Great Wisconsin Birdathon
For birders around here, spring migration is like 2 or 3 holidays rolled into one. With warm sun on our faces, we celebrate the change of seasons and the return of our birds who have spent the winter months in the more inviting climates of the Neotropics. This year, for the first time in Wisconsin, birders can help raise funds for bird conservation while doing what they love: identifying, counting, and documenting birds. Announcing the Great Wisconsin Birdathon!
The first annual Wisconsin Birdathon invites teams and individuals to conduct their counts during any 24-hour period in the month of May. The brainchild of the Wisconsin DNR and the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin, the event is designed to help fund and support bird conservation and protection in Wisconsin, and at the same time, provide a fun format for documenting the myriad of bird species migrating to our state at this time of year.
We’re excited! An Eagle Optics team will be participating in the birdathon. Our intrepid team, pictured above, L to R: Parker Reynolds, Mike McDowell, Nina Cheney, Ben Lizdas, and Kate Fitzmier (not shown) will dedicate the day to documenting as many species as possible. We have chosen the wonderful Pheasant Branch Conservancy, just a few miles from our office, as the site for our observations.
So far, we already have over $300 in pledges, which will go to the Bird Protection Fund, and support a variety of bird conservation initiatives statewide. Would you like to chip in? Go to this link and designate the Eagle Optics team or any of the Foundation Birdathon teams to receive your pledge. Then follow the instructions for pledging. You will be contacted after the counts have been completed and numbers tallied. A minimum pledge of $20 to any participating Foundation team will make you eligible for a drawing to win an Eagle Optics 8×42 Ranger binocular! Please pledge if you’re able. Later, we’ll announce the winner and post photos of our count day.
The Great Wisconsin Birdathon promises to be a lot of fun, for a great cause. Do you know of a local birding challenge in your area that benefits birds? If so, grab your binocular and get in on it!
Originally published on May 4, 2012