Four bird species rarely if ever confirmed as breeding in Wisconsin were sighted but not confirmed in 2018, tantalizing near-misses among the most notable results from the fourth season of a comprehensive bird survey.
Ryan Brady is a DNR biologist and science coordinator for the Wisconsin Breeding Bird Atlas.
The species sighted but not confirmed as breeding include species that often are not found here, including three-toed woodpeckers, whose range isn't usually this far south. The Atlas is a five year project that involves volunteers from all over the state.
He says to successfully complete the project, they need more volunteers, especially in the Northwoods where the counties are large and there are less people doing the counting..
"....So counties like Vilas, Oneida, Marathon, Ashland, Bayfield and some bordering those have the most survey needs yet to go. We could really use some people able to identify some birds. They don't have to be experts, but they need basic proficiency. We could use they help in surveying..."
Through four survey seasons, more than 1,700 volunteers have observed 242 bird species and confirmed 225 of them as breeding in Wisconsin. The total of new species confirmed breeding in Wisconsin since the first atlas survey 20 years ago stands at 12.
More information is at https://wsobirds.org/atlas
