A Bird Sanctuary Among Skyscrapers
April 2026
A Skyline Sanctuary, The Success of Montrose Point
During our walks along the lakefront, we discovered a natural hidden gem and urban wildlife hotspot, Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary. As one of the first natural areas being preserved in the Chicago area, it is an important birding location, uniquely surrounded by the city’s skyscrapers. The sanctuary offers a stop for 300 species of migrating birds that follow the Lake Michigan shoreline through the Mississippi Flyway.
It is nice to read that the preservation efforts are paying off. Next to the sanctuary at the Montrose Beach Dunes, endangered Great Lakes piping plovers have returned. The first pair nested here in 2019. This pair, named Monty and Rose, returned to nest here each year for several years. The results are amazing. Between 1990 and 2023, the number of pairs increased from just 13 to 80 across the Great Lakes region.
While we didn’t get to spot a plover on our visit, the preserve was full of tweets and twitter! We saw several beautiful species, including a common grackle foraging on the ground, a vibrant male northern cardinal high in the branches, a red-winged blackbird defending its perch, and a few relaxed mallards.
