By Rebecca Minardi
Reprinted from American Birding Association book and media reviews
“Travel is inherently harmful,” he declared. It was 2017, and I was sitting in a lively graduate class in the Community Sustainability program at Michigan State when a classmate made this wild statement. The rest of us were flabbergasted. “What about our research trips?” my friend retorted....
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Bird enthustiasts recommend their favorite bird books
At our first-ever Unconvention in November, we included an open-mic session in which attendees could recommend their favorite bird books. Here are their recommendations - just in time for holiday giving!
Sense of Wonder by Rachel Carson
Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder by Julia Zarankin
Sibley Birding Basics by David Allen Sibley
The Laws Guide to Drawing Birds by...
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WSO celebrates National Cat Day? Here's why.
by Rebecca Gilman
WSO Secretary and Conservation Committee Co-chair
Unless you’re a cat lover you may not know that October 29th is National Cat Day. Established in 2005, the day celebrates cats and promotes their adoption from shelters and Humane Societies. Birdwatchers are not usually counted among the ranks of cat lovers, so it may come as a surprise that the Wisconsin Society...
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Latest Conservation News: A Big Win for the Birds!
Happy October! It’s been an eventful month so far, with both big wins and some new challenges for the birds. Let’s start with the big win!
Photo by Shan Arora
In 2022, Madison’s Bird-Safe Glass Ordinance – which requires buildings that are more than 10,000 square feet to incorporate a pattern, such as dots or lines, to prevent birds from colliding with the glass – was...
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Join us November 11 at our first-ever Unconvention!
Native Plant Garden at UW-Madison Arboretum
By Lynn Barber, WSO Vice President
Announcing the first WSO UNCONVENTION: PEOPLE IN WISCONSIN TALKING ABOUT BIRD STUFF!
When and where is this birdy event?
Saturday, November 11th, 9 am to 4:30 pm, at the UW-Madison Arboretum Visitor Center in Madison (1207 Seminole Hwy). Lunch is included. The program schedule can be found here.
What “Bird...
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Harrington Beach Hawk Watch 2023
BROAD-WINGED HAWK (IMMATURE) - PHOTO BY TOM SCHULTZ
The date we selected for this year’s WSO Hawk Watch was Saturday, October 7th, and it turned out that our timing was fortuitous. We had been watching the forecast during the days leading up to this year’s event, and with strong northwest winds predicted, we were optimistic that we’d have a good hawk flight!
The group...
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Jaegerfest 2023 Report
LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL (JUVENILE) - PHOTO BY ROBBYE JOHNSON
The weekend of September 22-24 was another “unofficial” Jaegerfest (since it was no longer listed as a WSO field trip), and this year brought some very unusual circumstances – due to the totally unprecedented appearance of AMERICAN FLAMINGOS at Port Washington on Friday the 22nd!
The story really starts on...
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Fall Warblers Field Trip 2023
Although a little cool (48 degrees), the weather in Green Bay was sunny and calm as our field trip attendees arrived at Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary on September 9th. We gathered near one of the lagoons, took attendance, and began checking out the bird activity. Present were MALLARDS, WOOD DUCKS, and CANADA GEESE, as well as GREEN HERON, SPOTTED SANDPIPER, and LESSER YELLOWLEGS. ...
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Latest Conservation News
August is winding down and we hope you’re all enjoying the start of fall migration. As birds fly south, we’re reminded of how important it is to protect their stopover sites in Wisconsin. Below, we’ve featured some important opportunities to help protect those sites and the birds that depend on them.
The WSO Conservation Committee has made opposition to the development...
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Jagerfest 2023
This event started as a WSO (Wisconsin Society for Ornithology) field trip back in 1999 and has been annual ever since. Hundreds of birders have attended over the years, not only from Wisconsin, but also many from Minnesota and a number of other states. Jaegerfest is no longer featured as a WSO field trip for the past few years (for a variety of reasons), but many of us still...
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Horicon Marsh Field Trip 2023
Birding on Old Marsh Road East End - photo Tom Schultz
On Sunday, August 13 the group began gathering around 7:00 AM along Highway 49, near a large mixed gathering of AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS, DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS, GREAT EGRETS, GREAT BLUE HERONS, MALLARDS, WOOD DUCKS, RING-BILLED GULLS, and others. The skies were partly cloudy, and the temperature was cool and comfortable –...
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