Birds of the Midwest & Beyond
The Birds category explores Midwest birds found across Wisconsin and surrounding states. You’ll discover songbirds, woodpeckers, waterfowl, raptors, and wild turkeys.
Each post focuses on identification, behavior, habitat, and seasonal movement. Learn how different species nest, migrate, and adapt throughout the year.
You’ll also find feeding habits, habitat details, and simple tips to help you recognize birds in your area. Whether you watch goldfinches at your feeder or spot herons near quiet waters, this category helps you better understand the birds that share our landscape.
The red-bellied woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker of the Picidae family. It breeds mainly in the eastern United States, ranging as far south as Florida and as far north as Canada. Its common name is somewhat misleading, as the most prominent red part of its plumage is on the head.
The house finch is a small passerine bird that is part of the family Fringillidae. They are generally seen hanging onto the food source their eating from, perched, or scavenging the ground for food.
General Characteristics of White-Breasted Nuthatches One of my favorite birds to watch is white-breasted nuthatches. You can always tell when they are around because they have a unique yank, yank voice and lower hah, hah, hah hah, hah call note. General Information Name:: White-Breasted Nuthatch Scientific Name:: Sitta carolinensis Family: Nuthatch Size: 8 – 11 … Read more
Birds You May Find in Your Backyard
A running list of birds that you may find in your backyard along with some interesting facts, and possible additional reading posts that may help you attract them to your backyard.
Coopers Hawk in My Garden
The Coopers hawk in my garden, he enjoys parking himself on my deck rail or the neighbor’s fence and watching over the yard. The backyard feeder birds are an easy target for hawks, they will stand back and watch the songbirds eat their fill and then strike them in flight as they leave.
Keep the squirrels off your feeders by changing your birdseed. Birds like safflower seed squirrels dislike it. So, if you are looking for a great way to feed the birds and keep the squirrels at bay, look toward the seed.
Wildlife > Birds > Galliformes Are wild turkeys not the ugliest birds you have ever laid eyes on? At least I think so. It is the face that kills me. A face only a mother could love. But, they are big, beefy, and run pretty funny. The only thing I can say that is pretty, … Read more
Catbirds arrive back from their southern hones the last week of April. You will notice the sound of the catbird cries. If there are a few catbirds in the area it may sometimes sound like cats fighting.
The calendar states it is spring in Wisconsin, so darn it, warm up already. Instead, we have 34-degree weather, with tiny, snowflakes drifting down from the sky every once in awhile. My teens are off for spring break and our family had decided between work schedules and additional commitments, we were staying home for spring break. This is not our family, is it?
Eastern Phoebe The Eastern phoebe is a medium-sized passerine bird that is part of the flycatcher family. Both the male and females have pale brown heads and backs with a white belly. and black beak. The only difference between the male and female is that males are slightly larger. Juveniles have white wing bars. In … Read more
Blue Jays There are a few birds that when they visit your backyard, you know what they are, immediately, just by the sound. Blue jays are one of those birds. Blue jays are predominantly blue with a white chest and underparts, and a blue crest. It has a black, U-shaped collar around its neck and … Read more
Today, I was able to capture snow bunting birds on camera. Snow buntings are birds of the high Arctic that visit us during the winter months..
Our Baltimore Orioles are back in Wisconsin. The orioles migrate back for breeding purposes. Lately, I have seen the wonderful mating courtship between the male and female in the treetops.
Tree Swallow The male has a glossy blue-green body with the belly and cheeks being white. The bird has dark brown eyes and the legs and feet are pale brown. Females are a duller color, normally having a dirty brownish coloring to their top forehead and wings. The tree swallows have arrived back in Wisconsin. They … Read more
The Hummingbirds Are Back
My favorite past time during the summer is to sit on my back deck with an ice cold drink in hand and watch the hummingbirds feed.
I love to listen to the sound of their wings, they just amaze me!
Want to attract hummingbirds to your yard? Your yard has to have elements that hummingbirds enjoy. Learn 10 flowers that attract hummingbirds.
Dark-eyed Junco In Wisconsin, the dark-eyed junco seems to arrive around the third week of September. They come in mid-fall and stay for the duration of the winter. Adults generally have gray heads, necks, and breasts, gray or brown backs and wings, and a white belly, but show a confusing amount of variation in plumage. … Read more
Baltimore Oriole The Baltimore oriole received its name from the resemblance of the male’s colors to those on the coat-of-arms of Lord Baltimore. Male The adult male is orange on the underparts shoulder patch and rump, with some birds appearing a very deep flaming orange and others appearing yellowish-orange. All of the rest of the … Read more
Gotta Catch ‘Em All
There have been some really wonderful colored birds lately on the walking paths. If you are an active birding fan you know that the warblers are sprinkled around the area. I feel like my children during the Pokemon stage of life – Gotta Catch ‘Em All !
Wisconsin Birds
This page will be a running list of all my small Wisconsin birds. The birds can be found in your yards, gardens and around the woodlands areas.