Bird & Nature Blog
A clutch of the latest stories from Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance
Emily Dickinson's famous line—"Hope is the thing with feathers"—finds its way into many bird essays. But the news about the official extinction of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker (and other species) reminds us that despair also can cloak itself in feathers.
Ivory-billed Woodpecker at nest, taken by Dr. James Tanner, at the Singer Tract in 1935. Photo: Science History Images/Alamy. See National Audubon’s article for more info and photos.
This month and today are cause for celebration. September is Public Lands Month and today is Public Lands Day (please see this link for the WDNR's announcement of the day). You'd think one or the other would do but public lands do deserve a lot of attention.
Madison Audubon photo
If you had the power to save birds by making a small change, wouldn’t you?
Birds face many threats, including habitat loss, pesticide poisoning, and climate change. This year has been especially tough.
The severe winter storm in the south this past February is suspected to have caused significant bird deaths in migratory bird populations. A mysterious bird illness reported in the East Coast is continuing to spread into the Midwest, killing and sickening even more songbirds. And, hundreds of millions―even up to a billion―birds die each year in the United States after colliding with windows.
In spite of these devastating difficulties, there is hope.
Indigo Bunting photo by Kelly Colgan Azar.
The six faithful readers of this blog (and thanks to all of you) know I can't resist streams and fish. I should probably be reminded that I write for Madison Audubon, not the Izaak Walton League. But I recently visited a special place where you can watch some of the most spectacular fish and birds in Wisconsin.
You can walk a beach to the dam on the Wisconsin River at Prairie du Sac. You'll notice the star bird right away—American White Pelicans. They swim, rest, soar, and fish in small and large groups. They fly majestically. You have a good chance of seeing Great Blue Herons near some of the dam's outfalls or on the shore. Bald Eagles fish there regularly and enough fish perish to bring in Turkey Vultures.
Photo by Arlene Koziol
Yesterday the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) voted to reauthorize the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program for four years at $32 million per year. Please see this link for another thorough report from Gathering Waters, which led the well-conceived and well-executed plan for reauthorization.
Before I descend into editorial comment, some prognostication. This may well be the decisive action regarding Stewardship in this budget.
Photo by Joshua Mayer
