Birding Wisconsin, with its many upland and wet habitats, is a great experience during spring warbler migration. You arrive on Monday, May 18th. The field trip starts Tuesday morning, May 19th, and ends Saturday, May 23rd, with a late-afternoon airport drop-off.  Saturday night’s hotel is not part of the field trip. This is a small group field trip limited to six participants. If you decide to stay on Saturday evening, you’ll need to book a room.
YBT uses comfortable vehicles, a 10-person van for six birders. 

YBT – Wisconsin species seen YBT 2023   

YBT-Wisconsin-Species-seen-YBT-2017.docx

YBT – Wisconsin species summary list 8.13.16                       

YBT – Wisconsin 2013 Sighting list 163 species

If you want to add warblers to your life list, this trip offers excellent chances, with 18 or more species often seen—24 were spotted in 2017. Over five days, you will not only encounter diverse spring migrants at peak migration but also visit sites significant to America’s conservation legacy, such as John Muir Park, Aldo Leopold’s Pine Island Preserve, and the Baraboo Mountains. You’ll tour the International Crane Foundation breeding and Necedah NWR for nesting Whooping Cranes. The Mississippi Flyway through Wisconsin provides a prime, often-overlooked route for California birders to observe Neotropical migrants in full breeding plumage. Bring your camera to capture these remarkable birding moments.

Birders Testimonial 2023 Rich, another fabulous field trip. I added a number of “Lifers” from Jane Hicks, a knowledgeable, past Solano Audubon Board member.

Sally Matthews 2023 – A fun knowledgeable and fun group to bird with, always something to learn. The weather was cold, but we still managed to exceed 100 species.

Jim Crumpler 2023 – Rich is knowledgeable, as shown with a well-planned field trip: the birding locations were well chosen for birds and habitat. I was happy that the driving distance between locations was reasonable.

Arrive Monday, May 18th, I’ll make arrangements for your airport pick-up and have your hotel room reserved. This is included in the field trip cost. We will stay at the Best Western Airport, Milwaukee. The Best Western has a shuttle if you arrive in the evening. 

Day 1, Tuesday – 7 AM breakfast at the Best Western Hotel.                                                      The tour begins with birding in Milwaukee, exploring the city’s walking paths along Lake Michigan, stopping to bird the lakefront beaches for Warbler Species, scoping the Coast Guard breakwater for loafing gull species, diving ducks and visiting a wonderful string of lakeside parks to seek Sparrow species, Eastern Bluebird, Purple Martin and newly arrived Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireos. We will close the day with a visit to Milwaukee’s Urban Ecology Center to use their three-story birding tower to watch the evening Chimney Swifts. D

Day 2, Wednesday – 7AM breakfast Best Western Hotel            

 We begin our travel into central Wisconsin. In the morning, we’ll visit Aldo Leopold’s Home Wetland Preserve and Devils Lake State Park, searching the hardwood forest for Bonaparte’s Gull, Common Loon, Blue-winged Teal, Veery, Hooded Warbler, and Rusty Blackbirds.  In the afternoon, we’ll visit the International Crane Foundation, where we’ll see Whooping Cranes, other endangered cranes, and part of the captive breeding program. Birding the birding trails of the center before leaving —seeking Bobolink, Eastern Meadowlark, Eastern Phoebe, Tree Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, and Sandhill Cranes— we’ll also explore their superb bookstore. 

Day 3, Thursday:  breakfast at 6:30 AM at the Best Western Hotel. We will drive to Necedah National Wildlife Refuge, located in north central Wisconsin. The refuge has over 250 species on record. We’ll spend the morning seeking Whooping Cranes, Trumpeter Swan, Broad-winged Hawk, Red-headed Woodpecker, Acadian Flycatcher, and Rose-breasted Grosbeak. After lunch, we will visit the John Muir Boyhood Home Regional Park. Where we may see Winter Wren, Black-billed Cuckoo, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Field Sparrow, Chestnut-sided Warbler, and Pine Warbler. We’ll stop at Grand River Marsh seeking the Ducks, waders, shore birds, Ovenbird, and Wood Thrush. Lodging is in Waupun, which is close to Horicon Marsh.

Day 4, Friday,  a 6:30 Breakfast at the Wyndham Hotel.   Birding Horicon Marsh, North America’s largest freshwater cattail marsh, is found here in central Wisconsin. This birder’s paradise, early morning, we’ll search for shore birds and waders, peeps, specifically White-rumped Sandpiper, Black Tern, and Pectoral Sandpiper. As well as more neotropical migrants, including Sedge Wren, Baltimore Oriole, Eastern Flycatchers, Veery, Palm Warbler, and Indigo Bunting, and possibly Rusty Blackbird.

Day 5, Saturday, our final day. We’ll bird Harrington Beach State Park, one of Wisconsin’s oldest and most beautiful state parks, in search of Golden-wing Warbler, Veery, Eastern Bluebird, Pine Warbler, Ovenbird, and Eastern Meadow Lark. Birding from the lake shoreline, we’ll have Mergansers, Bonaparte’s, and Herring Gulls, tern species. As we slowly make our way to the Milwaukee Airport, we’ll stop to bird the Lake Michigan-frontage parks to finish the day.

Trip begins Tuesday, May 19, with an 8 AM departure, and it concludes on Saturday, late afternoon, May 23, with an airport or Hotel drop-off. Your Saturday night hotel is not included in the field trip fee. The field trip is limited to 6 birders; the fee includes all lodging, ground transportation, fuel, field-guiding fees, and park entry fees. Airfare, meals, or travel insurance.
Registration is open. Request your registration form and questions. Yellowbilled Tours will forward a final Itinerary and participant list to everyone 3 weeks prior to the tour. It will include information and instructions for meeting you at the Milwaukee Airport, as well as hotel addresses and emergency contact information.

Contact: Rich Cimino 925-353-0266, or email at Yellowbilledtours@gmail.com