A Northwoods Almanac for May 10 – 23, 2024

 A Northwoods Almanac for May 10 – 23, 2024  by John Bates

 

Migration in Full Tilt

            Nearly 60% (about 135) of the 236 breeding bird species in Wisconsin winter in neotropical zones – the Caribbean, most of Mexico, Central America, and South America. They begin their return north based on the length of daylight, their hormones triggering takeoff in the blind faith that the weather will be okay when they return and the insects that represent nearly all of their diet will be hatching. 

            We, of course, are just a small part of North America’s bird world. Throughout all of the United States and Canada, 361 species of breeding birds migrate to wintering grounds in the Neotropics and will soon be returning.

            The peak period for these neotropical species to appear in our area is from May 12 to May 15. 

            Most migrate at night, and you can actually see them taking off by watching your weather Doppler radar (also see https://birdcast.info). It’s called radar ornithology, and the same radars that meteorologists use to estimate rainfall rates are equally adept at detecting other objects in the atmosphere, like birds. Meteorologists can now distinguish partially frozen sleet from droplets of rain, and ornithologists, looking at the same radar, can easily separate birds from precipitation.

            To see this for yourself, check the radar before sunset to see what the actual weather is regionally, or even around the country. Then check the radar a half hour or more after sunset to see what has changed. Songbirds takeoff a half hour or so after sunset, and these mass lift-offs produce a ring, or what likes like a little explosion, on the radar. Birds show up as blue and/or green donut-shaped forms on the radar. As the blue gets brighter and then goes green through the night, migration is getting heavier. Massive, mostly green orbs on the radar means extremely heavy migration, or, in other words, that you should probably go birding the following morning.

 

Spring Ephemerals in Full Glory

            If you’re a wildflower aficionado, this is your window of time to see the remarkable abundance and beauty of our spring ephemeral wildflowers. But what you’ll see largely depends on the soils where you live. Hepatica, wood anemone, and trailing arbutus are the first flowers Mary and I usually see blooming in spring. Most springs, however, they are the only wildflowers, except for leatherleaf in the bogs, that we see blooming in our very sandy soils in early May. 

            At the same time, it’s not uncommon for friends in the Hurley or Rhinelander or Park Falls areas where the soil is heavier to have carpets of trout lilies and spring beauties in bloom, as well as bloodroot, Dutchman's breeches, white violets, dwarf ginseng, and bellwort.

            The difference in the presence and populations of species of wildflowers can be remarkable when areas of light, sandy soils are compared to areas with clay or loam soils. Some species, like Canada mayflower and wild sarsaparilla, are generalists that grow in either soil type. But many wildflowers are specific in their habitat requirements with trillium as a classic example. I have seldom seen a large-flowered trillium growing in our sandy soil. They are prolific, however, in the heavier soils of northern hardwood forests all around us, even though the climate is the same.  

            Whatever the soil type, go hiking now for wildflowers. Once the hardwood trees leaf out, the bounty will greatly diminish.

 

Sightings – First-Of-Year (FOY)

4/24: I heard my first pine warblers singing along the CCC trail in Manitowish Waters. 

4/25: I heard and saw my FOY broad-winged hawk in the Frog Lake and Pines SNA

4/26: Joan Galloway in Manitowish Waters reported a FOY red-headed woodpecker eating from her suet feeders.

4/26: Walter Piper reported on his Loon Project blog that a 3-year male (“Junior”) has paired with a 31-year old female (“Dot”), the second oldest adult loon in his Wisconsin study area. Piper noted, “We are not sure what to expect from this unlikely pairing. Three-year-old Junior would shatter all records by merely building a nest and beginning to incubate eggs. And 31-year-old Dot is astounding us simply by remaining in the game. We have never seen such an inexperienced male pair with such an accomplished female.”

4/27: We had our FOY rose-breasted grosbeak appear at our feeders, a very early date for this species.

4/29: A bear hit our bird feeders and our compost pile around 11 p.m. I’ve heard since from many other folks who had their bird feeders whacked a day earlier, the same day, or the next day. Seems many bears were emerging around then and were HUNGRY. I don’t mind a bear hitting our feeders. What does concern me are the large paw prints left on our window.

            

Gile Flowage Land Conservation Project Awarded A Grant 

            The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently announced grant awards to 30 organizations nationally to support coastal habitat restoration and conservation. Locally, $4.1 million was approved for the Gile Flowage Land Conservation Project, which will allow Iron County to acquire 1,055 acres of undeveloped property on the Gile Flowage to provide long-term conservation of critical habitat in Lake Superior’s coastal zone. The acquisition will add to a contiguous block of county-owned land that is managed for conservation values, including habitat corridors, climate resilience, and public access. 

            “This funding opportunity showcases the partnership between NOAA, Wisconsin Coastal Management, and Iron County, ” said Eric Peterson, Iron County Forest Administrator. “The Gile Conservation project will protect over 1,055 acres of pristine wetlands, rugged shoreline, and upland hardwoods for public benefit in perpetuity. This acquisition will provide additional public access and passive recreational opportunities while continuing to promote existing public usage.”

