This week's post is a celebratory one, as the blog is approaching its very own bird-iversary. One year ago this week—on March 30th to be exact—this blog came to life with our very first entry, titled Look to the Birds.

And that's what we've done. Every week for fifty-two weeks. We've looked to the birds.

In an unprecedented year filled with uncertainty, fear, and loss, birds have been my solace. I hope you can say the same. Join me in this week's post to look back on our shared year of birds and beginnings, of adventures and growth, of mis-IDs and birding blunders, to see just how far we've come.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

Last week the Dane County area saw our first reports of American woodcocks, also lovingly called timberdoodles! (Why? It’s a mystery to me—but it sure seems to fit their quirky style!) American woodcocks are actually shorebirds that belong in the sandpiper family—you can see their resemblance to the Wilson's snipe, a closely related bird that you're likely to find in flooded fields, muddy shores, or marsh edges. But if you go looking for American woodcocks in the same spot you'd expect to find other shorebirds, you'll be disappointed.

American woodcocks nest in forests and wooded areas, but will perform their aerial flight display in open fields and prairies that are near woodlands. This week's Entryway to Birding blog will give you some suggested locations to go looking for American woodcocks and tips to make the most of your timberdoodle adventures—so you can experience the wonder of their sky dance in full.

Photo by Will Pollard

The sounds of spring are again inspiration for this week's blog post. My last few birding sessions have featured lots of frenzied behavior from woodpeckers and nuthatches—species that are high into courtship right now. Early spring is a great time to do some slow birding and notice how the activity around you is shifting—you can witness some exciting behaviors and feel even more connected to the shifting of the seasons.

Woodpeckers may not sing like our vocal black-capped chickadees or northern cardinals, but they sure do drum. This week's Entryway to Birding blog takes us into the world of woodpeckers to decipher that drumming.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

We’re entering into our second week of extremely cold, frigid temperatures—making outdoor birding a challenge. I’ve been focusing on some window-birding from my apartment for the Great Backyard Bird Count, but I’ve also been using this indoor time to explore more of my favorite online birding resources and brush up on my identification skills. Spring migration is just around the corner, after all. (That’s what I keep telling myself to get through these negative temps!)

This week’s Entryway to Birding blog is going to share some of my favorite free resources that I use to give my birding skills an edge. When the pandemic hit and I wasn’t able to go on field trips and learn from our area’s expert birders, I turned online to find free resources that could help me navigate the complex world of bird identification. This post is somewhat of a mish-mash of resources, but I hope you can find something useful in here to add to your own birding toolbox.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

Guess what’s coming up this Friday, February 12th? It’s the return of the Great Backyard Bird Count, a community science project designed to collect data about the presence of birds in winter. And oh boy, the count is right on time—we are entering into a very cold, very frigid week that will make getting outside a challenge. What better way to hunker down at home than with a blanket, a warm beverage, and your trusty binoculars?

This week’s Entryway to Birding blog pulls up a chair to the window and takes a look at what birds you might find near your home—whether you’re looking into a backyard or an apartment complex parking lot. Learn about the most common visitors you might see in south-central Wisconsin this winter and get some identification tips for some especially tricky backyard birds!

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

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

As a newer birder, I find so much value in birding podcasts. Each one is like a field trip leader who’s teaching me not just about birds, but about the birding community. Podcasts have helped me navigate this often-confusing hobby, they’ve shared perspectives that broaden my understanding of what birding can be, they’ve kept me up-to-date on all the news in the broader birding world, they’ve helped connect me to new content and resources that help me be a more thoughtful and inclusive birder … the list goes on.

So, to help you navigate the wide world of birding podcasts (seriously, there are so many!) this week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings you a short list of where you might get started.

Photo by USFWS Midwest Region

Winter bird activity certainly isn't as hustlin' and bustlin' as it is during spring migration, but it has its own special joys. It also has some unexpected benefits. You'll likely see and hear fewer species on your outings in winter than in any other season, but that's not a bad thing. It's a hidden opportunity. If the woods are mostly quiet, it gives you more opportunity to really learn and recognize the birds you do hear. Many newer birders struggle with birding by ear (I know I sure do!) but winter is a great time to improve this skill.

Birding by ear is hard, but this week's Entryway to Birding blog brings you some pointers and mnemonics to help you sort out who's-who on your winter outings.

Photo by Nick Busse

Do you remember back in May when we went on a virtual field trip to the north unit of Cherokee Marsh? The marsh and woods were warm and green, warblers and flycatchers were picking bugs from the trees, sedge wrens were popping up from dense thickets to scold us as we went by, and virginia rails were grunting along the marsh boardwalk's edge.

