Dear Journey North flock of birders, 

24 - 30 March 2020  

The new arrivals this past week include the Wilson's Snipe seen on March 25th. The Wilson's Snipe makes several different calls. I heard the "tick, tick, tick, tick" and the "tuk a tuk a tuk" calls. I have also heard it produce the winnowing sound but not this time. The Wilson's Snipe flew up and over me a couple days later which gave me a great view of its long beak. Another new arrival was a Tree Swallow on March 28th. It flew around the Arboretum Visitor Center and out over the prairie. 

When the Tree Swallows arrive they nest in about half of the bluebird nest boxes located at the Arboretum. The Eastern Bluebirds successfully nest in the other half of the boxes. Luckily, the Eastern Bluebirds arrive a couple weeks before the Tree Swallows so they have first dibs on the nest boxes. On March 29th another first of year bird arrived -- the Eastern Phoebe. It flew near the Arboretum Visitor Center and out over the gardens. Other new arrivals this past week include Fox Sparrows and Northern Flickers. I have really enjoyed watching the Eastern Bluebird pairs choosing nest boxes. What a joy to see the female Eastern Bluebirds carrying nesting material, mainly white pine needles, to the nest boxes to create nests inside.

I also saw a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers checking out the snags. I hope they decide to nest nearby this year. 

All the ice is out on Lake Wingra and there are many species of waterfowl, mainly ducks, enjoying the water world of the lake.

April, May and June bring in many new migrating species. This is an exciting time for the birds.

Chuck

Journey North is a program of the University of Wisconsin, Madison Arboretum. Journey North could not have found a better home than the Arboretum with whom we share the same vision: to be "a global source of knowledge of and a model for restoring ecologically sustainable relationships between people and the land through integrative, innovative, and collaborative approaches in science, stewardship, education, and public engagement." We hope you share this vision as well and continue to be a part of our Journey North community. Chuck Henrikson , like other Journey North participants, loves to share his love of birds and place through his birding reports and photos. We hope you enjoy these reports as well as learn more about the UW-Madison Arboretum, Journey North's new home.