Coulee Region Audubon Society

The 2025-26 Audubon Program Year has started and we have a great lineup of speakers for the fall programs. Our October meeting will feature Dr. Markus Mika, UW-La Crosse Assistant Professor of Biology and Ornithology, who will give a presentation titled "Making A Living When Things Heat Up: Life History & Breeding in Flammulated Owls". For 18 years, Dr. Mika has studied populations of Flammulated Owls, a tiny insectivorous bird in northern Utah, and is observing how climate and landscape changes are impacting the forests and resources on which these owls rely. For our November meeting, Dan Jackson will give a presentation on Wisconsin's Bumble Bees. This will include a discussion of life history, identification, citizen science opportunities, and how you can make your yard more pollinator friendly. We hope that you will join us for these and the other programs of the 2025-2026 program year. Meetings are held on the third Wednesday of the month from September ...

It is field trip season in the Coulee Region! From Tuesday, April 29th through Sunday, May 18th, there are many birding field trip opportunities. They are on the Coulee Region Audubon Society Events Calendar, but I will include some details here too: Coulee Region Audubon and Partner Events (Free and open to all): Myrick Marsh Bird Hikes. Tuesdays April 29, May 6 and May 13 starting at 6:30 AM at the Myrick Park Center building parking lot. Hixon Forest Bird Hikes. Thursdays May 1 and May 8 starting at 6:30 at the Hixon Forest parking lot. World Migratory Bird Day at The Nature Place. May 3rd. This will include an Early Bird Marsh Hike at 6:30 and a Family Bird Hike at 9:30 as well as other activities including a raptor presentation. Family activities from 9:30 - 11:30. Wyalusing Birding Field Trip. May 15, 2025. Meet at 6:00 on the entrance road between County X and the entrance station. Wyalusing is the best birding destination in western Wisconsin and is the home to...

Our March membership meeting will feature a presentation by Steve Betchkal from Eau Claire (former Emmy-winning Journalist and birder). He will be presenting a program called “TheEvolution of Merlin”, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s birding app. It will be interesting to hear about the development of this great birding tool!

This meeting will feature a presentation by Ryan Burner, PHD who is a Wildlife Research Biologist with the USGS in La Crosse. He will give a presentation on his past work in Mongolia with the Amur Falcon.

The Coulee Region Audubon Society holds monthly membership meetings on the third Wednesday of each month from September through June (except December). These meetings are held at 7:00 PM in The Nature Place, 789 Myrick Park Drive, in La Crosse and are free and open to the public. Most of the meetings will include a discussion of bird sightings and a nature-related presentation. Our November meeting, which will be held on Wednesday, November 20th will feature Craig Thompson of the Wisconsin DNR. He will be talking about Coulee Birds - a new bird conservation group that he has helped to form in our area. We hope to see you at our meetings!

The 2024 La Crosse Area Christmas Bird Count will abe held on Saturday, December 14, 2024. For this event, we will try to count as many birds as possible in a 15 mile diameter "Count Circle" that is centered on the La Crosse County Courthouse in downtown La Crosse. The circle will be divided into pre-defined sections and count teams will head out early to cover their section. We will also use the help of feeder counters - people who live and maintain a bird feeder within that count circle to count the birds that visit their yard. If you would like to help, please check out the Christmas Bird Count page of the Coulee Region Audubon Society website at: http://www.couleeaudubon.org/html/cbc.html New participants are welcome! Thanks, Dan Jackson, Compiler

It is May 1st so it is field trip season! As in past years, the Coulee Region Audubon Society and other organizations have quite a few birding trips scheduled. These include: Myrick Marsh Bird Walks - Tuesday mornings at 6:30 AM. Meet at the base of the Rabbit Trail at the east end of the Nature Place parking lot. These run from April 30 - May 14. Hixon Forest Bird Walks - Thursday mornings at 6:30 AM. Meet at the Hixon Forest parking lot at the end of Milson Court. These run from May 2 - May 16. Nature Saturday Bird Walks - 6:30 and 9:30 AM on Saturday May 4th. Meet at the base of the Rabbit Trail at the east end of the Nature Place parking lot. There will be other activities as well including a bird of prey presenation by the River Valley Raptors education organisation. Trempealeau NWR World Migratory Bird Day Walks. 7:00 and 9:00 AM on Saturday May 11th. Part of the Trempealeau NWR World Migratory Bird Day Event. Lots of other activities as well. Meet at Trempealeau N...

The 2023 La Crosse Area Christmas Bird Count will abe held on Saturday, December 16, 2023. For this event, we will try to count as many birds as possible in a 15 mile diameter "Count Circle" that is centered on the La Crosse County Courthouse in downtown La Crosse. The circle will be divided into pre-defined sections and count teams will head out early to cover their section. We will also use the help of feeder counters - people who live and maintain a bird feeder within that count circle to count the birds that visit their yard. If you would like to help, please check out the Christmas Bird Count page of the Coulee Region Audubon Society website at: http://www.couleeaudubon.org/html/cbc.html New participants are welcome! Thanks, Dan Jackson, Compiler

The Trempealeau National Wildlife Refuge will be holding a World Migratory Bird Day event on Saturday, May 13, 2023. It will include bird hikes and other family-friendly activities. Check the refuge website for details.

There will be a WMBD event at Myrick Park on Saturday, May 6, 2023. Events will include a bird walk at 6:30 AM, a family bird walk at 9:30, a bird presentation by River Valley Raptors at 10:30, and many other bird-related activities that make this a great family event.

Dan Jackson will lead a field trip at the Wyalusing State Park on Sunday, May 14th from 6:00 AM until about 11:30 AM. This trip is free and open to the public. We meet on the entrance road before the gate house and then bird throughout the park by car caravan. Car pooling is encouraged and we will stop at the gate house parking lot to let people buy park passes and consolidate. This is the most exciting field trip of the season with lots of park specialties. This year's date should be very close to the peak of the warbler migration.