REND LAKE, Ill. -- After seeing the attached photo, you might be wondering how only a handful of trees are white along this body of water.
Passersby are wondering this as roughly four or five trees can be seen completely white in color compared to the other trees surrounding them.
So why are they white?
If you look closer in the photo, you will see dozens of birds sitting atop of the trees. These birds are called Double Crested Cormorant, according to the Army Corps of Engineers at the Rend Lake Project Office.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, "Cormorants nest in trees, on cliffs, or on the ground. After years of repeated nesting in the same location, their guano often kills trees and other vegetation."
So why are these trees white? It's because of their feces, Army Corps of Engineers said.
Personnel with the Corps said these birds pass through the southern Illinois region in the early spring and again in the late fall to roost. The birds are known to gather in the trees, expel waste and then leaves.
The Corps says they also eat a lot of fish as well.