It's January now and the marsh has a different look, a different tune—perhaps a quieter, softer one, but one full of just as much life. This week's Entryway to Birding blog takes us back to Cherokee North with another birding field trip to see how things have changed with the seasons. Read on for tips on what birds you might expect to find at different locations throughout the marsh in winter.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

2021 starts a new year. And with it, a new year list. If you haven’t picked up on it by now, birders love keeping lists. A life list, year lists, county lists, patch lists, yard lists, and more. But on January 1 … many of those checklists roll back to zero and the bird sightings begin anew.

In birding culture, there’s something of a tradition of doing a “Big Day” in early January to see how many species you can find in one day. It's a fun and rewarding challenge—it tests your birding skills and knowledge of local habitat and gets you outside for a fun winter adventure. If you've ever been curious about challenging yourself to a Big Day, this week's Entryway to Birding blog is for you. Read on for tips to make your outing a successful one.

As 2020 creeps to a close, it’s a good time to think about your relationship to birding and how it may evolve in the new year. How will you challenge yourself? What will you strive to learn? How will birding continue to expand your world? This week’s Entryway to Birding blog is here to help you brainstorm ideas for New Year’s resolutions you might make as you bird your way into 2021.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

We covered the many benefits of “slow birding” several months back, in the warm heat of September. As the months get colder and colder, you might feel less and less inclined to, y’know, stand in one place outside while the cold ground sucks heat from your toes and your fingertips start to lose feeling.

There’s a reason that birding by car gets popular in the winter, but you should know that you don’t need to give up your outdoor birding adventures just because there is snow on the ground. This week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings you tips for how you can adapt your “slow birding” to a more seasonal “snow birding” and enjoy all the benefits that come with spending quality time in the woods this winter—cold weather and all.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

Winter has finally caught up to us. The snow, the wind, the cold weather—it all arrived this weekend. If you’re feeling like that’s put an end to your birding for the season, I hope you think again! Winter brings a whole new set of bird species our way—and finding some of these species involves expanding your idea of how you can go birding. There are endless ways to bird, but this week we’re going to delve into one of the most popular winter forms of birding—that is, birding by car!

Before you hit the road looking for your snowy owl or a rough-legged hawk this winter, read up on the basics so you can increase your chances of success. This week’s Entryway to Birding blog has advice for your first time road birding, including how to decide where to go, how to stay safe on the road, and best practices to make your birding adventure a fun one!

Photo by Michael Janke

It’s that time of year! We’ve reached the season where you can’t just assume that the bulky buteo flying above you is gonna be a red-tailed hawk. Rough-legged hawks are beginning to arrive, giving us birders a good reminder to bird every bird. I know I wouldn’t want to overlook a sighting of one of these arctic visitors!

You can find most of our raptors here year-round (rough-legged hawk aside), so perhaps the “winter” in the title here is a little misleading. But winter is a great time to turn your attention to raptors and even plan your birding outings around them. Songbird activity certainly slows down this time of year when many species migrate south, meaning you’re likely seeing fewer species if you’re out on a bird walk at a local conservation park or natural area. This gives you a good excuse to mix it up a bit, especially on those colder days—make some cocoa, hop in the car, and head to the countryside!

Photo by USFWS-Mountain Prairie

Many people dread winter—the cold weather, the snow, the dwindling daylight. It makes getting outside a challenge and can sap your motivation to do anything, much less go birding. There are days when I am one of those people. But then there are days when I remember that there are owls … and that now is the best time to find them!

Owls breed in the winter, with many beginning their courtship and mating activities in late fall, making the next several months a more vocal and active season for them than usual. If you’ve been feeling discouraged by those all-too-early sunsets and the deep dark of the 5pm hour, consider a form of birding that doesn’t necessarily need the light of day, and give owling a try!

This week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings you everything you need to know about the owls you might find in our region, as well as tips for how you might find and ethically observe them.

Photo by Andy Reago and Chrissy McClarren

Back in late October, a rare visitor dropped into Madison—a black-throated gray warbler, normally found west of the Rockies. Everyone thought he would be a one-day-wonder, stopping for a quick pit-stop before continuing to ride the winds south on his journey to Mexico. But he stayed. And he stayed. And he stayed. Against all odds, he is still here.

For a new birder, seeing a rare bird like this can feel like a rite of passage. But unless you’re the one to stumble across a rarity, how would you even know it’s out there? How can you hear about these cool sightings, much less learn how to track them down? This week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings you the inside scoop on rarities, so you too can experience that special birding thrill.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

Every year, on the second Saturday of November, a long-running citizen science program kicks into gear. Thousands of participants join Project FeederWatch and—from the comfort of their homes—begin collecting data on the birds that visit their yards or feeder setups. There’s no driving anywhere, no donning of winter clothes, no braving bitter winds or snow. There’s just you, a window, and a hot cup of coffee or hot chocolate. (The beverage is optional, of course, but why not?)

Project FeederWatch can be a great entrance to the world of birding. Maybe you’ve been following our Entryway to Birding series but have been unable to venture out on your own. Maybe the incoming colder weather is shifting your attention indoors. Or maybe you’re looking to refine your birding skills with some up-close study of some winter birds. No matter your experience level, Project FeederWatch has something to offer you—even if you don’t have any feeders at all! Here’s five reasons why you should join and start counting winter birds for science.

Every fall, birders anxiously await the predictions of the Winter Finch Forecast—a long-running, volunteer produced publication that aims to predict whether or not boreal finches will move south for the winter. We are still in the midst of fall migration, with hopefully more time before the deep chill of winter sets in, so you might be reading this and thinking this week’s Entryway to Birding blog is a little premature.

Rest assured, it’s not. Boreal finches are here, baby! And, if reports from northern Wisconsin are a sign of what’s to come, a whole lot more are on their way. This week’s blog brings you everything you need to know about what winter finch species to expect this year, where to look for them, and how to attract them to your feeder.

Last week, I shared an overview of the incredibly diverse selection of waterfowl that will be visiting us over the next few months. And in the span of a week, things are already ramping up! Out at Goose Pond Sanctuary, tundra swans have arrived, greater white-fronted geese have joined the Canada geese, and a dozen species of ducks are mixed in among them all. Waterfowl migration season is truly here.

Having a general idea of what to expect on the water is one thing, but knowing how to pick out and identify individual species is another. For us newer birders (heck, probably for some experienced folks too!), IDing waterfowl can feel overwhelming. There’s so much variety, not only in species but in the types of viewing conditions you’ll face.

This week’s Entryway to Birding blog has your back. Don’t let those ducks intimidate you! We’ve got all advice you’ll need to sort through a raft of mixed ducks with ease—with or without a scope!

“The coots are back!” is a sentence that I never imagined myself exclaiming with such joy, but here we are. It’s mid-October and the American coots are definitely back, congregating in large flocks on our nearby lakes. I missed them more than I expected.

Fall migration has come in waves, with shorebirds in August, warblers in September, and sparrows in October. Late October and November kicks off waterfowl season, bringing us swans, geese, ducks, coots, loons, and grebes galore. Many of these birds will stick around until there’s no open water, meaning the next few months will be prime time for waterfowl watching.

This week’s Entryway to Birding blog will help you get familiar with the wide variety of waterbirds you might see over the next few months—and help you cultivate an appreciation for everything from their gorgeous plumages to their weird antics.

Welcome to sparrow season! If you’ve been birding through the spring and summer, you’ve likely seen several species of sparrows already. Fall migration adds a few more sparrows to the mix, and October is the prime time to see some uncommon migrant sparrow species. It’s also when we’ll get an influx of our “winter” sparrows that will spend the next few months with us.

To the eyes of a new birder, sparrows can look frustratingly similar. Brown, small, streaky, and often elusive. Not only are they well-camouflaged and tough to spot, they often dive into the low, thick grass or brush before you can even get a glimpse. But patience and perseverance and some good ol’ slow birding can be your friend. This week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings you tips for sorting out sparrows, techniques for how to find them, a few recommendations of places to go.

One of the things I love most about birding is how it’s taken me to new places, to new destinations that I might not have visited before. I’ve veered off the beaten path in search of new birds and it’s opened my eyes to the breadth of Wisconsin’s public lands. From state natural areas to state wildlife areas to state parks and more, Wisconsin has endless opportunities to get outside. Many of these areas are open to in-season hunting, but also to birders, wildlife-seekers, and other adventurers looking for new natural areas to appreciate.

If you’re venturing out this fall, we encourage that you go prepared—fall is also when many hunting seasons begin and there are a few things you should consider to keep yourself and others safe this time of year. Birders and hunters can absolutely co-exist and share these spaces that we all love, but it requires that you be informed and prepared. That’s what this week’s Entryway to Birding blog is here for—we’re bringing you some safety tips on everything from what to wear, to the best time of day to venture out, to what to do if you encounter hunters in the field.

Alright, let’s dish. When you’re a new birder, it takes some time to get accustomed to the ins and outs of this very particular hobby. You’ve not only got a massive list of bird species to familiarize yourself with, but you’ve got the oddities of birding etiquette, the lingo, the eBirding procedures and more. It takes time and experience to mentally sift through all of that, and in the process, mistakes are made.

It’s a reality. New birders make mistakes. Experienced birders make mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes.

But if you need some proof and some reassurance, this week’s Entryway to Birding blog is for you. I’m laying it all out all out there—the silly, the ill-timed, the embarrassing—to remind you that no matter what mistakes you make in the field, you’ll be a better birder after you learn from them.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

Welcome back to the Entryway to Birding blog! I’ve recently been reflecting on how I bird—where I choose to go, the pace that I move at, what my intentions for birding are. Much of my birding during September has been focused on finding warblers and enjoying their presence before they continue south for the winter, and my warbler searching has resulted in some very slow birding sessions—not slow in bird activity, by any means! But “slow” as in, “No, I haven’t moved more than 15 feet from the spot you last saw me, and yes, it has been over an hour” type of slow.

At first this slow birding was just a product of the birds—I had found a warbler flock early one morning and they were busy feasting on bugs and weren’t going anywhere. They left me wishing I had brought a camp chair. After a mesmerizing “slow” hour of watching these birds, I realized that I need to slow down more often. I’ve been challenging myself to give “slow birding” a try, and this week’s Entryway to Birding blog will break down why you might want to switch up your pace too.

It sounds simple, doesn’t it? You know how to count, so just … well … count them! But as I’m sure any birder—new or experienced—knows, counting birds can be deceptively hard. Not only might you encounter birds in large numbers that may feel overwhelming to parse, but the conditions that you’re viewing birds in are always changing.

With practice and the help of some useful estimation methods, counting birds gets easier in time. This week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings you some tips and advice for navigating some of those more challenging, less straightforward counting situations, so you can spend more time enjoying the birds and less time stressing about getting “exact” counts for your checklist.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

We’re moving into September and fall migration continues to pick up. Unlike spring migration, which sometimes feels like it’s gone in a flash, fall migration is more of a slow burn—which is good news for you and me! It means we have more time to enjoy and seek out the wide variety of migrating birds that are passing through on their long, arduous journey south for the winter.

This past week has seen a surge in passerine migration—songbirds like thrushes, vireos, flycatchers, and, oh yes, warblers are all here and fueling up for their migration south.

Warblers. A fan favorite. They’re fast. They’re small. They’re infuriatingly high up in the trees and obscured by leaves. But oh, we love them so.

If you’re a new birder, you’ve maybe heard tell that fall warblers are “confusing.” Why is that? How are they different from spring warblers? What is it that you’re up against? This week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings you a guide to finding and identifying fall warblers with confidence.

Have you ever seen a new bird species so mesmerizing, so fascinating, so attention-catching and stood stunned, wondering how on earth you hadn’t noticed it before? I’ve had many of these moments in my first year as a new birder—the most recent happening just last week!

I was out for a summer evening walk with a friend when something that I didn’t recognize flew overhead. Another bird followed. And then another.

They were fast. Erratic. And moving quickly out of sight. A brief glimpse with my binoculars got my adrenaline pumping, because I saw what I was sure were two bright white wing patches—one near the end of each wing. I high-tailed it back down the trail, hoping to get a better look at them when they emerged from behind some trees.

Sure enough. My first common nighthawks of the summer, and my first ever.

Late August and early September brings us a lot of special birding events, common nighthawk migration included. This week’s Entryway to Birding blog takes a closer look at what you might find when you turn your eye to the summer evening sky, and shares a few resources that you should know about if you’d like to get a better sense of the season’s timings.

Photo by Kenneth Cole Schneider

A couple of weeks ago, I realized that I would soon be approaching my “bird-iversary”—the anniversary of the day that I became a birder! And guess what? That day is today! Yep, I can 100% trace my birding journey back to a single bird walk I took on August 24, 2019—one year ago today.

As I look back on my first year of birding, I’ve realized how much my life has changed—in big ways, small ways, and sometimes imperceptible ways, but all positive ways. It’s really brought home that birding isn’t just about the birds. It’s a hobby that will ripple through your life, leaving little waves of wonder in its wake.

This week’s blog reflects on some of the ways that birding can change your world. If you’ve been thinking about a good time to start this hobby, I can guarantee that today is a good day to start.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt

If you’ve started birding during the pandemic, you’ve probably been going it solo—without the company of fellow birders on a group walk or field trip. Thankfully birding is perfectly suited for this! You can social distance, explore nature at your own pace, and enjoy the meditative benefits that come with the hobby. But at some point, you’ll likely find yourself interacting with the larger birding community—whether locally or online—and you might find that you’ve been missing out on some birder-to-birder socialization.

Birding, like all hobbies, comes with its own culture. Learning the language that some birders use in the field can help you discover more about the hobby and how to participate in it responsibly, but also help you have more fun and connect with other birders over shared experiences.

This week’s Entryway to Birding blog brings some context to some of the stranger terms you might hear in the field. So if you’ve been wondering what it means to “dip” on the sighting of a “vagrant” bird, read on! This week is for you.

Photo by Caitlyn Schuchhardt