Bird City Wisconsin

08/21/2026

Join communities across Wisconsin for Swift Night Out, a continent-wide event celebrating Chimney Swifts during their fall migration!

What’s a Swift Night Out?
🐦‍⬛ A night to gather with fellow bird lovers to watch Chimney Swifts come in to roost for the night.

🐦‍⬛ An opportunity to count the swifts you see and help collect community science data

🐦‍⬛A great way to enjoy an incredible natural spectacle right in your community!

And this year, you can record your Swift observations through the Chimney Swift Roost and Nest Data website, helping us learn more about Chimney Swift habitat use across the state.

These events help raise awareness about these amazing birds and give communities a chance to take action to protect their habitat.

Swipe through to see Swift Night Out events happening in Bird Cities across Wisconsin!
Time and location details can be found at the link in the comments.

Is your community represented on the map yet? Which event are you attending?! 👇

08/05/2026

Community Highlight: 📍Manitowish Waters, WI

The community of Manitowish Waters is proving that conservation can create new opportunities for wildlife! 🐦✨

In 2014, the North Lakeland Discovery Center Bird Club secured funding and constructed a 12-foot artificial chimney for Chimney Swifts, a species that has experienced significant population declines as traditional nesting sites have disappeared. An educational sign was later installed to help visitors learn about these remarkable birds and why they need our help.

After years of waiting, the first active Chimney Swift nest was discovered in the tower in 2025. Even more exciting, nesting was confirmed again in 2026, a promising sign that the tower is finally providing valuable habitat for this declining species.

What a fantastic example of a community investing in long-term conservation. Kudos to the Manitowish Waters community for creating a safe home for Chimney Swifts and helping support the future of this remarkable bird! 🏡🌿

📸 1) Community Highlight announcement graphic shows Manitowish water welcome sign, & photo 2 listed below. Text reads: "The Town of Manitowish Waters, Vilas County, WI. A Northwoods town making room for a threatened species".
📸 2) Hannah Thorpe & Bruce Bacon of North Lakeland Discovery Center check on the 2025 Chimney Swift nest.
📸 3) 5 Chimney Swift eggs in nest attached to side of artificial chimney in 2025
📸 4) 5 Chimney Swift nestlings huddled in nest attached to side of artificial chimney in 2026
All photos provided by Hannah Thorpe, North Lakeland Discovery Center

08/03/2026

Help Lake Michigan Bird Observatory get new binoculars to share the joy of birds with more people!

Help More People Experience Birds Up CloseBinoculars are one of the most important tools we use to connect people with birds and the natural world. Whether we're leadi...

08/03/2026

We found so many native plant blooms over the weekend! What's blooming in your neighborhood? We'd love to see it! Let us know in the comments, bonus points if you share a photo!

🪻Native plants are essential for birds, providing food, shelter, and the insects needed to raise healthy chicks.

📸 1: Blue Vervain (Verbena hastata) flowers in bloom with a Prairie field in the background.
📸 3: Purple flower stalk in bloom of Prairie Blazing Star (Liatris pycnostachya) with blooming prairie in background
📸 4: Six yellow Prairie Coneflower (Ratibida pinnata) blooms with blooming prairie in background
📸 5: Group of white Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium) flower heads with blooming prairie in background

07/31/2026

Last year's Grow for Birds Plant Grant recipients have been hard at work this summer!

Lake Geneva Bird City | Lake Geneva Parks Department | City of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin | VISIT Lake Geneva

“We spent one day covering the site with newspapers and mulch and the next day digging and planting. So far, our primary challenges have been keeping the plants watered and safe from hungry deer...🦌🪣Most of the plants are taking hold and are starting to bloom!” - Sarah McConnell, chair of Lake Geneva Avian Committee

We salute 🫡 the hard work of volunteers from the Lake Geneva Avian Committee and the generosity of White Pelican Farm of Wyocena in creating new habitat for birds and other wildlife! 🐦🌻🐝🐛🦋😍

Lake Geneva Avian Committee members won a Grow for Birds Plant Grant provided by White Pelican Farm, SOS Save Our Songbirds, and Bird City Wisconsin. The volunteers spent months planning and preparing to create native gardens to transform a small part of an overgrown, invasive species-choked golf course in Lake Geneva into a public garden. Birds and other wildlife will benefit from the gardens and so will the water quality in the community's namesake lake.

