Overview
- Two bald eaglets hatched at Park 597 on the Southeast Side, with one spotted in late April and the other in early May, marking the first confirmed eagle births in Chicago in more than a century.
- The Chicago Park District has opened online voting to pick two names from three finalists — Migizi, Marian and Clawumet — and voting runs through 11:59 p.m. on June 1.
- A naming committee winnowed 3,271 submissions from 1,161 participants to produce the three finalists, and the finalist names reflect local culture and place: Migizi is Ojibwe for bald eagle, Marian honors environmentalist Marian R. Byrnes, and Clawumet references Calumet.
- Officials are asking visitors to stay on marked trails and avoid disturbing the nest as conservation staff credit specific restoration work, such as removing invasive plants and replanting native shrubs and grasses, for creating suitable habitat.
- Park leaders say the hatchings offer a test case for urban conservation that could lead to more wildlife in city parks if restoration continues and the public follows protective rules, and the last confirmed Chicago eagle sighting before this was reported in 2024.