SATURDAY EVENING Apr 20, 6pm Harrington Beach State Park

Meet in the main parking lot by the building (follow linked pin) Point A on the map below. We will bird along the beach and through the woods. Later we will move to lot B by the campground to watch the woodcocks.

Last year it was a fabulous show with woodcocks peent-ing and whirling all around us! Bring a flashlight/headlamp for the end of the walk.

While we will not have an organized hike Sunday, April 21, Horicon Marsh Bird Club will. They are leading a hike the full length of Old Marsh Road from east to west and providing shuttles back to cars parked on Point Rd. This is a fantastic opportunity! Fingers crossed for yellow-headed Blackbirds.
Details here: https://horiconmarshbirdclub.com/event/earth-day-hike-old-marsh-rd/

A Weekend of Birding in Two Rivers
Registration for the WSO May Convention ends April 25. Check out the event page for more info. The field trips and talks look great!
https://wsobirds.org/images/pdfs/2024_WSO_Convention_Registration_Information.pdf

Memorial Day Weekend:
Horicon Marsh Boat Tour
Sunday, May 26 9:00-11:00 am cost $38
Buy your ticket here: https://horiconmarsh.com/tours.php at Blue Heron Landing tours. We can car pool over. Before and/or after boat tour we can check out a few other places in the Marsh. Details to follow.

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Earth Day April 20

Make our city better for birds and humans! Clean up a bit as you go. It’s easy – stuff a garbage bag in your pocket, see trash and pick it up.

Be a Brew Hero for picking up trash in MKE parks and earn prizes
https://www.loveyourparksmke.com/volunteer

Do a river clean-up, earn admiration and satisfaction
River Revitalization Foundation: https://www.riverrevitalizationfoundation.org/join-us/events/

Milwaukee Riverkeeper Clean-up:
https://milwaukeeriverkeeper.org/restore/spring-cleanup/

Green Birding Challenge with Urban Ecology Center
Biking and birding is a great combination. Katie and Donna are interested in being on a team. Who else? We can have more than one team. If you are interested, let us know on this form and we will coordinate team formation and meet-ups.

Teams limited to 4 people. Register by April 25 for a t-shirt, registration closes May 5. More details HERE. Each team can choose our challenge option:
Soaring Eagle Challenge: Starts at 6 AM; 5 hours of birding

Rockin’ Robin Challenge: Starts at 8 AM; 3 hours of birding

^ $45 for adults; $25 for children with lunch and a t-shirt included! Each challenge involves teams competing to see who can find the most bird species the morning of May 11. This challenge is unique in that all team-based counts are done without using any fossil fuels (no driving 100 miles to see a bonus bird).

Your team of birders (max of 4 people) will choose a challenge category (at the end of checkout): 

1. The Big Sit (sitting):  Find a location that you can walk or bike to and then sit in a comfy lawn chair with coffee and let the birds come to you. Picking the best location is the hardest part! 
2. Birding By Foot (walking): Hike to and from Urban Ecology Center – Riverside Park to build your list.
3. Bike to Birds (biking): Join the biking challenge and visit hot spots around the city to build your list.

**Each member of your team must register. It is easiest to register everyone in your team at once. Registration confirmations can be sent to multiple people. 

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Last Week:

We met at Humboldt then caravanned two blocks to see the White-Winged Dove. The neighborhood hosts for this southern bird were very helpful and we quickly located the bird. After a little fly-about the dove settled on a power line giving us all great looks.
Back at our cars we hopped out to peek at the Pied-bill Grebe swimming in the Humboldt lagoon. A quick look at the eBird action and word of Short-Eared Owls flying around Sheridan convinced us to go to Sheridan! At Sheridan, there were many, many Grackle and Red-winged Blackbird flyovers. The bluff was full of Yellow-rumped Warblers, Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets. While admiring a lovely Phoebe and tracking some flying gulls, we were delighted and shocked to see a Short-eared Owl flying over Lake Michigan with a gull in hot pursuit. The owl made it into the bluff shrubs. Other highlights were Cormorants, a Purple Finch, and Brown Creeper. The birds are coming north!

eBird list Sheridan Park: https://ebird.org/checklist/S168575102

Ongoing Bird Walks:

Sundays 8:00am Wisconsin Metro Audubon Society Bird Walk (WMAS)
Wehr Nature Center 9701 W College Ave. No registration required.

