Wisconsin Statewide Birding Report 5.16.14It's mid-May and we're in the peak of songbird migration throughout most of the Southern and Central portions of the state. Birders are reporting great numbers of warblers over the past week with some birders getting more than 20 species in a day. Other songbirds arriving include tanagers, vireos, hummingbirds, orioles, thrushes and flycatchers. Muddy wetlands are now hosting good numbers and species diversity of shorebirds. Recent arrivals include white-rumped sandpiper, dunlin, semi-palmated sandpiper, and short-billed dowitchers. Some lucky birders have spotted willets, Wilson's phalaropes and black-necked stilts amongst the flocks. This spring has provided an exceptional number of rare bird sightings statewide. This includes the lingering garganey at Crex Meadows, good numbers of Summer tanagers, mockingbirds, a potential first state record crested caracara on Washington Island, worm-eating warbler in Madison, piping plover on Lake Michigan and a returning chuck-will's widow in the Kettle Moraine State Forest. Northern Wisconsin continues to be in a very early phonological stage, but the birds are arriving making for great viewing. The next warm fronts should bring another large push of neotropical migrants including larger numbers of flycatchers and some of the later migrants such as cuckoos, dickcissel, mourning, Connecticut and Canada warblers. As always, please report your sightings to Wisconsin eBird (
www.ebird.org/WI) (exit DNR) so that we can track our migratory bird populations. - Andy Paulios, wildlife biologist, Fitchburg
