Ducks Dying From Starvation As Lake Ice Cuts Them Off From Food Source
This bitterly cold winter seems to be wearing down everyone. It's also having a dramatic impact on the ducks who usually flourish along the shores of Lake Michigan.
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This bitterly cold winter seems to be wearing down everyone. It's also having a dramatic impact on the ducks who usually flourish along the shores of Lake Michigan.
Organizers credit the extra excitement to a challenge by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to "The Tonight Show" host Jimmy Fallon. Both Fallon and Emanuel made the plunge, attracting attention to the event.
Lake Michigan set a new record for ice coverage over the weekend, when ice levels reached 93.29 percent.
Right now Lake Michigan is 90-percent covered in ice and when it melts, it could save you money.
After having a meltdown early last week, Lake Michigan is just over 90 percent covered in ice, which equals the highest levels ever recorded.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel said Friday he'll know better than to bet against Chicago's kids, after he ended up having to eat his words when he challenged them to read 2 million books last summer.
Members of the U.S. Coast Guard station at Calumet Harbor have been training today for what they expect will be an increase in lake rescues in a season that's already seen more people on the ice or in the water than usual.
Last week's brief thaw melted much of the ice covering Lake Michigan, but three of the Great Lakes still remain nearly entirely on ice.
It's been so bitterly cold for so long in the Upper Midwest that the Great Lakes are almost completely covered with ice. The last time they came this close was in 1994, when 94 percent of the lakes' surface was frozen.
The Commander acknowledges there's some irony in the name: Biscayne Bay, for a Coast Guard ice breaker which is moored at Navy Pier.
The long deep freeze across the Upper Midwest this winter has left a whopping 80 percent of the Great Lakes covered in ice.
By meteorological standards, the winter of 2014 has been nothing short of impressive.
Placing dam-like structures in Chicago waterways would be an almost foolproof method of preventing Asian carp from reaching Lake Michigan, while a less pricey electric barrier system also has solid prospects for shielding the Great Lakes from the invasive fish.
A sailboat left floating at the dock at the end of last season is now frozen in the ice-covered water, a curiosity to local ice fishermen, and people who pass by on the lakefront path.
An Army Corps of Engineers report has a U.S. Senators, local mayors and waterway industry representatives speaking out against one of its solutions to stop the spread of Asian Carp.
Firefighters rescued a dog from Lake Michigan on Friday, after the animal fell off a ledge on the South Side.
About 12:15 a.m., a 31-year-old man was heard screaming for help from the water near where the river meets Lake Michigan.
A U.S. Coast Guard ship loaded with more than 1,200 Michigan Christmas trees has arrived in downtown Chicago.
Witnesses saw him driving east on Balbo Drive at Lake Shore Drive, but instead of making a left turn, he kept going, onto the sidewalk, down a pedestrian path, and into the lake.
Local officials are issuing a new warning of damage to Lake Michigan and problems for homeowners as a result of climate change, reports WBBM's Political Editor Craig Dellimore.
Windy conditions at the lakefront will make for very choppy conditions on the lake, with dangerous pounding waves prompting a warning for anyone who might want to go swimming, despite the chilly conditions.
A male Jet Skier who went missing several miles off the shore of Lake Michigan Saturday afternoon was found safe, police said.
Indefinite discharges of raw sewage into Lake Michigan won't cut it for a coalition of environmental groups, which Thursday asked a federal judge to set aside a proposed consent decree.
The National Weather Service warned lakefront visitors Thursday that swimming conditions are going to be dangerous in Lake Michigan, due to high waves and rip currents.
A southwest suburban family is thankful for their rescuers and their smart phone. They became stranded on a sinking vessel on the lake off Portage on Labor Day when they called for help.
The woman set on fire on the CTA Blue Line in a random act of violence has been released from the hospital.
A collaboration between Bad Bunny and a history professor is teaching people about Puerto Rican history in an event series at the Chicago Public Library.
The footage is included in a video that promotes false claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged against Mr. Trump.
The City of Chicago is taking steps to buy Chicago's Greyhound bus station.
The FBI has arrested "one of the key participants" behind the attack on U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012 that killed four Americans.
The footage is included in a video that promotes false claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged against Mr. Trump.
The FBI has arrested "one of the key participants" behind the attack on U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012 that killed four Americans.
As immigration sweeps expand nationwide, the work of justifying detentions is overwhelming federal prosecutors, who are being forced to sideline a range of other cases in order to keep pace.
Marimar Martinez, the Chicago woman shot five times by a Border Patrol agent in October, plans to attend President Trump's State of the Union address to Congress later this month, according to her attorney.
As Jesse Jackson Jr. campaigns for his old U.S. House seat at Chicago-area churches, banquet halls and on Black radio shows, he often takes a moment to address the obvious matter hanging over his political comeback.
This week marks Identity Theft Awareness Week, and Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza emphasized some safety tips Monday for avoiding and dealing with identity theft.
A controversial data center in Naperville, Illinois, could be the cause to pack a city council meeting there on Tuesday night.
Police in the west Chicago suburb of Geneva are warning of a scam involving spoofed phone numbers.