 

Final Tally for the Midwest Crane Count 

            The annual Midwest Crane Count took place on April 13 on 964 sites in Wisconsin.  A preliminary total of 1,811 participants counted 13,922 sandhill cranes statewide, as well as 16 whooping cranes. Here are the tallies for counties in our area:

Forest Co.: 11 sites, 18 counters, 46 sandhills

Iron Co.: 7 sites, 9 counters, 27 sandhills

Oneida Co.: 49 sites, 83 counters, 166 sandhills

Vilas Co.: 15 sites, 23 counters, 78 sandhills

Price and Florence counties had no counters.

            The top county in the state was Winnebago county with 40 sites, 68 counters, and 1,825 sandhills.

            A century ago, only a few sandhill cranes could be found in all of Wisconsin. Through hunting regulations and habitat restoration, we’re now blessed with a thriving population.

 

North Lakeland Discovery Center Bird and Wildlife Festival May 10 and 11

            Join other outdoor enthusiasts to explore the wildlife and natural beauty of Wisconsin’s Northwoods through a variety of guided hikes and tours, live bird of prey presentations, bird banding demonstrations, and interactive workshops during the 18th Annual Northwoods Bird and Wildlife Festival. Visit the North Lakeland Discovery Center’s website for more information and to register (https://discoverycenter.net/clubs/bird-club/birding-festival/) 

 

Sea Levels Rising

            At more than a dozen tide gauges spanning from Texas to North Carolina, sea levels are at least 6 inches higher than they were in 2010. In this time period, the Gulf of Mexico has experienced twice the global average rate of sea level rise. See: https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/interactive/2024/southern-us-sea-level-rise-risk-cities/

 

Wakeboats? Conservation Congress Mandates NO

            The recent Conservation Congress hearings attracted 18,802 participants who weighed in on 49 proposals. If you’re not familiar with the Conservation Congress, the annual spring hearings are a joint effort by the Department of Natural Resources and the 360-member Wisconsin Conservation Congress. From the results of the hearings, the WCC then advises the seven-citizen Natural Resources Board on DNR policies most often specific to hunting, fishing, and trapping. 

            But times have changed a bit, and now broader environmental concerns occasionally appear on the ballot. At the top of my list for lake-based environmental considerations were three proposals concerning wakeboats, and there was a clear mandate. Opponents want lawmakers and the DNR to restrict the size of the wakes and where the boats can operate. The most restrictive proposal, which called for banning ballast systems on all boats, won by a 72-28 percentage. Another proposal, which passed 74-26, would ban all “intentional” big wakes on lakes less than 20 feet deep and smaller than 1,500 acres. The third idea, which passed 70-30, calls for wakeboat ballast systems to be easily inspected to ensure they’ve been drained of all water.

            

Ban Lead Ammo? Conservation Congress Narrowly Rejects the Ban

            On the other side of the positive environmental coin, voters rejected a proposal to outlaw all lead-based firearms ammo over the next six years, voting 53-47 (7,152 to 6,251). 

            This banning of lead ammo is so necessary, and many hunters have voluntarily switched to copper. Death from lead toxicity has been widely documented in Wisconsin in bald and golden eagles, common loons, trumpeter swans, waterfowl and a whooping crane, not to mention mammals that scavenge gut piles. Yet some of the hunting community refuse to change. Given the availability of comparable non-lead ammo, it puts those hunters in a very poor light. No one wants the government telling them what to do. But I’ll be blunt: To care more about cheaper lead-based ammo than to care about other species’ health and/or survival is indefensible.  

 

Celestial Events

            As of 5/15, we’ll be blessed with 15 hours of sunlight. However,  while our days have been growing longer by more than 3 minutes a day during April, by 5/23, that process will have slowed to growing longer by less than 2 minutes a day as we move ever closer to summer solstice.

            The full moon – the “Flower” or “Planting” moon – officially occurs on 5/23, but the moon will be 100% illuminated the night of 5/22 as well.

 

Thought for the Week

            “Things don't have purposes, as if the universe were a machine, where every part has a useful function. What's the function of a galaxy? I don't know if our life has a purpose, and I don't see that it matters. What does matter is that we're a part. Like a thread in a cloth or a grass-blade in a field. It is and we are. What we do is like wind blowing on the grass.” – Ursula K. Le Guin  

 

Please share your outdoor sightings and thoughts: e-mail me at johnbates2828@gmail.com, call 715-476-2828, snail-mail at 4245N State Highway 47, Mercer, WI, or see my blog at www.manitowishriver.blogspot.com

 

Hermit thrushes have a double voice box, unique to birds, called the syrinx. Syrinx is also the Greek word for the musical instrument we call panpipes, which have multiple pipes

 

It’s a fitting name for this essential part of a bird’s vocal anatomy. Because, like panpipes, birds have two separate pipes to sing with. A thrush can voice notes independently and simultaneously from each half of its syrinx, notes which blend brilliantly as ethereal, harmonious tones.