Summer Visitor Center Hours
Weekdays from 8:00 am-4:30 pm
Weekends 10:00 am-4:00 pm
If you are planning a trip to Crex Meadows, now is a great time to come! We have 173 different species on our recent bird sightings list, all sighted within the past week (within Crex Meadows, Fish Lake, Amsterdam Sloughs, and the surrounding area). We have also been having lovely spring weather here in the Grantsburg area. There have been many days with temperatures in the 70’s and 80’s, and only some in the 60’s. Road conditions are great in the wildlife areas. All roads that were a mess this spring have been repaired.
Most waterfowl species that migrate through our area have gone north to nest, but there have been a few late sightings the past few days. These include Redhead, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Common Goldeneye, and Ruddy Duck.
We are still seeing a variety of different warblers, but numbers have decreased from what they were 1-2 weeks ago. Species still passing through include Blackburnian Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Canada Warbler, Cape May Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Northern Parula, Palm Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, and Wilson’s Warbler. Other warbler species still being sighted would be our local nesters.
We also had a few interesting shorebirds show up over the weekend, including Black-bellied Plover, Dunlin, Marbled Godwit, Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, White-rumped Sandpiper, and Wilson’s Phalarope. Try heading out to Dike 5 or Phantom Lake in Crex Meadows to look for these species.
Other bird highlights included Black Tern, Bonaparte’s Gull, Chimney Swift, Forster’s Tern, Least Bittern, Merlin, Orchard Oriole, Red-headed Woodpecker, and Upland Sandpiper.
Visitors should also be aware that we are at the time where wood ticks and deer ticks will become abundant. Be sure to wear the appropriate clothing and utilize permethrin or other deterring sprays on your clothing to minimize risk.
Mammals seen in the area within the last week:
| 13-Lined Ground Squirrel | Muskrat | River Otter |
| Beaver | Raccoon | Striped Skunk |
| Black Bear | Red Fox | White-tailed Deer |
| Grey Squirrel | Red Squirrel | Woodchuck |
Bird sightings within the last week on Crex Meadows, Fish Lake, Amsterdam Sloughs, and surrounding area:
| American Crow | Eastern Wood-pewee | Red-breasted Nuthatch |
| American Goldfinch | European Starling | Red-eyed Vireo |
| American Kestrel | Field Sparrow | Redhead |
| American Redstart | Forster’s Tern | Red-headed Woodpecker |
| American Robin | Gadwall | Red-necked Grebe |
| American White Pelican | Golden-winged Warbler | Red-shouldered Hawk |
| American Wigeon | Grasshopper Sparrow | Red-tailed Hawk |
| American Woodcock | Gray Catbird | Red-winged Blackbird |
| Bald Eagle | Gray-cheeked Thrush | Ring-necked Duck |
| Baltimore Oriole | Great Blue Heron | Ring-necked Pheasant |
| Barn Swallow | Great Crested Flycatcher | Rock Pigeon |
| Barred Owl | Great Egret | Rose-breasted Grosbeak |
| Bay-breasted Warbler | Great Horned Owl | Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
| Belted Kingfisher | Greater Yellowlegs | Ruddy Duck |
| Black Tern | Green Heron | Ruddy Turnstone |
| Black-and-white Warbler | Green-winged Teal | Ruffed Grouse |
| Black-bellied Plover | Hairy Woodpecker | Sandhill Crane |
| Blackburnian Warbler | Harris’s Sparrow | Savannah Sparrow |
| Black-capped Chickadee | Hermit Thrush | Scarlet Tanager |
| Blackpoll Warbler | Hooded Merganser | Sedge Wren |
| Black-throated Green Warbler | Horned Grebe | Semipalmated Plover |
| Blue Jay | House Finch | Semipalmated Sandpiper |
| Blue-gray Gnatcatcher | House Sparrow | Sharp-shinned Hawk |
| Blue-headed Vireo | House Wren | Sharp-tailed Grouse |
| Blue-winged Teal | Indigo Bunting | Short-billed Dowitcher |
| Blue-winged Warbler | Killdeer | Solitary Sandpiper |
| Bobolink | Lark Sparrow | Song Sparrow |
| Bonaparte’s Gull | Least Bittern | Sora |
| Brewer’s Blackbird | Least Flycatcher | Spotted Sandpiper |
| Broad-winged Hawk | Least Sandpiper | Swainson’s Thrush |
| Brown Thrasher | Lesser Scaup | Swamp Sparrow |
| Brown-headed Cowbird | Lesser Yellowlegs | Tennessee Warbler |
| Bufflehead | Magnolia Warbler | Tree Swallow |
| Canada Goose | Mallard | Trumpeter Swan |
| Canada Warbler | Marbled Godwit | Turkey Vulture |
| Cape May Warbler | Marsh Wren | Upland Sandpiper |
| Chestnut-sided Warbler | Merlin | Veery |
| Chimney Swift | Mourning Dove | Vesper Sparrow |
| Chipping Sparrow | Nashville Warbler | Virginia Rail |
| Clay-colored Sparrow | Northern Cardinal | Warbling Vireo |
| Cliff Swallow | Northern Flicker | White-breasted Nuthatch |
| Common Goldeneye | Northern Harrier | White-rumped Sandpiper |
| Common Grackle | Northern Parula | White-throated Sparrow |
| Common Loon | Northern Shoveler | Wild Turkey |
| Common Nighthawk | Northern Waterthrush | Wilson’s Phalarope |
| Common Raven | Olive-sided Flycatcher | Wilson’s Snipe |
| Common Yellowthroat | Orchard Oriole | Wilson’s Warbler |
| Cooper’s Hawk | Osprey | Wood Duck |
| Dark-eyed Junco | Ovenbird | Wood Thrush |
| Double-crested Cormorant | Palm Warbler | Yellow Warbler |
| Downy Woodpecker | Pectoral Sandpiper | Yellow-bellied Sapsucker |
| Dunlin | Philadelphia Vireo | Yellow-headed Blackbird |
| Eastern Bluebird | Pied-billed Grebe | Yellow-rumped Warbler |
| Eastern Kingbird | Pileated Woodpecker | Yellow-throated Vireo |
| Eastern Meadowlark | Pine Warbler |
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!