Outdoors column: Sun halo over beach coincides with rare bird sighting
While searching for a rare and beautiful harlequin duck at Illinois Beach State Park on a recent cold day, I looked to the sky to see a halo surrou...
While searching for a rare and beautiful harlequin duck at Illinois Beach State Park on a recent cold day, I looked to the sky to see a halo surrounding the sun. The bright globe was completely encircled by a round gray shadow. A closer look revealed a thin line of reddish-brown encircling the halo. It was eerie, beautiful and mysterious. Perhaps the halo served as a sign that the rare bird was there. We did indeed see it after a few hours of patiently waiting. Oftentimes, harlequin ducks seen around northern Illinois over the winter and into spring aren't wearing their full gorgeous breeding plumage.