Coulee Region Audubon Society

Please Donate to the Coulee Region Audubon Society Donations to the Coulee Region Audubon Society are always appreciated!!  Please send your donation to:  Coulee Region Audubon Society, PO Box 2573, La Crosse, WI 54602-2673. Thank you very much!!

2019 Sand Lake Conservation Camps

Fred Lesher's Birding Journals Online Fred is a long time member of CRAS and retired UW Lacrosse professor. He has donated his birding journals to the Murphy Library at UWL. The journals cover his lifetime of birding from 1957 to 2004. The 14 volumes are now housed in the Special Collections unit of the Library. All the volumes have been scanned and are available to the public in the Library’s digital collection. To view the journals go to the UWL website, click on Murphy Library then Special Collections then Digital Collections then Browse Digital Collections (or click   here   and use the "Sub-collections" window). When viewing the journals there are 2 pages on each scanned image so page numbers and scan numbers do not agree.  Take some time this winter to explore some of Fred’s old haunts. Find the story about his favorite roads in Vernon County or his tame Barred Owl from his college days or his detailed observations of his Purple Martin house or his chronicl...

Birds and Beers, Anyone? Many other regional birding groups, such as the Twin Cities, Madison and the Green Bay have established more informal gatherings for birders to meet and share stories. The venue changes from meeting to meeting and they are somewhat unscheduled. Sometimes birding might be part of the agenda beforehand, other times it’s just a chance to meet others who share your interest.  For example, when a Great Grey Owl decided to hang out on the grounds of the Capitol Brewery in Madison, there was a somewhat spontaneous Birds and Beers scheduled. We’d like to try and create our own “Birds and Beers.” If you have an urge to sit somewhere, like maybe Pearl Street Brewery, meet other birders and talk bird smack, post the date, time and place on the facebook page. Pass the word to others who might enjoy this and someone is bound to show up.

MVC is Looking for Some Volunteers

What are Audubon dues used for? What happens to your Audubon dues? Each year, we dutifully submit our annual dues to be part of the Coulee Audubon Society. Some of that money is of course used for various administrative costs associated with any small organization such as ours. One aspect of our mission is education. We have provided a number of small grants to teachers in our region. Those grants have covered costs for a variety of projects designed to bring students closer to our natural world. The study skins used by Scott Lee at our April meeting are in protective tubes that were obtained with some of our grant money, for use by the Trempealeau school district.  We have had other opportunities to ‘grow” our young birders and environmentalists as well. About two years ago, a young lady who was at that time a student at Richland Center High School, made a request for scholarship funds to allow her to take part in the Cornell Young Birder’s Event. This was a life changing ...

Interested in helping the MVC?

Years of Living Dangerously  3:00 p.m. on Sundays -- Jan. 10, 17, & 24   From the damage wrought by Hurricane Sandy to the upheaval caused by drought in the Middle East, the groundbreaking documentary series, Years of Living Dangerously, provides first-hand reports on those affected by, and seeking solutions to, climate change. The episodes feature celebrity investigators, who each have a history of environmental activism, and well-known journalists, each of whom have a background in environmental reportage. These "correspondents" travel to areas around the world and throughout the U.S. affected by global warming to interview experts and ordinary people affected by, and seeking solutions to, the impacts of climate change. The Emmy Award winning (2014) Showtime television series will be shown on Sunday afternoons at 3:00 p.m., facilitated by Carlene Roberts and Tom Uphaus. We will explore the second three (of nine) segments as follows: [The final three parts wil...

Help Save the Black Terns in the Myrick Marsh! Note from Alan Stankevitz:  Jo and I recently have returned from our spring migration trip to Florida and we have lots of images to share. I was all set to send out our first set of images and video, but when we returned we found out that Wisconsin's DNR is about to grant BNSF Railroad a permit to "take" Black Terns in the La Crosse River Wetlands.  Black Terns are an endangered state species in Wisconsin. There numbers continue to drop statewide and yet the DNR is about to give permission to BNSF to disturb their breeding grounds in the wetlands and if they happen to kill any Black Terns, that's okay too.  Now is the time to take action and I am asking YOU to help. Even if you live outside of Wisconsin, I encourage all to write to the DNR and demand that they do not grant this take permit.  Click   here   to go to my journal about this atrocity. If you don't want to read the whole thing, just...

