2021 Great Wisconsin Birdathon Report

2021 BIRDATHON REPORT Highlights from the

Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin ' s

annual fundraiser

Breaking Records #ForTheBirds

$107k+

Wisconsin's bird lovers have done it again! In three short months during spring migration, hundreds of Wisconsinites came

raised!

Mr . D a r ga t z' s Nat u r e K i n der ga r t en bir ds fr o m t he ir out doo r c la s s r o o m in t he ir 4t h Bir da t ho n! Ph o t o b y Pe t e r D ar gat z

together to raise a record-breaking $107,915 for the Foundation's

Bird

Protection Fund .

Thank you, Birdathoners and donors for your passion and commitment to our state's birds! Enjoy these highlights from our amazing season together.

300+

65

253

Birdathoners from

incredible

bird species

across Wisconsin

teams

spotted

No E gr et s didn' t r e gr e t e xplor ing t he L a ke s ho r e Na t ur e P r e s e r ve .

Ph o t o b y L in d s e y T aylo r

Fi n c h G an g s c o ur e d J e ffe r s o n Count y fo r bir ds . . . a nd Bir da t ho n donor s .

Ph o t o b y Clare Carls o n

"My favorite part of the Birdathon was discovering new birds and sharing the experience and love of birding with my daughter."

T he e nda nge r e d Pi pi n g Pl o ver wa s vo t e d t o be our #Bir dOfT he Y e a r . T he Bir d P r o t e c t io n F und s uppor t s t he r e c ove r y of t his im pe r ile d s pe c ie s . Ph o t o b y Ryan B r ad y

- 2021 Birdathon Participant

T his Y e llow Wa r ble r wa s s pot t e d by t he So c i a l D i s t an c i n g Sa n dpi per s , who s e t e a m s plit up t o c o ve r m o r e gr ound—a nd find m o r e bir ds ! Ph o t o b y E m ily D o n o van

A Birdathon for Everyone This year's Birdathon saw an amazing array of

65 teams :

The

Brix Cider Biking Bird

Brigade

birded through the

from classrooms and

Sugar River watershed,

nonprofits, to friends and

visiting farms that provide

family, to Bird Cities and

local food to their restaurant.

bird clubs.

The

Lake Superior eBirders

Long-running teams like

birded (and eBirded) all along

Cutright's Even Older

the North Shore.

Coots

returned for their 10th

year of Birdathoning, while

Gathering Warblers

new teams started what is

gathered staff and board

sure to become an annual

members to explore some of

tradition.

their favorite land trust properties.

Classroom Teams

Each team put their unique touch on their Birdathon day

What's That?

as they set out to search for

first Birdathon, discovering

Adams-Friendship High School in Adams County

Wisconsin's birds - by foot,

new destinations (and new

Chrysalis Academy of Holway Homeschool

by bike, by boat, or by car.

birds) with friends.

The

River Raptors

birded

enjoyed their

Three Shrikes and You're

with paddles in hand along

Out

their favorite waterways.

recruiting new birders to join

returned again, this time

Adams-Friendship High School Warblers

students in Taylor County

Lincoln Middle School Lincoln Middle School in LaCrosse, WI

Mr. Dargatz's Nature Kindergarten Woodside Elementary in Sussex, WI

The Wequiock Wonderers Wequiock Elementary in Green Bay, WI

them.

Windsor Waxwings Windsor Elementary in Windsor, WI

I n di go i n g Pl ac es br o ught pa r e nt s a nd c hildr e n t oge t he r t o e nc o ur a ge a ne w ge ne r a t io n o f bir de r s . Ph o t o b y Me lis s a K e s lin g

Top Fundraisers Cutright's Even Older Coots $16,353 Lake Superior eBirders $6,858 3. Finch Gang $5,899 4. River Raptors $5,206 5. GLC Chickadees $4,058 1.

2.

Most Species Seen Lake Superior eBirders 187 species Vaccinated Vireos 177 species 3. Social Distancing Sandpipers 170 species 4. Cutright's Even Older Coots 167 species 5. MuirLand Merlins 153 species 1.

T he H o u s e Un -Bo u n d Wr en s go t o ut s ide t o ge t he r a s a fa m ily. Ph o t o b y Mat t K ru e ge r

2.

(shout-out to the Tireless Turnstones, a youth-led team, for spotting 151 species!)

Notable Rare Birds Piping Plover seen by Vaccinated Vireos, the only team to spot our #BirdOfTheYear!

Scissor-Tailed Flycatcher seen by Brew City Bird Squad

T he E l m G r o ve H i gh Fl yer s got bir de nt hus ia s t s involve d in pr o gr e s s ing t he ir Bir d Cit y goa ls . Ph o t o b y K are n L lo yd

Western Kingbird seen by Lake Superior eBirders Worm-Eating Warbler seen by Double Stuffed Orioles

An AD A-a c c e s s ible dua l s c o pe s ys t e m wa s ins t a lle d a t L e wis P a r k t ha nks t o t he Mc Far l a n d Bi r d Fes t i val t e a m . U p ne xt a r e int e r pr e t ive s igns ! Ph o t o b y Sh awn Mille r

Teams Give Back to Birds Nonprofit organizations, Bird

They're building and

Cities, and bird clubs that

installing nest boxes,

participate in the Great

planting native plants,

Wisconsin Birdathon are

restoring land, funding

able to keep

50% of the

funds they raise

Organizational Teams 1000 Friends of Wisconsin Birdlanders Aldo Leopold Nature Center Double Stuffed

—

while

bird-specific citizen science programs, putting

the rest goes to support our

binoculars in the hands of

Bird Protection Fund

new birders, installing

projects.

scopes and bird-related signage at local parks,

Funds for these

and much, much

organizational teams go

more!

back into their communities, supporting local bird

Orioles

Baraboo Range Preservation Association

$16K+ go

conservation at its source.

