Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge.
Chautauqua Refuge is an important link in the chain of resting and feeding areas for waterfowl and other migratory birds in the Mississippi Flyway. Up to 250,000 waterfowl and 10,000 shorebirds seek the food resources and sanctuary found on the 6,200-acre refuge. Bald eagles nest on the refuge and as many as 175 eagles can be found in late fall through spring. Check out the South Pool for waders and rails. The Refuge is located about 40 miles southwest of Peoria, and 8 miles north of Havana in central Illinois.
Chicago and surrounding areas.
Silver Springs State Fish and Wildlife Area, a 1350 acre park five miles west of Yorkville in Kendall County can be productive for waterfowl and songbirds. Moraine Hills State Park is 3 miles south of McHenry, north west of Chicago. About half of the park's 2,200 acres is composed of wetlands and lakes and the park is heavily used by migratory waterfowl. Illinois Beach State Park has dunes and swales with sprawling marshes, forests of oak and vast arrays of animal life and vegetation all set in over 4000 acres. During migration months songbirds are present in good numbers and in early fall, watch for migrating raptors. A very popular birding hotspot is the Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary, located in Lincoln Park. It is a 15-acre bird sanctuary that attracts tens of thousands of migratory birds of more than 300 different species. East of the bathhouse is “The Magic Hedge”, a 150 yard stretch of shrubs and several trees, so-called because it attracts a curiously high number of migratory birds.
Horseshoe Lake State Fish & Wildlife Area
Located off Rte. 3, seven miles northwest of Cairo in the very south west of the state, this birding site has a combination of water (a 2400 acre shallow lake), swampland and woodland, which has created a wonderful habitat for birds. Good to visit during fall and winter, visitors will see large populations of waterfowl (with numbers in the hundreds of thousands) and bald eagles.
Mississippi Palisades State Park.
Located near the confluence of the Mississippi and Apple rivers in northwestern Illinois near Savanna (and almost directly west of Chicago) the 2,500-acre park is on the migration route for both waterfowl, shorebirds and passerines. Birding here can be very rewarding, particularly in April and May when passerines are passing through.