Mississippi Valley Conservancy wants YOU! Various mornings, 2015 Various locations Mississippi Valley Conservancy needs your HELP! We are seeking volunteers to help determine presence or absence of declining bird species on different sites throughout southwest Wisconsin.  Volunteers essentially would go to a site in early morning and make a list of what is seen/heard on MVC nature preserves or land MVC holds conservation easements on. This invaluable information will help to guide our restoration activities and prioritize sites with great populations of state-listed bird species.  If interested,   email   Abbie Church, MVC Conservation Director at achurch@mississippivalleyconservancy.org with your preference for habitat (forest, wetland, grassland); geographical interest (La Crosse County, Monroe County, anywhere, etc) and availability. We’re hoping to schedule site visits for late May or early June.

Please Help Protect WI's Natural Heritage! From Kim Kreitinger:  Do you know what the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway, Sauk Prairie Recreation Area, Harrington Beach State Park and Kettle Moraine State Forest have in common? Besides all harboring important habitat for many bird species of special concern, all are state lands purchased with Knowles-Nelson Stewardship funds.  The Wisconsin Legislature created the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program in 1989 to preserve valuable natural areas and wildlife habitat, protect water quality and fisheries, and expand opportunities for outdoor recreation. This important conservation program is now at risk with Governor Walker's budget proposal to freeze land acquisitions though the Stewardship program for 12 years!  Please contact your state legislators and Governor Walker's office to let them know how important protecting our state's natural heritage is to you and our future generations!  Thank you. Kim Krei...

Birds and Beers anyone??? Dates and Times pending Many other regional birding groups, such as the Twin Cities, Madison and the Green Bay area have established more informal gatherings for birders to meet and share stories. The venue changes from meeting to meeting and they are somewhat unscheduled. Sometimes birding might be part of the agenda beforehand, other times it’s just a chance to meet others who share your interest. For example, when a Great Grey Owl decided to hang out on the grounds of the Capitol Brewery in Madison last year, there was a somewhat spontaneous Birds and Beers scheduled.  We’d like to try and create our own “Birds and Beers,” and Mark Webster and Gwyn Calvetti have volunteered to try and kickstart it. We thought Pearl Street Brewery might be a great place to start, supporting a local microbrewery that just happens to be close to wetlands trails. “Warblers and Wine” could be an option, too. Watch the facebook page and email announcements for the f...

Wintering Golden Eagle Survey Results Saturday, January 18, 2014   From Scott Mehus: Thank you to everyone who participated in this year's survey. Once again, it was a chance to get out and enjoy the beauty of the blufflands, and see some birds. Every year we learn more about these amazing birds and we couldn't do it without your support!  Click   here   to view results on an interactive map of the survey area! On January 18th, 171 volunteers combed the blufflands during the The 10th Annual Wintering Golden Eagle Survey. The day began snowy and overcast in many areas, limiting visibility. But the afternoon turned bright and sunny, and the patience of many observers was rewarded with views of golden eagles and other raptors soaring over the bluffs. In all, 112 golden eagles were observed throughout the survey area!  In addition to golden eagles, 878 bald eagles and 400 red-tail hawks were also counted. All together, the observers volunteered nea...

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2013 Web Cams A Local Peregrine Nest The Decorah Eagle Nest Cam The Cornell Red-tailed Hawk Nest Cam An Osprey nest in Lolo, Montana A Kestrel nest box in Boise, Idaho The new Condor Cam The Cornell Great Blue Heron Nest Cam

Ruby-throated Hummingbird Nest June 16, 2013 Photo by Marty Dawley Lohman Treasurer Coulee Region Audubon Society As of 7/2/2013, the female hummingbird has been seen bringing food to her two young chicks, and on 7/3/2013 this Red-eyed Vireo nest was found about 40 feet south of the hummingbird nest. Photo by Lennie Lichter The Hummingbird Nest Journal July 1, 2013 This morning I was carrying my spotting scope up to our North Slope when I scared up a female Ruffed Grouse with at least 4 young ones in an area called Aspen Corner. This is the first time in a long time that I got to see a family of grouse here. Then I went on up to the North Slope and just had time to get the scope zeroed in when a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird came back to her nest and fed at least one young one before she settled down onto the nest. July 2, 2013 I went up there to spend a couple of hours watching the hummingbird nest this morning and the female wasn...