Baraboo Rangers

Benedictine Life Foundation of Wisconsin Wrens of Wisdom Prairie

Chequamegon Chapter of the North Country Trail Association North Country Birders Chippewa County Land Conservancy Chirp Chasers

Dane County Humane Society Wildlife Center Dane County Humane Society Wildlife Center

Driftless Area Land Conservancy Prairie DALCons Elm Grove Bird City Elm Grove High Flyers Feminist Bird Club-Madison WI Chapter Yes We Pelican!

Friends of McFarland Parks McFarland Bird

This year, we had

23

organizational teams

es back local o to rgs

that

are collectively putting $16,744 back into local conservation work across our state.

Know someone who might be interested in joining the Birdathon next year? Send them to

www.WIBirdathon.org

Festival

Gathering Waters Gathering Warblers Glacial Lakes Conservancy GLC Chickadees Madison Audubon All About Aves, Reckless Wrens Madison FUN Paddling Peddling Prius Pewees, Camp Coots

MuirLand Bird Club MuirLand Merlins North Lakeland Discovery Center Up North Hammerheads

Richland Center-Santa Teresa Sister City Project Motmot Crew

Schlitz Audubon Nature Center Schlitz Audubon Screech Owls

Wausau Bird Club Wausau Nutcrackers Wisconsin Pheasants Forever Funky Pheasants

Y es We Pel i c an ! r a is e d funds t o pur c ha s e bino c ula r s for ne w bir de r s in t he F e m inis t Bir d Club. Ph o t o b y Me lis s a K e s lin g

Wr en s o f Wi s do m Pr a i r i e r a is e d funds for e c ologic a l r e s t or a t io n wor k a t Ho ly Wis do m Mona s t e r y. Ph o t o b y A m y A ls t ad

"The Birdathon is a win-winwin. Raising dollars for bird conservation, raising dollars for our land trust, and hanging out with fellow birders! What could be better?!"

- 2021 Birdathon Participant

Fu n k y Ph ea s a n t s of Wis c o ns in P he a s a nt s F o r e ve r us e d t he ir s t a ff' s fir s t in-pe r s o n o ut ing o f 2021 t o r a is e funds for e duc a t io n a nd out r e a c h e ve nt s . Ph o t o b y B rit t a Pe t e rs o n

2021 Bird Protection Fund Projects The Great Wisconsin Birdathon raises funds for the

Natural

Resources Foundation of Wisconsin's Bird Protection Fund,

which

supports Wisconsin's highest priority bird conservation needs. The following projects were selected by the advisory committee to receive the funds raised by our amazing 2021 Birdathon participants:

T he Neo t r o pi c al Fl yways Pr o j ec t r e c e nt ly m a de ne w dis c ove r ie s a bo ut t he m igr a t o r y pa t t e r ns o f C an a da Wa r bl er s . Ph o t o c o u rt e s y o f Gru p o Q u e t zalli, N ic aragu a

Advancing Bird Conservation within Wisconsin’s Important Bird Area (IBA) System —

Wisconsin Bird

Conservation Partnership

Kirtland’s Warbler Nest Monitoring —

Wisconsin Department

of Natural Resources

Neighborhood Habitat Improvement Project

— Western

Great Lakes Bird and Bat Observatory

Neotropical Flyways Project

— Cornell Lab of Ornithology /

SELVA

Outreach and Optics Purchase

— BIPOC Birding Club of

Wisconsin

Piping Plover Conservation and Management in Wisconsin — Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Reintroduction of Whooping Cranes into Eastern North America A r e s e a r c he r s e t s up a t r a il c a m e r a t ha t m o nit or s Wh o o pi n g C r a n es a s pa r t o f a r e int r o duc t ion pr o gr a m .

Ph o t o b y In t e r n at io n al Cran e F o u n d at io n

Visit

—

International Crane Foundation

www.WisConservation.org/Bird-Protection-Fund to learn more

about these projects and how you can provide permanent support for the Bird Protection Fund with a gift to the Birds of Wisconsin Legacy Fund.

T he BI POC Bi r di n g C l u b o f WI ho s t e d it s fir s t kic ko ff e ve nt in J uly 2021, invit ing Bla c k, Indige no us , pe o ple o f c o lor , a llie s , a nd fa m ilie s t o e xplor e t he jo y of bir ding t o ge t he r . Ph o t o b y D e x t e r Pat t e rs o n

Nei gh bo r h o o d H a bi t a t I mpr o vemen t Pr o j ec t vo lunt e e r s c ons t r uc t e d bir d ho us e s t ha t e na ble d c it ize n s c ie nt is t s t o m o nit or bir d ne s t ing s uc c e s s .

Ph o t o b y W e s t e rn Gre at L ake s B ird an d B at O b s e rvat o ry

Thank you to our 2021 Birdathon sponsors!

The Great Wisconsin Birdathon is brought you to by

www.WisConservation.org

Patrick Marsden

Middleton