Earlier this summer, during a botanical field trip into one of Faville Grove Sanctuary’s bogs, one of our interns stopped abruptly. “What is that?” he asked, crouching over a patch of sedges.

photo by Jeff Steele

 A flash of yellow and a chestnut necklace catch my eye and there it is—a tiny bird, actively moving along the tips of the foliage in the upper canopy.

Photo by Gary Shackelford

What draws most people’s attention to Chimney Swifts in the fall is their incredible roosting behavior. Chimney Swifts spend 90% of their lives flying—only pausing their lives on-the-wing to roost and to nest. They eat, sleep, and mate while flying. In migration, flocks of Chimney Swifts roost in—you guessed it—chimneys, clinging with their feet to the walls while they sleep.

Photo by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren FCC

For three days during my internship this summer, I had the opportunity to conduct bird point counts at Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance's newly acquired property: Hillside Prairie Sanctuary.

Photo by Mike Budd/USFWS

The elegant Great Egret is one of the most striking birds in Faville Grove’s wetlands—a tall, statuesque hunter clad in pure white feathers, moving with deliberate grace.

photo by Courtney Celley/USFWS

At Fair Meadows Sanctuary, one fact has been made abundantly clear: there is keen competition for nesting sites, both in artificial structures and in tree cavities.

Photo by Gary Shackelford

We asked Goose Pond’s ecological restoration interns what observations or experiences stuck out to them from their summer on the prairie.

Photo by Tucker Sanborn/SoWBA

In spring and summer, over a hundred volunteers give their time, energy, gas money, and hearts to American Kestrels. Why? Because this species is beautiful, fierce, and in decline; and the focal point of our citizen science program the Kestrel Nest Box Monitoring & Banding Program (KNB for short). Each year, hundreds of kestrel chicks fledge from the boxes these volunteers steward, and those chicks and some of the adults are banded for research. And each year, we try to get creative about how we can continue to make it easier for kestrels to successfully raise their young in southern Wisconsin.

Photo by Kaitlin Svabek/SoWBA

It’s one of those cool, misty mornings in late July. I am awakened at 5:30 by a sweet song in the nearby prairie—the paired notes of an Indigo Bunting.

Photo by Gary Shackelford

We are very fortunate to have Red-headed Woodpeckers—our favorite oak woodland and savanna species—at our Wildland cabin year round for the past couple of years.

photo by Jeff Galligan

When I got to see bats up close for the first time at Fair Meadows Sanctuary this past July, I was blown away by their beautiful strangeness.

Photo by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren

2025 was another amazing year of dedicated volunteers putting in thousands of hours monitoring the Bald Eagle nests they were assigned to, and documenting the fate of those nests.

Photo by Steve Fisher, BENW volunteer

If you’ve wandered through the prairies at Faville Grove in summer, especially along Prairie Lane, chances are you’ve heard a buzzy, rhythmic “see-see, dic-dic, ciss-ciss-ciss,” ringing from the tops of prairie plants.

photo by Jeff Steele/SoWBA

Typical of this small, fast-moving denizen of the treetops, our gnatcatcher led us to the spot where he and his mate were busy constructing their nest, a compact cup positioned on the top of a limb and resembling a tree knot.

Photo by Gary Shackelford

In 2025, Goose Pond Sanctuary has the best nesting habitat conditions for overwater nesting birds that we have seen since becoming managers in 1979!

USFWS photo

While their more famous cousin, the Baltimore Oriole, gets most of the backyard bird buzz, Orchard Orioles offer a subtler, equally rewarding spectacle.

USFWS photo

Birding by ear is a wonderful way to enjoy the birds around us—and it takes a LOT of practice! This weekly series is a great way to help you get to know bird songs and calls, one species at a time.

Photo by Mike Budd/USFWS

The Reckless Wrens’ 13th Great Wisconsin Birdathon venture began at 5:00 PM on Friday, May 17 and ended at 4:49 PM on May 18. Considering the weather overall was cool and windy, our grand total was a very impressive 157 species, a new team record!

Photo by Kelly Colgan Azar

The Great Wisconsin Birdathon is run by the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin to raise funds for bird conservation across the state. Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance’s team, the Flockadelics, participated on May 19. 

Photo by Kaitlin Svabek/SoWBA

Each spring, the prairies of Faville Grove Sanctuary come alive with one of nature’s most unique bird calls—the bubbling, metallic song of the Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus).

Photo by Jeff Steele

I’m slow-birding, watching for activity in my favorite bush—a large, spreading red-osier dogwood—when a bright yellow bird lands right in the middle. He moves along the branches, searching for food, and stops every few seconds to sing, “sweet sweet I’m so sweet.” 

Photo by Gary Shackelford

Only a handful of White-faced Ibis sightings have been recorded in the state with most accounts coming from Horicon Marsh.

Photo by Kaitlin Svabek

That unmistakable song—often translated by birders as “Spring is here!”—belongs to one of our most charming (and most threatened) grassland birds.

Photo by Jeff Steele

As I reach the pond, I approach slowly, attempting to remain concealed behind some trees. And then I see it—the year’s first Solitary Sandpiper, feeding in the shallows.

Photo by Gary Shackelford

The annual Crane Count, coordinated by the International Crane Foundation, was held on April 12. It was a beautiful morning to count cranes and enjoy the wetland birds.

Photo by Graham Steinhauer/SoWBA

One of the most abundant songbirds in North America, the Yellow-rumped Warbler is a welcome and familiar sight in woodlands, parks, and backyards.

Photo by Jeff Steele

The telltale sign of a Tree Swallow nest is often feathers. In some cases, there are so many feathers, you can’t even see the underlying nest structure of dry grass or pine needles.

Photo by Gary Shackelford

The properties owned and managed by Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance in Columbia County are teeming with life. From birds, insects, mammals, and herptiles to fungi, lichens, and plants, there is no shortage of species to discover.

Photo by Jim Otto

The Wood Duck marks the arrival of early spring with the male’s vibrant plumage, displaying iridescent purple-green hues. This welcome sight stands out against the otherwise drab landscape, making it a favorite among birdwatchers.

Photo by Jeff Steele

Canada Geese are year-round residents at Fair Meadows Sanctuary, and they are excellent subjects for a slow birder.

Photo by Gary Shackelford