2019 Bird Protection Fund Tours
Field tours offered by the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin to benefit the Bird Protection Fund. You do not need to be a Foundation member to register for these special tours.
For questions, please contact Diane Packett at [email protected] or 920-219-2587
Please check the small box to the left of the tour title for each registrant you enter. Fill in your personal information, then click "Add Registrant" to enter the information for a guest. When you have finished adding guests, enter your payment information and click "Submit".
You will receive a receipt, and meeting directions a few days before the tour, so make sure your email address is correct!
In the event of bad weather, we will call you to let you know that the tour has been rescheduled.
March 16 9AM-1 PMWeather date March 23 Every spring and fall, the Western Great Lakes Bird and Bat Observatory conducts surveys along the Lake Michigan coastline, as well as offshore, to monitor migrating ducks, gulls, loons, and other waterbirds. Last spring they observed a total of 151,000 birds, including 32,000 Red-breasted Mergansers! Join them for a morning and discover how birds use the nearshore waters as migratory habitat and what researchers have found out about their populations and ecology. Meet at the Forest Beach migratory Preserve in Port Washington. After a presentation –and perhaps a bit of birdwatching—at the Observatory headquarters at Forest Beach Migratory Preserve in Ozaukee County, we’ll head to the shoreline observation site about five miles north, meet the researcher, and experience the life of a professional birdwatcher! Note: Waterfowl migration is unpredictable, and we might see many birds, or very few. Be prepared for early spring weather on the lakefront, with cold and wind possible. Bring binoculars and a spotting scope if you have one.
Spring Waterfowl Migration on the Mississippi Friday, March 22 8 AM-3 PMLeaders: Jim Nissen and Jeb BarzenWitness the spectacle of spring waterfowl migration in this Upper Mississippi National Wildlife Refuge. Departing from Stoddard, WI, we will travel by bus between birding spots along the Mississippi River between La Crosse, WI and Lansing, IA. Besides waterfowl and shorebirds, eagles and other raptors should also be abundant. Jim Nissen, retired refuge manager, and Jeb Barzen, career waterfowl and crane ecologist, will discuss migration ecology and the conservation in this waterway that is critical to both waterfowl, barge navigation and municipal use.Details will be emailed to you before the trip.
