Bird & Nature Blog
A clutch of the latest stories from Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance
Do you know that feeling you get when you look at the stars on a clear night? When you stand alone, in silence, with a whole universe twinkling above you? Such a vast array can make us feel small—minuscule, even—but connected to the world in a deeply intimate way.
Do you know that feeling? That deep sense of awe, of wonder, of connection that swells in your soul?
That’s how birding makes me feel.
Photo by Monica Hall
On March 18, 2020 Madison Audubon made the tough decision to cancel all field trips through May 2020 to protect our community from the spread of COVID-19. However! Birds bring so much joy to life, and birding is a great activity you can do independently or with members of your household, so we wanted to provide you with a resource for recreating some of the field trips on your own.
Let’s start with the one scheduled for early April, originally led by Patrick Ready, local bird guru and pottery-making extraordinaire. Pat put together this DIY bird walk at Lake Farm County Park. Thank you Pat, and happy birding!
Photo by Phil Brown
For each of the last two years, Carolyn has worked with the DNR, Dane County Land and Water Resources Department, the Southern Wisconsin Chapter of Trout Unlimited, and Lincoln Elementary to provide a field trip for Josie's fourth grade class on the Sugar River. The site is the County's Basco Sugar River Wildlife Unit #1, on STH 69, just south of Paoli and across the road from Basco.
Madison Audubon photo
As I worked from my home "office" this week, trying to make sense of things, keeping my 11-year-old son busy, and pondering the future, I had a few visitors. Not the kind that ring the doorbell... these were of the feathered variety. First was the pair of house finches, adding material to their nest on my front downspout. Then I listened in as the black-capped chickadees counter-sang their version of “hot cross buns.” An overhead scan for the bugling cranes led me to spot a red-tailed hawk perched in my black walnut tree (the chickadees were not so entertained).
While all the birds called and flitted about, I felt a sense of gratitude for the joy that birds bring. What a welcome feeling that is. And now, Spring has sprung and so has spring migration!
Photo by Eric Begin
The dry oak leaves rustled in the same wind that frosted their fingers. They listened to each other’s feet crunch, crunch, crunch in the crystallized snow. A quiet but powerful sound caught their attention; a low, echoing call, above our eyes and ears and fingers, resounded through Cherokee Marsh. Kids and adults alike closed their mouths and glued their feet to the snow to try and hear it again...
A patient group, they peered around at each other, wide-eyed with anticipation. Hushed gasps and little clouds of frosty breath emitted as all ears heard, “who cooks for you?”
Photo by Arlene Koziol