Second Sundays 10:00-11:30am The Art of Birding with Chuck Stebelton at Lynden Sculpture Gardens will run April through August. Register for walks HERE by the Friday before

Tues 8:00am Menomonee Valley Urban Ecology Center (UEC), 3700 W Pierce St
Wed 8:00am Washington Park Urban Ecology Center (UEC) 4023 W Galena St
Thurs 8:00am Riverside Park Urban Ecology Center (UEC) 1500 E Park Place

Fridays 8:00am Bird walks at Retzer Nature Center walks with Goss Bird Club

Third Saturdays 8:00am Schlitz Audubon Nature Center 1111 E Brown Deer Rd, Registration required, https://www.schlitzaudubon.org/event/saturday-morning-bird-walk-15/

Saturdays 7:00am Goss Bird Club bird around Waukesha County. See Field Trip Schedule

Saturdays 8:30 Lake Park Warbler walks start April 20 through end of May

Check out Chirp Chat episodes all about birding Milwaukee

Migration Walks starting in May(details later):
Fridays 7:30am Riveredge Nature Center Bird Walks starting in May

Nearby Bird Clubs to checkout:
Benjamin F. Goss Bird Club meets at Retzer Nature Center.
Hoy Audubon Society meets in Racine
Ozaukee Washington Birding Coalition meets at Riveredge Nature Center, Lac Lawrann in West Bend, Mequon Nature Preserve and Cedarburg Bog
Schlitz Audubon Nature Center Bird Club second Wednesday at 6:30pm
Wisconsin Metro Audubon Society (WMAS), third Wednesday at 7:00pm Wehr Nature Center

Upcoming:

Have a birding event to share? Let me know, share on the Contact Page

APRIL

WINGS – Bird Window Collision Monitoring
April 15- May 31, Run by UEC
Training provided by Urban Ecology Center. At training, sign up for mornings to monitor two downtown buildings. It takes 30-45 minutes for a team of two volunteers and begins at dawn. It is important data collection.  Learn more about the program here and fill out our interest form (for new volunteers).

Sunday, April 21, Walk Old Marsh Rd
Horicon Marsh Bird Club
They are leading a hike the full length of Old Marsh Road from east to west and providing shuttles back to cars parked on Point Rd. This is a fantastic opportunity! Fingers crossed for yellow-headed Blackbirds.
Details here: https://horiconmarshbirdclub.com/event/earth-day-hike-old-marsh-rd/

April 24 (Wednesday) at 7 p.m.
“Identifying Warblers”  by noted artist, field guide illustrator and WSO field trip leader Tom Schultz.
Hybrid live and Zoom program at Riveredge Nature Center.
Schultz is well known as an artist and birding field guide illustrator for nearly 40 years. His work has been published in the National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America,  the Peterson Field Guide to the Warblers of North America, and numerous other publications. 
(No registration required for in-person.)
To join Zoom meeting:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82652046966?pwd=3wQFemubCxmHO1j7XHEHyr6XkKtPDW.1
Meeting ID: 826 5204 6966
Passcode: 789029

Lights Out! author reading
Saturday, April 27 10:00-11:00am at Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
Free, Registration required, Family event children welcome
Join us to hear author Jessica Stremer read her book Lights Out! Based on the real-life Lights Out movement, this inspirational picture book shows how even the smallest of actions, like flipping a switch, can make a big difference in helping migrating birds. Our event includes a reading followed by a book signing and a craft. Books will be available for purchase at this event courtesy of Boswell Book Company. Registration and info here: https://www.schlitzaudubon.org/event/story-time-with-jessica-stremer-author-of-lights-out/

May

Brew City Bird Fest
May 10-17, 2024 Urban Ecology Center and other sites around the city
Celebrate spring migration with Urban Ecology Center at the Brew City Birding Festival Friday May 10th to Friday May 17th. We’ll have bird themed lectures, field trips, and other events all week including bird art night, Wingspan game night, and of course, the return of our popular Horicon Marsh field trip! Kick it all off with our 12th Annual Green Birding Challenge on Saturday May 11th. Compete to see the most species without using fossil fuels or bring the family for some Fledgling Fun! Registration links coming soon.

Harriet Tubman Art and Birding with Nearby Nature
Saturday May 11, 10:00-Noon at Tubman Park Pavilion 4750 N 58th St Milwaukee
We’re celebrating Black Birding week early by installing birdhouses along Wahl Creek in Harriet Tubman park to support urban wildlife. Join us for a bird walk and a paint a free decorative birdhouse to take home, while supplies last.
Free and family friendly. More Details Here.

Wisconsin Society for Ornithology Annual Convention
May 17-19 in Two Rivers
Talks, Keynote on Climate Change and Birds, and field trips
Details and registration info here, https://wsobirds.org/what-we-do/annual-convention

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