Summer Visitor Center Hours
Weekdays from 8:00 am-4:30 pm
Weekends 10:00 am-4:00 pm
Summer has officially arrived in the Grantsburg area! Although, it felt like summer much earlier than this with the hot and dry conditions that we’ve been experiencing starting in May. The area could benefit from some rain in the near future!
Because migration has now come to a close and nesting/brood rearing season has arrived, wildlife sightings have decreased to their normal summer levels. This time of the year is wonderful for viewing baby animals of all kinds, butterflies, and other interesting insects, and also for finding a vast array of beautiful wildflowers in bloom.
Check out Phantom Lake to see a number of different waterfowl broods, including trumpeter swans, Canada geese, mallards, blue-winged teal, wood ducks, and more. There are also swan families on several other flowages, including Refuge Extension, Reisinger Lake, Upper North Fork, and more.
There have also been many sightings of sandhill crane colts in Crex Meadows. These are incredibly difficult to view at this point in the season, but if you see a pair of sandhills moving slowly through the thick sedge marshes, be sure to take a closer look- there may be young with them!
Bird highlights over the past week include alder flycatcher, Brewer’s blackbird, canvasback (not usually around this time of year!), chimney Swift, dickcissel, Henslow’s sparrow, indigo bunting, orchard oriole, red-headed woodpecker, upland sandpiper, Virginia rail, and yellow rail.
A few great places to find pollinators and wildflowers are the area around the intersection of Main Dike Road and James Road, all the way along James Road on the west side of the road, and Abel Road.
Mammals seen in the area within the last week:
| 13-Lined Ground Squirrel | Grey Wolf | Red Squirrel |
| Beaver | Muskrat | River Otter |
| Black Bear & cubs | Raccoon | Striped Skunk |
| Grey Squirrel | Red Fox | White-tailed Deer |
| Woodchuck |
Bird sightings within the last week on Crex Meadows, Fish Lake, Amsterdam Sloughs, and surrounding area:
| Alder Flycatcher | Eastern Bluebird | Purple Martin |
| American Bittern | Eastern Kingbird | Red-bellied Woodpecker |
| American Coot | Eastern Meadowlark | Red-breasted Nuthatch |
| American Crow | Eastern Phoebe | Red-eyed Vireo |
| American Goldfinch | Eastern Towhee | Red-headed Woodpecker |
| American Kestrel | Eastern Whip-poor-will | Red-necked Grebe |
| American Redstart | Eastern Wood-pewee | Red-tailed Hawk |
| American Robin | European Starling | Red-winged Blackbird |
| American Woodcock | Field Sparrow | Ring-billed Gull |
| Bald Eagle | Golden-winged Warbler | Ring-necked Duck |
| Baltimore Oriole | Grasshopper Sparrow | Ring-necked Pheasant |
| Bank Swallow | Gray Catbird | Rock Pigeon |
| Barn Swallow | Great Blue Heron | Rose-breasted Grosbeak |
| Barred Owl | Great Crested Flycatcher | Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
| Belted Kingfisher | Great Horned Owl | Ruffed Grouse |
| Black Tern | Green Heron | Sandhill Crane |
| Black-and-white Warbler | Green-winged Teal | Savannah Sparrow |
| Black-capped Chickadee | Hairy Woodpecker | Scarlet Tanager |
| Blue Jay | Henslow’s Sparrow | Sedge Wren |
| Blue-gray Gnatcatcher | Hermit Thrush | Sharp-tailed Grouse |
| Blue-headed Vireo | Hooded Merganser | Song Sparrow |
| Blue-winged Teal | House Finch | Sora |
| Bobolink | House Sparrow | Spotted Sandpiper |
| Brewer’s Blackbird | House Wren | Swamp Sparrow |
| Broad-winged Hawk | Indigo Bunting | Tree Swallow |
| Brown Thrasher | Killdeer | Trumpeter Swan |
| Brown-headed Cowbird | Lark Sparrow | Turkey Vulture |
| Canada Goose | Least Bittern | Upland Sandpiper |
| Canvasback | Least Flycatcher | Veery |
| Cedar Waxwing | Mallard | Vesper Sparrow |
| Chestnut-sided Warbler | Marsh Wren | Virginia Rail |
| Chimney Swift | Merlin | Warbling Vireo |
| Chipping Sparrow | Mourning Dove | White-breasted Nuthatch |
| Clay-colored Sparrow | Northern Cardinal | Wild Turkey |
| Cliff Swallow | Northern Flicker | Willow Flycatcher |
| Common Grackle | Northern Harrier | Wilson’s Snipe |
| Common Loon | Orchard Oriole | Wood Duck |
| Common Raven | Osprey | Wood Thrush |
| Common Yellowthroat | Ovenbird | Yellow Rail |
| Cooper’s Hawk | Pied-billed Grebe | Yellow Warbler |
| Dickcissel | Pileated Woodpecker | Yellow-billed Cuckoo |
| Double-crested Cormorant | Pine Warbler | Yellow-headed Blackbird |
| Downy Woodpecker | Purple Finch | Yellow-throated Vireo |
Did you see something that is not on our list (on the back of this page)? Feel free to give us a call to report it!