Birds of Illinois
The state's most-recorded birds, ranked from survey data, with when each is present through the year and a life list to keep.
- Every species profiled with ID notes and habitat
- A month-by-month presence chart for the whole year
- Ranked by how consistently each turns up on survey routes
- Backyard-feeder notes and where to look
- A printable life list you can keep for years
Not on sale yet
It is built and in final review. We hold a product back rather than sell a draft; it goes on sale when its review clears.
A look inside
What the Illinois pages actually look like
From the Illinois edition
Some of what is actually in it
The 24 species in the Illinois edition, in the order they are most consistently recorded. The first twelve:
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Mourning Dove
- Barn Swallow
- Northern Cardinal
- American Robin
- European Starling
- House Sparrow
- Brown-headed Cowbird
- Killdeer
- Chipping Sparrow
- American Crow
- Indigo Bunting
How the Illinois year breaks down
Counted, not claimed
Of the 24 species, 9 are with you all year in Illinois, 9 move only a short distance, and 6 leave the continent and come back.
Illinois's fullest month is May, when 24 of them are reliably about; the quietest is January with 9. The presence chart shows every month for every species.
In the box
Exactly what you receive
| Illinois pages | 6 pages — every species profiled, with a month-by-month presence chart |
|---|---|
| Format | PDF, laid out for both Letter and A4 |
| Delivery | An instant download link, plus a link you can re-open for 72 hours |
| Access | Yours to keep — no expiry, no account, no subscription |
| Refunds | Full refund within 30 days, no questions |
How it works
From checkout to the field
Buy it
Checkout takes a card and an email address — no account to create.
Open it straight away
The download link appears immediately and the Illinois files are yours to keep.
Use it through the year
Print the Illinois pages you want and take them outside; they are laid out with room to write on as the season moves.
Free and paid, side by side
The Illinois pages here stay free. Here is what the edition adds.
| The free Illinois pages | Birds of Illinois | |
|---|---|---|
| What it covers | The month Illinois is in, free and always | All twelve Illinois months, planned before they arrive |
| The species | All 24 Illinois species, readable on screen | The same 24, as a printed presence chart and a life list you keep |
| Where you can read it | On a screen, wherever Illinois has signal | On paper, in the field, with no signal at all |
| Price | Free, and staying that way | $9.99 once — no renewal, no account |
Before you buy
Who this is for
Made for
- Beginners who want to know which Illinois birds they are actually likely to see
- Feeder watchers and walkers keeping a list
- Anyone teaching a child to notice what is out there
Not for
- Experienced birders after a full Illinois state checklist — this is the consistently-seen species, not every rarity
Everything here describes typical timing across Illinois, drawn from long-run records — weather, elevation and how close you are to water all move the real dates around. So the Illinois pages say "usually early May" and never "May 4th", which is not hedging but the most the data can honestly carry.
Where it comes from
Compiled from
USGS Breeding Bird Survey · State fish & wildlife agencies. How each of these is used in the Illinois edition, and which figures are measured rather than modeled, is set out in the methodology.
Questions
Before you decide
Is this specific to Illinois, or a national guide with the name swapped in?
It is built from Illinois's own data. The species list is the one recorded on Illinois survey routes, ranked by how consistently each turns up — 24 species in this edition.
Where does the Illinois species list come from?
It is drawn from the USGS Breeding Bird Survey routes that run through Illinois, ranked by how consistently each species is recorded.
How accurate is the timing for Illinois?
It describes typical timing across Illinois drawn from long-run records, and because weather, elevation and habitat move real Illinois dates around it says "usually early May" rather than "May 4th".
Is it worth paying when the Illinois pages here are free?
The free Illinois pages are the month you are in; this is the whole Illinois year, planned before it arrives and printable, so you are not holding a screen in the garden.
Will it work for my part of Illinois, or just the big cities?
It is written at state resolution — Illinois as a whole, with regional notes where Illinois genuinely differs end to end, and nothing behind it is recorded finely enough to honestly promise more than that.
What format is the Illinois edition, and can I print it?
A PDF laid out for both Letter and A4, one page per sheet — printing it is the point, since the Illinois pages are made to be carried outside.
What if the Illinois guide is not what I expected?
Email hello@birchcompass.com within 30 days for a full refund on the Illinois edition, and keep the files either way — asking for them back would be theatre.
Details
Format: PDF, laid out for Letter and A4. Delivery: an instant download link, plus a link you can re-open for 72 hours. Refunds: full refund within 30 days, no questions — email hello@birchcompass.com.
Prefer to read online first? The free Illinois birds reference covers the same ground on screen.
The rest of the Illinois shelf
Also for Illinois
Illinois Nature Year 2027
Everything Birch Compass knows about a year of nature in one state — the book, the posters, the sky calendar, the…
$34.00
The Illinois Set
Three printable Illinois editions in one purchase — the twelve-month journal, the native plants reference and the…
$29.00
Illinois Nature Year 2027 + Journal
The complete Illinois Nature Year with the undated journal beside it: everything the site knows about the year, and…
$42.00
The Illinois Nature Journal
Twelve printable month pages: a reference side built from public nature data for your state, and a field-notes side…
$14.00
Native Plants of Illinois
The native plants that belong in your yard — what to plant for pollinators, by zone, with bloom timing and a species…
$9.99