meeting at Starbucks at 6th n Drexel
to decide where to go o
July 6, Oak Creek Rawson Gardens at 8:00am
Near Howell and Rawson. Meet HERE (off road near Gastrau’s Golf Center)
Once community gardens, the area is reverting back to grasslands. The draw? Bobolinks! Also seen there are Dickcissels, Meadowlarks, and a variety of sparrows. We will park just off the road, carpooling is best. Hotspot circles below, parking near arrow
Website: none
eBird site: https://ebird.org/hotspot/L3951938
Trails: Mown and gravel paths
Restrooms: None
Join us! Walks are free and open to all levels of birders
Subscribe! Each week, you’ll receive an email with where we’ll be birding next. Posts may go to your “Social” folder if using gmail
Milwaukee Birding News:
SUMMER MID-WEEK BIRDING:
Horicon Marsh, Tuesday July 8. Meet at the Auto Tour Parking Lot by 8:00am.
We will be walking all of Old Marsh Road from Point Rd on east to Egret Trail parking lot on the west. That will be 3.5 miles of gravel surface and level terrain. Bring a hat, sunscreen, water, and bug spray.
Old Marsh Rd cuts through the northern part of Horicon Marsh, on the south side are large mud flats with shorebirds including Black-neck Stilts, Yellow-headed Blackbirds, a variety of sandpipers, herons, egrets and bitterns. Looking north off Old Marsh, are deeper ponds with swans, American White Pelicans, Coots, and more. Rarer birds we will hope for are Whooping Cranes and White-faced Ibis. Report from last summer’s WSO field trip on Old Marsh Rd
Carpool. If you are interested in carpooling from Milwaukee, email us kfisher8689@gmail.com
eBird: https://ebird.org/hotspot/L573127
Reasons to Avoid Setting Off Fireworks. It’s harmful to many animals. Scaring dogs and horses and dispersing birds into the smoke leading to confusion and increased window crashes. Small mammals and birds have abandoned nests. And fireworks can be unsettling for people, are polluting, and start fires. Yay to Milwaukee for using drones, not explosions this year!
NRF of Wisconsin July Field Trips. Join Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin and get access to hundreds of fabulous field trips around the state. There are openings for July trips, for example:
134-B MAPS Banding at Beaver Creek
155 Paddle Horicon Marsh
169 Crex Meadows Birding Paddle
170-A/B Creating Spaces for Crane Conservation
184 Urban Nature Photography with Eddee Daniels
Report dead birds to WI DNR. As we know Avian flu is spreading through duck flocks and other species. Help DNR track the virus by reporting numerous sick or dead birds on their website: https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/WildlifeHabitat/wildlifehealth
For additional SE Wisconsin Bird Walks – scroll all the way down!
Last Week:
We had a beautiful walk at Humboldt Park. Kyle Arpke, both a birder and board member of Humboldt Park Friends, introduced us to the park and took us on his route. The birds put on a fabulous show! Before we all arrived a Cooper’s Hawk snatched a Red-winged Blackbird and used a light pole top as its brunch spot. The second meal we watched consumed was by a Great-blue Heron. As we watched the heron avoid a swooping Red-singed Blackbird, the heron dunked its head and came up with a large, plump, shiny goldfish. It took one straightening toss and one swallow to rid the pond of that eco-system disrupter. Goldfish do not belong in park ponds, checkout better ways to break-up with your goldfish and more about how they damage pond ecosystems: How to Break-Up with your Goldfish (The Right Way) Additional birds spotted on the pond included an Eastern Kingbird, female Wood Duck, Green Heron, Eastern Pewee, Canada Geese, and four cute juvenile Mallards.
As we headed to the smaller pond on the southeast corner of the park, we saw or heard Baltimore Oriole, Red-headed Woodpeckers, Northern Flicker and . But the highlight was the baby racoons looking out at us. We ended the morning at the new pollinator garden along the pavilion sidewalk planted by Humboldt Park Friends. It will be a lovely spot for butterflies, moths and birds. Humboldt Park has lots to crow about, it was just named a Historic Landmark by the Bay View Historical Society. Congratulations!
Thanks Kyle for a great walk! See Kyle’s series of Bird City Milwaukee articles in the Milwaukee Record. And thanks to John for keeping the list and getting pictures.
eBird: https://ebird.org/checklist/S255335508
Ongoing FREE GUIDED Bird Walks:
Sundays Milwaukee Birders
Location and time varies – see this week’s location above.
Free walks – open to all levels of birders
Sundays 8:00am
Wisconsin Metro Audubon Society Bird Walk (WMAS)
Wehr Nature Center 9701 W College Ave. Mix of mulched, wooded, grass and boardwalk paths. Follow WMAS on Facebook for additional walk announcements
Second Sundays 8:00-10:00am Birding at Lakeshore State Park with Milwaukee Birders. Meet at the south park entrance. See Friends of LSSP for details. Walking on paved surfaces, maybe some uneven, grassy paths but can avoid those. Portapotty always open and Discovery World restrooms after 9:00. All ages and abilities welcome.
