A wonderful photo of a suburban hawk, a note on European goldfinches, the record blue marlin (Atlantic) and a suburban gardener noting cicadas are among the notes around Chicago outdoors.

By Dale Bowman

Carlos Beber photographed this photo in action in Des Plaines. Provided by Gladys Beber — Carlos Beber photographed this photo in action in Des Plaines.

Notes come from all around Chicago outdoors.

WILD OF THE WEEK

Gladys Beber sent the photo at the top that her father-in-law Carlos Beber took, while parked at the Sam’s Club in Des Plaines, of a hawk. Chicago Audubon Society’s Alan Anderson thinks it is a juvenile red-tailed hawk.

WOTW, the celebration of wild stories and photos around Chicago outdoors, runs most weeks in the special two-page outdoors section in the Sun-Times Sports Saturday. Submit nominations by message on Facebook (Dale Bowman), on Twitter (@BowmanOutside) and Instagram (@BowmanOutside) or email (BowmanOutside@gmail.com).

WILD TIMES

DUCKS UNLIMITED

Wednesday, June 17: Illinois DU Virtual Event-Live Auction and Drawing, Zoom 7-9 p.m.

FISH GATHERING

Tuesday, June 16: Zoom meeting with Mark O’Neill on electronics and structure, Riverside Fishing Club, 6:45 p.m., RiversideFishingClub.com

ILLINOIS PERMITS/SEASONS

Today, June 15: Frog season opens

Tuesday, June 16: Perch fishing reopens on Lake Michigan

Through June 30: Second lottery, Illinois firearm/muzzleloader deer permit applications

HALL OF FAME

July 8: Deadline to submit nominations for the 2020 class of the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame, call (217) 785-2003 or go to ilconservation.org.

DALE’S MAILBAG

Becky and Jim Ejupi photographed these European goldfinches in Lake Zurich. Provided by Al Silcroft — Becky and Jim Ejupi photographed these European goldfinches in Lake Zurich.

“Aside from my fishing habit, I am also an avid bird watcher. Some friends of ours—Becky and Jim [Ejupi] from Lake Zurich—have a pair of these regularly visiting their feeder. After some research, I figured out that they are European finches.” Al Silcroft

A: In an Illinois Audubon Society blog, Bob Andrini included this, “In 2003 the first sightings of these birds started appearing in Illinois. The best guess was that they were released caged birds. Since that time, they have set up breeding populations in Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Indiana.”

BIG NUMBER

1,402 pounds, 2 ounces: All-tackle world record for blue marlin (Atlantic), according to the International Game Fish Association, caught Feb. 29, 1992, by Paulo Amorim at Vitoria, Brazil. Michael Jordan’s “Catch 23” crew weighed a 442.3-pound blue marlin last week. Click here for more details.

LAST WORD

“I’m a gardener in old tree-d Park Ridge. Weeks ago first noticed the holes in the ground. [The periodical cicadas] really are everywhere!”

Barbara Van Diggelen, on the scope of the emergence