DNR fisheries boat rescues migratory warblers lost in a fog  PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. – For a few short hours, a state fish research boat became a port in the storm for a flock of exhausted migratory warblers. Tim Kroeff, a fisheries technician for the Department of Natural Resources, shares the story of what happened when the Research Vessel Coregonus, was 16 miles off the Lake Michigan coast near Port Washington in a dense fog, its crew hauling in nets set the day before to assess lake trout and burbot populations. Kim Grveles, a DNR avian ecologist who leads Wisconsin’s efforts to protect and expand stopover habitat for migratory birds, has no doubt that the research boat saved the birds’ lives. “This is the classic example of what we call a “fire escape,” she says. Migratory birds require an array of sites between wintering and breeding areas to survive, including sites not often thought of as having conservation value. Grveles and other ornithologists recognize these dif...

Check out our CBC page for final results

Great Backyard Bird Count

Watch the Birds of Paradise Trailer!

Help prevent bird window collisions!

Want to help the Snowy Owls? Through January of 2012 From Dan Jackson:This year has turned out to be one of the biggest Snowy Owl irruptions in many years. This has allowed many of us to see these magnificent birds that normally inhabit the tundra and it has been a great experience. This event has resulted in a significant number of birds that have been found that are sick and injured. When they are found, these birds are taken to wildlife rehabilitators including the Coulee Wildlife Rehab Center in rural Chaseburg. These organizations always have trouble finding enough funding to help cover their costs and this event is adding even more financial burdens to organizations that often operate on a shoe string budget and are heavily dependent on donations in order to operate. Already this year, Coulee Wildlife Rehab Center has had two Snowy Owls brought in to their center. The first was in the last stages of starvation and couldn't be saved but the second is the victim of ...

Snowy Owl Photo January 3, 2012   Here is a photo of the Snowy Owl near Stoddard taken by Dan Jackson:

Birds of Myrick Park and Hixon Forest Recently Dan Jackson realized that he had found a total of 200 species of birds in Myrick Park and Hixon Forest in the last 15 years or so. Here is the list of birds he's identified during that time, with a few others that other people have seen. (H) denotes an historical record. If you can add to the list please send an  e-mail  to Dan. SWANS, GEESE, and DUCKS • Snow Goose (H) • Cackling Goose • Canada Goose • Trumpeter Swan • Tundra Swan • Wood Duck • Gadwall • American Wigeon • American Black Duck • Mallard • Blue-winged Teal • Northern Shoveler • Northern Pintail • Green-winged Teal • Canvasback • Redhead ...

Operation Migration - Whooping Cranes You can help Operation Migration receive grant money From Chris Petherick:Hello Everybody, As many of you may know, Operation Migration is the organization that helps the Whooping Cranes find their proper migration route, among other things. I believe that it was last year, but it's possible that it was two years ago now, that they had their storage unit/hangar vandalized and they lost their ultra-light plane. I am not involved with the organization in any way, other than I have donated to them in the past. So if any of my facts are incorrect, I sincerely apologize. But that brings me to the point of why I am posting. Operation Migration is in the running for a $25,000 grant that would allow them to purchase a new ultra-light plane and get back to helping the Whooping Cranes head south (and back north too I would suppose). But they need our help. There are two $25,000 grants up for grabs and the way that it works is that people have...

Interested in the Mississippi River?

Birds Movements Reveal Global Warming Threat Species Wintering Farther North From National Audubon WASHINGTON, DC, February 10, 2009-The northward and inland movement of North American birds, confirmed by thousands of citizen-observations, provides new and powerful evidence that global warming is having a serious impact on natural systems, according to new analyses by Audubon scientists. The findings signal the need for dramatic policy changes to combat pervasive ecological disruption.Analyses of citizen-gathered data from the past 40 years of Audubon's Christmas Bird Count (CBC) reveal that 58 percent of the 305 widespread species that winter on the continent shifted significantly north since 1968, some by hundreds of miles. Movement was detected among species of every type, including more than 70 percent of highly adaptable forest and feeder birds. Only 38 percent of grassland species mirrored the trend, reflecting the constraints of their severely-depleted habita...

Audubon Adventures! Available for Grades 3 to 5 The national Audubon Society has developed an environmental education program for children in grades 3 to 5 called Audubon Adventures. It was developed by professional environmental educators and presents basic, scientifically accurate facts about birds, wildlife, and their habitats. It comes packaged as a Classroom Kit (serving 32 students) or as an Individual Kit (serving 1 student). The program can be used by classroom teachers, after-school program coordinators, special education instructors, language arts teachers, and homeschoolers.Each classroom kit contains: Four different editions of the award-winning Audubon Adventures student nature news magazine (32 copies of each) A Classroom Resource Manual with hands-on activities and science background A Classroom Wall Certificate An environmental wall poster The Coulee Region Audubon Society has been purchasing classroom kits for local teachers for quite a few years and we woul...