One of five Snowy Owls tagged over the winter in Wisconsin -- one of the SNOWiest on record with an estimated 280 documented here — has wound up delivering one of the biggest surprises of the season.
Although Project SNOWstorm scientists had suspected the tracking season already was over, they got a great surprise on Memorial Day when Austin checked in for the first time in almost three weeks...
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Honey Creek BB: Great Species Count, Record Support
The Saturday night camping and cookout event didn’t work out (weather intervened!) but in all other respects the 2018 Honey Creek Birdathon/Bandathon was a great success.
Mary Korkor, WSO’s new vice president and development chair, reports that the Mother’s Day event raised more than $15,000, thanks to the generous response to an all-member mail appeal that sought to broaden the base of...
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WSO Convention Report: Green Lake
Members of the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology elected a new president and vice president during the Society’s 79th Annual Meeting on Saturday May 19 at the Green Lake Conference Center. They also re-elected the current secretary and treasurer, whose terms are for one year.
-- Myles Hurlburt, from Rib Mountain in Marathon County, who has served as vice president for this past year, was...
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New Leadership for WSO
Members of the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology will elect both a new president and vice president during the Society’s 79th Annual Meeting on May 19 at the Green Lake Conference Center. The Nominating Committee, led this year by Peter McKeever of Monona, who also serves as the society’s legal counsel, will bring to WSO’s annual convention a slate of four officer nominees. The committee is...
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White River Marsh Field Trip Report
The morning was about as perfect as it could be as our group gathered at 5:00 AM -- 48 degrees, with calm winds and clear skies. Birds were singing all around us, with Swamp Sparrows, American Bitterns, and Sora and Virginia Rails calling from the marsh. A pair of Great Horned Owls called in the distance, and from time to time bugled their unison calls from...
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Mead Field Trip Report
This year’s outing was originally scheduled for last weekend, 4/14/2018, but with the 20+ inches of snow we received, I moved it to 4/21/2018, which is the latest I can recall ever holding this event. With the cold and snow hanging on so late, I was concerned what the weather might be like, but overall it ended up being the perfect day for viewing and enjoying our wildlife. The cool, crisp...
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2018 Passenger Pigeon Award Winners
The Wisconsin Society for Ornithology recognizes individuals and organizations that have made outstanding achievements in advancing bird conservation, promoting the field of ornithology and contributing to the Society. After receiving a number of worthy nominations, the Board of Directors met in January and selected the recipients of four awards to be presented at WSO’s 79th annual convention...
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Dane and Columbia County Ponds Report
The 7:00 AM temperature on Saturday, March 24 was only slightly below normal, in the upper 20s, but the very strong east wind really brought the “feels like” temperature down – into the single digits! The tough wind chill likely kept the attendance down this year, since we only had around 20 hardy birders show up for this outing.
The field trip attendees gathered at...
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2018 WSO Costa Rica Tour
Our group of 14 recently returned from our 2018 WSO Costa Rica Tour (Feb. 25 to March 10), after another fabulous tropical adventure! Eleven of us flew together from Milwaukee, via Houston, and met three other participants flying in from elsewhere.
After driving south from the airport, our tour started out near the Pacific Coast, at a lodge not far from Carara National Park. We spent most of our...
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Cast Your Vote on Neonic Insecticides
There is a statewide advisory question all bird enthusiasts should weigh in on at the April 9th Wisconsin Conservation Congress spring hearings. It relates to banning the use of neonicotinoid insecticides on state owned agriculture and forest land. While neonics are effective against various insect pests, they also kill non-target insects, including many pollinators, along with having significant...
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Buena Vista and Necedah Field Trip
This year the field trip attendees gathered at the Buena Vista Grasslands kiosk along Hwy. W, around 8:00 AM. The weather was unusually mild, with a starting temperature of about 30 degrees. The sky was partly cloudy, the winds were light to moderate, and there was very little snow on the ground. We had no trouble with snowdrifts and impassible roads this year! There...
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