Mondays 8:00am Estabrook Park
4600 Estabrook Parkway
Meet in the north parking lot. Mulched and dirt paths, stairs to river path which can be muddy. Portapotty
Tuesdays 8:00am Menomonee Valley
Urban Ecology Center (UEC),
3700 W Pierce St
Mostly paved trails. Restrooms available
Wednesdays 8:00am Washington Park
Urban Ecology Center (UEC)
4023 W Galena St
Mostly grass and paved paths. Restrooms available
Thursdays 8:00am Riverside Park
Urban Ecology Center (UEC)
1500 E Park Place
Mulched and dirt paths. Stairs to river path which can be muddy. Restrooms available
Fridays 8:30am Warnimont Park,
6100 S Lake Dr, Cudahy
Meet-up by the Kelly Senior Center parking lot. A mix of paved and grassy trails that go through woods, fields and along the bluff for lake views. Mostly flat. Parking also available at Warnimont Dog Park immediately south of Kelly Senior Center. Seasonal bathrooms
Second Saturdays 8:30-10:30 Havenwoods
6141 N Hopkins St, Milwaukee
Join Milwaukee Birders at Havenwoods. State park sticker NOT needed. Meet in front of the building (Restrooms available). Binoculars available to borrow. Flat trails go along gravel, wood, grass and mulched paths. Walk wind through grassland, woods, along shrubby borders and to a pond. Really nice variety of birds. https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/parks/havenwoods
Third Saturdays, 8:00-9:15 Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
1111 E Brown Deer Rd, Bayside
Loop through woods, grasslands and around Mystery Lake for a variety of habitats. Free, registration required https://www.schlitzaudubon.org/calendar/
Check out Chirp Chat episodes by Xcaret Nuñez. It’s all about birding Milwaukee area on WUWM 89.7 last Wednesday of the month
Upcoming Area Bird Talks & walks Registration and fees:
Have a birding event to share? Let me know, email us on the Contact Page
july
Restoring Michigan’s Black Tern Webinar by Audubon Great Lakes
Tuesday, July 1 Lunch Webinar
Seen the Black Terns at Horicon Marsh? Learn more about them. Registration: https://gl.audubon.org/events/restoring-michigan%E2%80%99s-black-tern-population-michigan%E2%80%99s-most-mysterious-marsh-dweller
Beginner Birding at UEC Washington Park
Saturday, July 19
Details and registration: https://www.urbanecologycenter.org/calendar/event?id=2782
Birding Pulaski Park with KK River Neighbors in Action sponsored by BIPOC Bird Club
Sunday, July 20
Led by Rita Flores-Wiskowski, details https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/events/kk-river-neighbors
Birding Kozciusko Park with KK River Neighbors in Action sponsored by BIPOC Bird Club
Sunday, July 27
Led by Rita Flores-Wiskowski, details https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/events/kk-river-neighbors-b8cfn
Urban Bird Hike at Lakeshore State Park
Sunday, July 27 from 4:00-5:00pm (South Entrance)
Lakeshore State Park is home to over 70 native and migratory species of birds, and the spring is an excellent time to spot some of our returning friends! Join us on a morning hike to learn the basics of bird watching and seek out some of these beautiful species. Each bird hike is unique as migration causes our residents to change throughout the year. All ages and abilities are welcome, meet at the park’s south entrance. We recommend bringing your own binoculars, but a small number are available to those who need them. Free, No Registration. Please inquire by June 26 to reserve a pair! Coordinates to the meeting point are 43.029180, -87.895858.
** Follow Bird City Milwaukee on Facebook!
Milwaukee parks that need birding this week
The county needs eBird records throughout the year for every park and natural area. Every week there are priority parks needing eBird lists. A park could be a priority because no surveys have been done for that week. Alternatively, it could be prioritized because there are surveys, but MKE Parks suspect more species might reside there than previously identified.
We can help MKE Parks! Pick a priority park, go bird, eBird it and note time spent there.
- For July 1-7
- Baran Park
- Currie Park
- Honey Creek Parkway 3,4
- Pulaski (Cudahy)
- Root River 15
- Servite Park
Based on the spreadsheet MKE Parks create, Wisconsin Metro Audubon Society (Thanks Colleen!) curates suggested locations based on accessibility to the property and availability on the ebird hotspots tool. Please track your time spent! At the end of the year WMAS provides hours to the county.
Follow Wisconsin Metro Audubon on Facebook for their weekly park posts.
Note- even if it’s already been birded this week, going another day or even a different time of day helps. The parks department wants a number of surveys for each park. Birding more than once in a week is very helpful!
Find a park and a park map: https://county.milwaukee.gov/EN/Parks/Explore/Find-a-Park
And our Waukesha Parks…
Share your ebird list with their ebird account: WaukeshaCountyBirding
JULY bird surveys needed at these locations- all are ebird hotspots
- Berg Property – free – address S102W33451 CTH LO should get you there or very close.
- Ashippun Lake (at the boat launch, no fee required)
- Ice Age Trail- Monches segment
- Monches County Park (pass or daily fee)
- Naga-Waukee Park (pass or daily permit fee required)
- New Berlin Recreation Trail – bike path from Greenfield Park to Waukesha!
- Mukwonago Park (pass or daily permit fee required- note they have camping!)
- Muskego Park (pass or daily permit- note they have camping!)
Milwaukee Birders 