist's troubling history is being called into question. (Biodiversity Heritage Library)

As a more complete, and complex, portrait has emerged of John James Audubon, birders and ornithologists have struggled to reconcile their missions with the troubling aspects of his legacy: buying and selling slaves, plagiarism and the exploitation of natural resources.  

Foster Avenue, in the North Park neighborhood. Experts say a single mug of salt is enough for 10 squares of sidewalk. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News)

Road salt runoff is making its way into Great Lakes waterways. Wisconsin has pending legislation that could encourage contractors to use less.

Orland Grassland, a thousand-acre restored prairie. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News)

“There are places you walk where you see sky touching the earth, and you can imagine this as the gateway to the Grand Prairie,” site steward Pat Hayes said of Orland Grassland.

A rendering of Carvana’s proposed 14-story tower in Skokie. (Facebook)
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If the embattled online retailer still wants to build its tower in Skokie, the company will have to start the approval process back at square one, village trustees said.

(Andreas Hoja / Pixabay)

January and February are prime months for bald eagle watching in Illinois, with some 3,000 of the raptors hanging out in the state during the winter.

Jim Tibensky, a volunteer with Chicago Bird Collision Monitors, nudges a bald eagle to shore New Year's Day in Waukegan Harbor. (Courtesy Nat Carmichael)

"Despite promising signs of recovery the first 48 hours, the bird took a very rapid turn for the worst," Willowbrook Wildlife Center shared on social media.

Jim Tibensky, a volunteer with Chicago Bird Collision Monitors, nudges a bald eagle to shore New Year's Day in Waukegan Harbor. (Courtesy Nat Carmichael)

Rescuing a bald eagle floating on ice in open water raises the stakes exponentially, but volunteers with Chicago Bird Collision Monitors proved up to the task with a New Year's Day recovery effort.

Zebra shark. (Brenna Hernandez / Shedd Aquarium)

From industrious sharks to the bird of the year, here’s what caught our attention this week on the climate and nature beat.

(Yanna Zissiadou / Unsplash)

Openlands is hoping to find more Latino and Spanish-speaking volunteers to lead the Birds in My Neighborhood program, which educates kids on native birds through in-school lessons and field trips.

Motus antenna assembly at Ryerson Conservation Area. (Lake County Forest Preserves)

Lake County Forest Preserves has now joined a global wildlife tracking network, expanding the ability of researchers to follow the movement of migratory birds through the Chicago region.