Forest Preserve’s Tournament Of Birds Swoops In For Another Year Of March Madness

Take your best shot at picking this year’s top bird in the Forest Preserve District of Will County’s version of March Madness: the 2021 Tournament of Birds. Vote daily as birds seeded in their color-coded brackets vie for top honors.

Sixteen birds are competing in the tournament, which is underway now on the District’s Facebook page, facebook.com/WillCoForests. Vote for your favorite bird in each matchup by leaving a comment with your bird of choice on each posted matchup. Each matchup will be posted at 10 a.m., and votes through 9:59 a.m. the next day will be counted. The bracket will be updated after each round.

Some birds are mainstays in your yard. Others are a real treat to see. And in the case of the western tanager, it’s a bird that got lost along the way and caused quite a stir during a pit stop in Channahon last year. The bird field is divided into four color-based regionals: