Wildlife Update: July 23, 2026

Featured Image by Elizabeth Tiller

Weather has been mostly hot in the Grantsburg area, but there have been a few cooler days mixed in. The 10-day forecast looks like many days will be in the high 80’s and some into the 90’s.

The highlights for viewing this time of the year are summer resident birds, baby wildlife, wildflowers in bloom, and our many butterfly species!

Some of the baby animal reports this week included Common Loon chicks (getting big now!), Trumpeter swan cygnets, and White-tailed deer fawns. Because we are amid “baby animals season”, the WDNR would like to remind visitors to Keep Wildlife Wild whenever possible. It’s important to observe wildlife at a respectful distance and always remember that a young animal’s best chance for survival is with its parents (there are a few exceptions for wildlife young who do not stay with their mother; this includes things like turtles, who are completely independent upon hatching).

Bird sightings within the last week at Crex Meadows, Fish Lake, Amsterdam Sloughs, and surrounding area:

Alder Flycatcher
American Bittern
American Crow
American Goldfinch
American Kestrel
American Redstart
American Robin
American White Pelican
American Woodcock
Bald Eagle
Baltimore Oriole
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Barred Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Black Tern
Black-and-white Warbler
Black-billed Cuckoo
Black-capped Chickadee
Blue Jay
Blue-headed Vireo
Blue-winged Teal
Bobolink
Broad-winged Hawk
Brown Thrasher
Brown-headed Cowbird
Canada Goose
Cedar Waxwing
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Clay-colored Sparrow
Common Grackle
Common Loon
Common Nighthawk
Common Raven
Common Yellowthroat
Dickcissel
Double-crested Cormorant

Downy Woodpecker
Eastern Bluebird
Eastern Kingbird
Eastern Phoebe
Eastern Towhee
Eastern Warbling Vireo
Eastern Whip-poor-will
Eastern Wood-pewee
Field Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Gray Catbird
Great Blue Heron
Great Crested Flycatcher
Greater Yellowlegs
Green Heron
Green-winged Teal
Hairy Woodpecker
Hooded Merganser
Indigo Bunting
Killdeer
Least Bittern
Least Flycatcher
Least Sandpiper
Lesser Yellowlegs
Mallard
Marsh Wren
Mourning Dove
Northern Cardinal
Northern Flicker
Northern Harrier
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Northern Yellow Warbler
Osprey
Ovenbird
Pectoral Sandpiper
Pied-billed Grebe
Pileated Woodpecker
Pine Warbler

Purple Finch
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Red-eyed Vireo
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-necked Grebe
Red-tailed Hawk
Red-winged Blackbird
Ring-necked Duck
Ring-necked Pheasant
Rock Pigeon
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Ruffed Grouse
Sandhill Crane
Scarlet Tanager
Sedge Wren
Short-billed Dowitcher
Solitary Sandpiper
Song Sparrow
Sora
Spotted Sandpiper
Swamp Sparrow
Tree Swallow
Trumpeter Swan
Turkey Vulture
Veery
Vesper Sparrow
Virginia Rail
White-breasted Nuthatch
Wild Turkey
Wilson’s Phalarope
Wilson’s Snipe
Wood Duck
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-throated Vireo

Mammals seen in the area within the last week:

Beaver
Black Bear
Grey Squirrel

Muskrat
Red Fox
Red Squirrel

River Otter
White-tailed Deer
13-lined Ground Squirrel

Sightings of Flowers in Bloom:

Black-eyed Susan
Blue Giant Hyssop
Blue Vervain
Butterfly Milkweed
Common Milkweed
Common Mullein
Common St. John’s Wort
Culver’s Root
Daisy Fleabane
Fireweed
Harebell
Hawk’s-beard

Hedgenettle
Hoary Vervain
Leadplant
Pale-spike Lobelia
Pasture Rose
Pickerelweed
Prairie Blazing Star
Prairie Phlox
Purple Prairie Clover
Queen Anne’s Lace
Rough-leaved Sunflower
Showy Goldenrod

Spiderwort
Spreading Dogbane
Sulphur Cinquefoil
Swamp Milkweed
Water Smartweed
Western Sunflower
White Water Lily
Wild Bergamot
Wild Mint
Wood Lily
Yarrow
Yellow Pond Lily