Last Week

Sunday was cool with clear skies and a biting wind. The nineteen birders who came out did not mind the weather because we found some birds! Jenny and Sarah spotted a Snow Bunting hanging out in the short grass on the southeast end of the park. It flew up onto a post, giving us all great looks. We continued walking north, looking for sparrows. They were not in those grasses along the path, but a few flitted around the rocks. A stop at the Discovery World marina showed some ducks swimming about. Most of the ducks, including Red-breasted Mergansers, Greater and Lesser Scaup, Mallards, and a couple of Common Goldeneyes were in the south lagoon area.
The sparrow bonanza was in Summerfest grounds on the grassy area south of the Aurora Pavilion. There we saw over 30 Song Sparrows, with several Dark-eyed Juncos, and American Tree Sparrows. At the end of the Summerfest trail, several birders spotted an American Kestrel on a rooftop corner. At the same time, Stephanie pointed out a Glaucous Gull on the ice amidst the many Herring and Ring-billed Gulls. And as has become the Lakeshore State Park trend, we spotted two Bald Eagles high in the sky above us while doing the eBird list. In sum, 25 species and over 250 individual birds were seen.

eBird: https://ebird.org/checklist/S307320684

Have a birding event to share? email us on the Contact Page

MARCH

Opening The Door to A New Chapter with Dan Scheiman, The Ridges Sanctuary
Wednesday, Mar 11 at 7:00pm
in person at Mequon Nature Preserve and via Zoom
In 2023, Dan and Samantha Scheiman moved from Arkansas to Door County, renowned for its nature and outdoor opportunities. Dan works at The Ridges Sanctuary, a land trust that focuses on preservation, education, and research. The Ridges protects some 2,000 acres that harbor a rare ridge-and-swale system, 29 native orchids, and federally threatened and endangered species. Dan
will talk about the county, The Ridges, and his ongoing pursuit of birds, butterflies, orchids, and more. Dr. Scheiman is the Visitor Engagement Specialist at The Ridges Sanctuary. Previously, he worked for the National Audubon Society at the Little Rock (Arkansas) Audubon Center. He was vice president of his Audubon chapter and an eBird reviewer. Dan has a B.S. from Cornell
University, an M.S. from Eastern Illinois University, and a Ph.D. from Purdue University.
Register: https://ticketstripe.com/TheRidgesSanctuary
To join meeting via Zoom:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/Qfancx7zSmCC1cXp1O8eEA

Stephanie Bielke in Brookfield Zoo Women in Conservation Series
Wednesday, Mar 11 on Zoom
Senior Manager of Conservation Science for Great Lakes Audubon and an excellent birder, Stephanie will speak about her career in birding and science.
Free, registration necessary: https://reg.learningstream.com/reg/event_page.aspx?ek=0079-0030-699d5cf99ba7419cba6b67cfaf6f57aa

Introduction to Bird Language
Saturdays Mar 7 & 14 at Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
Details and Registration HERE

Guided Bird Hike: Early Spring Migrants
Sunday, March 15 at Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
Details and registration HERE

WIngs Volunteer Training
Monday, March 16th 5:30 – 6:30 PM at Urban Ecology Center
Becoming a new volunteer or returning for the 2026 spring season of WINGS monitoring? This training is a good chance to restock your supplies, meet other volunteers, ask questions, and hear any changes or updates to the protocols. Learn more about the WIngs program here.

Learn about Lincoln Park -Milwaukee River Improvements
Wednesday, Mar 18 at Blatz Pavillion
Details: https://mkewaterwaypartners.org/2026-lp-spring-event/

Dane and Columbia County Birding with Wisconsin Society for Ornithology
Saturday, March 21
Details and Registration: https://wsobirds.org/birding-events/eventdetail/22245/-/dane-columbia-counties

Birding the Milwaukee Public Museum with Wisconsin Metro Audubon Society
Saturday, March 21 11:00am
Details: HERE

Birds & Stars: Navigation at Night
Wednesday, March 25th 7-8:30 PM at Urban Ecology Center
This relaxed evening lecture explores how birds navigate using stars, landscapes, and Earth’s magnetic field. We’ll take a fascinating look at migration, night skies, and the science that guides birds across incredible distances. Join the UEC Research Team (me) and guest presenter Bob Bonadurer, Daniel M. Soref Planetarium Director, for a short indoor presentation followed by an outdoor exploration of the night sky, where we’ll look for the same navigational clues birds rely on to find their way. Register here.

Understanding Bird Populations and How They Change
Thursdays Mar 26-Apr 23 at UW Field Station
Details and Registration HERE

Field Trip: Columbia/Dane counties in search of early migrants
Sunday, March 29, 7:00am meet up
Tour ponds and flooded fields in this very productive area. A wide variety of water birds, shorebirds, migrant passerines and others are possible (i.e.: swans, Greater White-fronted &Ross’s Geese, pipits, longspurs, sparrows, etc.).Carpooling at 7 a.m. from park & ride lot at Highway 33 and I-41. No signup required.
Trip Leader: Carl Schwartz; you can contact him at cschwartz3@wi.rr.com or 414-416-3272

** Follow Bird City Milwaukee on Facebook! for event announcements

Check out Chirp Chat episodes by Xcaret Nuñez. It’s all about birding Milwaukee area on WUWM 89.7 last Wednesday of the month

List of Milwaukee area BIRD CLUBS !

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.

MILWAUKEE COUNTY PARKS : March 8-14

• Armour Park
• Grootemat Nature Preserve
• Little Menomonee River Pkwy 2 (no trail, will be wet, be careful!) Entry off the dead end at W Heather Ave, walk next to Ryder Truck Rental to the river.
• Wyrick Park

Based on the needs spreadsheet from MKE Parks, 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

Wisconsin Metro Audubon is also birding for Waukesha Parks…

Bird where you can and share your ebird list with their ebird account: WaukeshaCountyBirding

March bird surveys needed at these locations- all are ebird hotspots

• Berg Property – free – address S102W33451 CTH LO should get you there or very close. It’s just west of Mukwonago so you could do them both in one trip!
• Fox Bend Park- fee or pass- looking for 8 shared surveys
• Monches County Park- fee or pass- looking for 4 shared surveys
• Mukwonago Park (pass or daily fee) – looking for 7 shared surveys
• Ashippun Lake – Waukesha County- (free)- looking for 1 shared survey
• New Berlin Trail (free)- 5 shared surveys needed