Read their inspiring story: https://tinyurl.com/rranewwt

📷Two volunteers use shovels to plant native plants in a new native garden Lake Geneva. Photo by Sarah McConnell

07/23/2026

Join us in Sheboygan, a proud Bird City Wisconsin community, for the North Point Bluff BioBlitz!

A BioBlitz is a fun, community science event where people work together to document as many species as possible in a single day. It's a great way to explore nature, learn from local experts, and contribute valuable biodiversity data.

📅 Saturday, August 1, 2026
📍 North Point Bluff, Sheboygan
💲 FREE (registration required)

Local naturalists and conservation experts will lead guided walks and help identify the birds, plants, bees, butterflies and other insects you discover using iNaturalist. Whether you're an experienced naturalist or simply curious about the world around you, everyone is welcome!

Registration is free, but space is limited in each time slot, so be sure to reserve your spot.

Hosted in partnership with Friends of North Point, Lakeshore Natural Resource Partnership and Lake Michigan Bird Observatory

🔗 Register today at the link in the comments section! We hope to see you there!

👀➡ Share this to spread the word! The more eyes the better!

07/22/2026

With more than 400 bird species recorded in Wisconsin, there’s always something new to spot overhead! 🐦 From backyard flyovers to spectacular migrations, you never know what kind of aerial show you might catch. 👀

And while you might be missing the aircraft displays at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, Wisconsin’s feathered flyers are always putting on a show. ✈️🐦

What’s your favorite Wisconsin bird to see in the air? Let us know in the comments👇

07/21/2026

⚽🟥 Bird-UNfriendly things that are worthy of a red card 🟥⚽

🏙️ Not being a Bird City… We might be a little biased about this one. 😉 Bird City communities are working to make their communities better places for birds and people.

🌱 Planting invasive species can harm native ecosystems. Choosing native plants instead gives birds better habitat and food sources.

🪟 Untreated windows can be deadly for birds. Adding bird-safe window treatments can help prevent collisions.

🏠 Capping chimneys can take away important nesting and roosting habitat for Chimney Swifts. If you have a chimney, consider leaving it uncapped through summer and for spring and fall migration

☕ Coffee without the Smithsonian Bird Friendly certification may not support the habitat birds need. Choosing Bird Friendly coffee helps protect the overwintering habitat birds need.

🐈 Letting cats roam outdoors puts both cats and birds at risk. Keeping cats indoors or taking them outside on a leash can help keep everyone safer.

The good news? Every red card comes with a chance to change the call. 🟥➡️🐦

🟥 Know someone (or a community) that needs a friendly red card? Share this with them.
🟩 What bird-friendly change have you made recently? Tell us in the comments! 👇

07/13/2026

✨ Your backyard lights may be drowning out firefly communication. ✨

Patio string lights, porch lights, and other decorative outdoor lighting create a beautiful evening atmosphere, but when they're left on all night, they can make it harder for fireflies to find each other.

💡 Fireflies rely on their flashes to communicate and attract mates. Artificial light can outshine those signals, reducing their chances of successfully reproducing.

During firefly season (May through August, with peak activity from mid-June through late July), turn off non-essential outdoor lights when you're done enjoying the evening. If you use decorative string lights, consider putting them on a timer so they automatically turn off before bedtime.

You can also help fireflies by:
🍂 Leaving the leaves
🚫 Avoiding pesticides
🌿 Keeping some natural areas in your yard
📑Join the Firefly Atlas: fireflyatlas.org

Where have you seen fireflies this year? Let us know in the comments!
📲 Share this post to spread the word and protect more fireflies!

You can learn more and sign up for Lights Out alerts at lightsoutwi.org.

(📷: A firefly glows on a blade of grass during nighttime. Text reads: "Turn down lights to turn up the GLOW, June-July is peak firefly season! Fireflies rely on dark nights to find a mate. Turn off outdoor lights sunset to sunrise.")

07/07/2026

Some of the most spectacular "fireworks" are the ones that happen in nature! ✨
Hundreds of fireflies are sparkling in the prairie at Faville Grove Sanctuary and Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance's other sanctuary lands this summer...and if you're lucky, you've probably spotted them in your neighborhood, too. Don't forget: turning off outdoor lights from dusk to dawn creates the darker nights these wonderful creatures need to communicate and attract mates (filmed by Soraya Castle/SoWBA).