Protesters on Tuesday were cranking up the heat on Peoples Gas over a recently proposed rate hike that would add an additional $10 to $11 a month to utility bills.
A lawsuit filed late last month took Chicago-based McDonald's to task over the McRib sandwich, calling its name a form of false advertising.
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital announced this week that it is planning to open a new pediatric hospital in the west Chicago suburb of Downers Grove.
It has been nearly six years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and one of the many questions doctors are still working to answer concerns the long-term effects.
Leaders from Cook County, the Illinois Department of Human Services, and the Greater Chicago Food Depository denounced changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program on Wednesday.
The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center has received a grant from The Ralph Lauren Corporate Foundation for a new cancer center.
Chicago's Lurie Children's Hospital said Tuesday that it is no longer initiating gender-affirming medical treatment for minors.
A Near West Side diner known for drawing in Blackhawks fans and players is up for sale.
January may be the coldest time of the year, but Chicago is already looking forward to summer farmers' markets.
A development proposal issued this month calls for the replacement of a building housing a Giordiano's pizzeria in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood with a new mixed-use building with 28 residential units.
United Airlines flight attendants picketed outside Chicago's Willis Tower Thursday morning as they fought for a new contract.
WSCR-AM, 670 The Score, will begin a simulcast on 104.3 FM next month.
The members of Ratboys were teenagers when they met by chance, and now in their 30s, the Chicago band formed by two college friends almost two decades ago appears to be on the brink of something big.
Chuck Negron, a founding member of Three Dog Night whose lead vocals powered a string of hits for one of the top rock acts of the late 1960s and early '70s has died. He was 83.
Bad Bunny used his Grammy acceptance speech on Sunday to denounce U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and call for the end of the ongoing immigration crackdown.
The 2026 Grammy Awards recognized the best of the best in music from last year, with big wins for Kendrick Lamar and Bad Bunny. Here's the full list of winners and nominees.
Complete closure of the performing arts center in Washington, D.C., will start on July 4, Mr. Trump said. It's not yet clear how extensive the changes to the building might be.
The woman set on fire on the CTA Blue Line in a random act of violence has been released from the hospital.
It appears the city is now making moves for a permanent bus station, owned by Chicago, involving millions of dollars in tax money.
A federal judge in Chicago has ruled key evidence in the Marimar Martinez shooting, including bodycam video and text messages, can be released.
Take a first look at the 2026 Chicago Auto Show with Jackie Kostek.
Wheeling High School is cheering on their own cheerleaders as they head to the state competition!
A federal judge in Chicago has ruled key evidence in the Marimar Martinez shooting, including bodycam video and text messages, can be released.
The City of Chicago is taking steps to buy Chicago's Greyhound bus station.
The woman set on fire on the CTA Blue Line in a random act of violence has been released from the hospital.
A collaboration between Bad Bunny and a history professor is teaching people about Puerto Rican history in an event series at the Chicago Public Library.
The footage is included in a video that promotes false claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged against Mr. Trump.
Cynthia Eason recounted the moment Chicago police officers raided her family's home in 2018.
Water bills could be going up in several Chicago suburbs and other parts of Illinois, as Illinois American Water seeks a rate increase to fund infrastructure improvements.
The case involves a Chicago grandmother, her daughter, and her four grandchildren, who all said that Chicago police officers pointed guns at them during the botched raid.
Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel no longer will have to testify about an alleged "code of silence" at the Chicago Police Department, after a federal judge reversed an earlier ruling that would have allowed him to take the stand in a lawsuit over a botched police raid.
John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, the busiest trauma center in Illinois, is sounding an alarm, as doctors brace for an influx of patients because of federal funding cuts under the Trump administration's "One Big Beautiful Bill Act."
Caleb Williams certainly had plenty of big throws to celebrate in 2025, but it wasn't hard to pick his most memorable one after he launched a 46-yard touchdown pass to DJ Moore to beat the Packers in overtime in Week 16.
Brandon Ingram scored 33 points, Immanuel Quickley had 24 and the Toronto Raptors beat the new-look Chicago Bulls 123-107.
Chicago Bears guard Joe Thuney was named the NFL's top offensive lineman of 2025 on Thursday, winning the inaugural Protector of the Year Award.
The Bulls on Thursday sent Ayo Dosunmu and Julian Phillips to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Rob Dillingham, Leonard Miller and four second-round picks, as first reported by ESPN and The Athletic.
Six players made 3s for Illinois, which shot 17 of 38 from behind the arc and had just two turnovers.
A burglary crew smashed into a restaurant in Chicago's southwest suburbs, leaving the owner cleaning up a big and frustrating mess.
Six months after a well-known charter boat captain was found dead at DuSable Harbor in downtown Chicago, a man has been charged with his murder.
Three people were in custody Thursday afternoon after a Chicago police officer fired at a suspect who ran from a stolen car that had hit a squad car.
Police in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Thursday were investigating a shooting that left one teen dead and another injured, while a third teen suffered a head injury.
Chicago police on Thursday were investigating two attempted burglaries involving ATMs in two city neighborhoods in the early-morning hours.
