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Promoting the enjoyment, study, and conservation of Wisconsin's birds.

Bay Beach 2025 Field Trip Report

Our group of 24 gathered at Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary in Green Bay on Saturday, Sept. 6 at 7:00 AM.  We had partly cloudy skies and cool temperatures (48 degrees at the start) and a light to moderate wind from the west. Initially, on and near the lagoons, we spotted a GREAT BLUE HERON, GREEN HERON and a fairly cooperative BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON that landed in a nearby... Read More   

Join Our Team

Join Our Team - for the love of birds The Wisconsin Society for Ornithology seeks an administrative assistant to join the organization’s staff to assist with communications, publication distribution, membership, and business transactions. The Wisconsin Society for Ornithology is a nonprofit organization whose mission is promoting the enjoyment, study, and conservation of Wisconsin’s birds.... Read More   

2025 Kettle Moraine State Forest Northern Unit Field Trip

On Saturday, June 7, at 6:00 AM, 16 people met at the Zillmer Trail parking lot for the WSO’s Kettle Moraine State Forest – Northern Unit field trip. The weather was good, with partly cloudy skies, very light wind, and temperatures in the mid-60s. Our route for the day included: Auburn Lake Road, Jersey Flats Prairie Restoration Area, Haushalter Lane, Haskell Noyes Memorial... Read More   

White River Marsh Field Trip Report 2025

Our group of 18 met in the pre-dawn hours on Saturday, May 3rd – along White River Road in White River State Wildlife Area.  The temperature was 42, the winds were light from the NE, and the skies were nearly entirely cloudy. We soon started to hear a few birds starting to call in the dim light of early morning, including CANADA GOOSE, SANDHILL CRANE, BARRED OWL,... Read More   

WSO Mead Wildlife Area Field Trip Report

By Myles Hurlburt, WSO field trip committee This year’s outing was held, Saturday, April 19, 2025. The weather was a cool 37 degrees partly cloudy.  By the time we were done it reached 45 degrees. We had a total of 10 attendees from across the state.  The water levels were a little high on Smokey Hill Rd and Rangeline Rd. For some, this was their first visit to the Mead Wildlife... Read More   

Dane and Columbia County Ponds 2025 Field Trip Report

Thirteen of us met at Goose Pond on Saturday, March 22 at 7 AM, and were greeted with a nice spectacle of waterfowl – including about 400 TUNDRA SWANS swimming about on the west pond!  The morning was quite chilly, with a temperature of 26 degrees and a moderate north wind.  The sky was clear, but the early morning sunshine was doing little to warm us up. Field Trip Group... Read More   

Sheboygan Lakefront Field Trip 2025 Report

On Saturday, March 8, at 7:00 AM, our group gathered in Sheboygan near the Broughton Drive jetties, along the Lake Michigan shore.  The weather was not bad, with mostly clear skies and a starting temperature around 24 degrees. The recent rising temperatures were resulting in increasing bird song, and we were serenaded by RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS, AMERICAN ROBINS, HOUSE... Read More   

Announcement of the 2025 Passenger Pigeon Awards

By Wendy Schultz, WSO Awards Chair  SCIENCE has shown that being in nature (birdwatching) can help reduce anxiety and depression. If I could (and I just might) I would encourage the physicians I work with to regularly write prescriptions for their anxious patients, dosing them to a daily walk in the woods, or a date night with a bird club—just to connect them to the power of nature and... Read More   

Buena Vista Grasslands Field Trip Report 2025

Just two days prior to this outing, the landscape had been fairly brown – with minimal snow cover – but the snowstorm from the day before brought about 6-7 inches. Unfortunately, the snow and slippery roads resulted in cancellations from a number of field trip registrants.  Despite that, however, there were still seven of us who gathered on the morning of February 16, with three cars in... Read More   

PSC Disappoints In Decision To Allow Solar Farm Construction Near Buena Vista Wildlife Area

By Jennifer Lazewski, WSO Executive Director Although WSO and other bird advocates have done everything possible to protect Greater Prairie-chickens in Portage County, the large Vista Sands Solar facility has been approved to be constructed next to the Buena Vista Wildlife Area (BVWA). At the time this article was written, the Public Service Commission has reached its 3-0 decision to approve the... Read More   

A SALUTE to the 2024 BIGBY Birding Champs…

By Wendy Schultz, WSO BIGBY Birding Coordinator WSO would like to congratulate ALL the BIGBY birders of the state, for the many MILES they put on their bikes and their feet, and for the birds they found, photographed and e-Birded in 2024. They can be proud of their accomplishments as they continue to inspire the rest of us to get outside and take a hike or ride your bike. For the record, we now... Read More   
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