I recently returned from Wisconsin, which is in the final season of their breeding bird atlas. I participated to get my hands dirty, instead of analyzing all of their data in eBird by the comfortable glow of my laptop!

Some reflections:

– Wisconsin is WILD. Logging is a huge industry, and yet massive tracts of marsh, bog land, and forests remain, replete with diversity!

– I picked up three life species: Sedge Wren (finally!), Clay-colored Sparrow, and Whooping Crane. Note the watchful DNR truck in the background!

– Lyme Disease is way too common. Virtually all of the people I was atlasing with had contracted it at some point. The CDC’s website confirms that Wisconsin has a serious Lyme Disease issue. I opted to atlas from the roads.

– The Whooping Crane population seems pretty unstable. They do forced re-nesting because the birds struggle with the swarms of flies. A researcher told me you can literally see blood coming off the birds when the flies are at their worst. Until they can figure that out, it sounds like the Wisconsin population is totally dependent on conservation efforts.

– I had never seen parasitism in action from Cowbirds. But through atlasing, I saw Nashville Warbler and Phoebe feeding young cowbirds!

– Atlasing is a refreshing and exciting way to birdwatch. Rather than hearing a bird and rapidly checking it off, atlasing forces you to get intimate with what the bird is up to. It is super rewarding to follow a bird to its fledged young or nest. Whereas I used to see a bird on a branch in the summer and have no idea what was occupying it’s “thoughts,” atlasing taught me that they are always up to something, and it is usually pretty clear if you take the time to follow them around a bit. I realized how little time I’ve spent observing abundant birds that can be difficult to observe, like Red-Eyed Vireo.

– I’m using this post as a test for adding photos! I added a gallery function to profiles, but wordpress does not readily allow you to attach items to post. The easy work around is to link to the photo as I did from your gallery. Hope you all find this added functionality!

– I smashed my spotting scope in the last hour in the field! Alas, only three years of service. Not sure who I would take that too to get it repaired, if possible. Internal mirror was displaced.

• This topic was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by Administrator.
• This topic was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by Administrator.
• This topic was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by Administrator.
• This topic was modified 5 years, 4 months ago by Administrator.