Bird & Nature Blog

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Gratitude for the Nest Best Blogger

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Madison Audubon has had the incredibly extraordinary fortune of having such a writer in our midst and helping introduce her to the world. Caitlyn Schuchhardt has written the Entryway to Birding Blog for almost a year. It has attracted thousands of readers and with good reason. It's a darn near perfect introduction to birding, especially in this area. It's funny, lively, humane, accurate, clear, sound, systematic, careful, genuine. I've never read it without: a) smiling and b) learning. It's, oh yeah, authoritative.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

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Faville Grove Sanctuary at your fingertips

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Faville Grove Sanctuary at your fingertips

Explore the diverse landscapes of -- and plan your next adventure to -- Faville Grove Sanctuary through our new Faville Grove Storymap. This new, interactive resource describes the sanctuary through written descriptions, photos, trails, points of interest, and more. This storymap brings Faville Grove to you, wherever you are, through your smartphone or computer.

If you've never been to Faville Grove, or aren't sure where to start your hike, or just want to learn more about this lovely Madison Audubon property, the Faville Grove Storymap was created for you.

Photo by David Musolf

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Righteous!

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Righteous!

Righteous… not a word one encounters as much today as several decades ago when it popped up to express sincere, heartfelt approbation. If you said or did something that elicited that response from your friends, you felt you were on the right track.

Some wonderful folks are acting righteously these days and better yet we can join them. Upper Sugar River Watershed Association, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and Madison Audubon are among them.

Photo by Gail Smith

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Tundra or Trumpeter? Your Guide to Swan ID (plus a special guest feature!)

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It’s February now. We’re deep into winter. Looking at our frozen lakes, you might think that waterfowl may be hard to come by. But never fear—you haven’t missed your chance! There are some special spots in our area where you can still find open water and several waterfowl species, even through the coldest part of the season.

This week’s Entryway to Birding blog is going to focus on two of those species that can be notoriously difficult to tell apart—the tundra swan and the trumpeter swan. To help us out, I’ve invited a special guest, Madison Audubon’s very own Becky Abel, who researched trumpeter swans for her graduate work. Becky also served on board of The Trumpeter Swan Society for several years and later as Associate Director of the nonprofit. She’s gonna help us navigate all things swan!

Photo by Brandyn Kerscher

Wonderful Winter Backyard Birds

Winter offers a wonderful diversity of birds in southern Wisconsin. The colors, sizes, and songs of these winter birds are fun to observe. But some of us are left wondering, who are these brunching bunch of birds? Here to help you get started with the backyard bird ID is our new resource: Wonderful Winter Backyard Birds!

Graphic by Madison Audubon