Summer Visitor Center Hours
Weekdays from 9:00 am-5:30 pm
Weekends 10:00 am-4:00 pm
We are finally into September, and signs of fall are in the air! We are still having most days with highs either in or near the 80’s, but there have been a couple of days with highs in the 60’s as well. However, we are certainly experiencing cool mornings and evenings, just as it should be in the fall!
Fall migration has started, with new species being sighted each week.
Some warblers have come through already, and many are still in the area. We are seeing some of our earlier migrating ducks coming through, including blue-winged and green-winged teal, but there will be many more waterfowl species in the area starting within the next couple of weeks.
Sandhill crane viewing season isn’t quite upon us yet, but many of our local birds are beginning to group together in preparation for migration season. We will start to see more migrants coming in at the end of this month, and then heavily throughout October.
Trumpeter swans are also plentiful on the properties this time of year with numbers close to 100 in some areas!
Highlights from this week include: bay-breasted warbler, blackburnian warbler, blackpoll warbler, great egret, Lincoln’s sparrow, magnolia warbler, merlin, short-billed dowitcher, and Tennessee warbler.
PLEASE NOTE: There are now several hunting seasons open or opening soon. Please stay aware while out on the properties in the coming months (especially while hiking). For a full list of hunting season dates, please visit the WI DNR website: https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/hunt/dates
Mammals seen in the area within the last week:
| 13-Lined Ground Squirrel | Grey Wolf | Red Squirrel |
| Beaver | Muskrat | River Otter |
| Black Bear | Raccoon | White-tailed Deer |
| Grey Squirrel | Red Fox |
Bird sightings within the last week on Crex Meadows, Fish Lake, Amsterdam Sloughs, and surrounding area:
| American Crow | Eastern Wood-pewee | Red-eyed Vireo |
| American Goldfinch | Field Sparrow | Red-headed Woodpecker |
| American Kestrel | Golden-winged Warbler | Red-shouldered Hawk |
| American Redstart | Gray Catbird | Red-tailed Hawk |
| American Robin | Great Blue Heron | Red-winged Blackbird |
| American Woodcock | Great Egret | Ring-billed Gull |
| Bald Eagle | Greater Yellowlegs | Ring-necked Duck |
| Barred Owl | Green Heron | Ring-necked Pheasant |
| Bay-breasted Warbler | Green-winged Teal | Rose-breasted Grosbeak |
| Belted Kingfisher | Hairy Woodpecker | Ruby-throated Hummingbird |
| Blackburnian Warbler | Hooded Merganser | Ruffed Grouse |
| Black-capped Chickadee | House Finch | Sandhill Crane |
| Blackpoll Warbler | House Wren | Scarlet Tanager |
| Blue Jay | Killdeer | Sharp-tailed Grouse |
| Blue-headed Vireo | Lincoln’s Sparrow | Short-billed Dowitcher |
| Blue-winged Teal | Magnolia Warbler | Song Sparrow |
| Broad-winged Hawk | Mallard | Sora |
| Canada Goose | Marsh Wren | Spotted Sandpiper |
| Cedar Waxwing | Merlin | Swainson’s Thrush |
| Chestnut-sided Warbler | Mourning Dove | Swamp Sparrow |
| Cliff Swallow | Northern Cardinal | Tennessee Warbler |
| Common Grackle | Northern Flicker | Trumpeter Swan |
| Common Loon | Northern Harrier | Turkey Vulture |
| Common Nighthawk | Northern Waterthrush | Vesper Sparrow |
| Common Raven | Osprey | Warbling Vireo |
| Common Yellowthroat | Palm Warbler | White-breasted Nuthatch |
| Cooper’s Hawk | Philadelphia Vireo | Wild Turkey |
| Downy Woodpecker | Pied-billed Grebe | Wilson’s Snipe |
| Eastern Bluebird | Pileated Woodpecker | Wood Duck |
| Eastern Kingbird | Pine Warbler | Yellow Warbler |
| Eastern Phoebe | Red-bellied Woodpecker | Yellow-bellied Sapsucker |
| Eastern Towhee | Red-breasted Nuthatch | Yellow-rumped Warbler |
| Yellow-throated Vireo |