ASHLAND, Wis. - A "Grosbeaks Galore -Birds on Your Landscape" workshop is now accepting registrations for the May 31 session in Ashland.
The workshop is held at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center at 29270 County Highway G in Ashland and starts at 9 a.m., with check-in beginning at 8:15 a.m. The session, which costs $20, includes lunch and snacks, says Kim Grveles, a workshop coordinator and Department of Natural Resources avian biologist who coordinates the Wisconsin Stopover Initiative. Register at the Grosbeaks Galore website: grosbeaksgalore.wix.com (exit DNR).
"This day-long workshop offers a unique opportunity to learn more about attracting migratory birds to your property," she says. "Come and enjoy our excellent speakers, exhibits, field tours and more. You'll be inspired to foster native habitat on your property and to promote an appreciation for the natural world in our neighborhood."
Grveles says that Wisconsin landowners, particularly those in northern Wisconsin, Bird City committee members, municipal park volunteers and anyone with an interest in helping Wisconsin's migratory birds will enjoy the workshop.
The keynote speaker is Laura Erickson, an avid birder since 1975, who has been a columnist for BirdWatching magazine, science editor at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and written seven books, including the National Geographic Pocket Guide to North American Birds and 101 Ways to Help Birds. Other speakers include Grveles, Bill Volkert, retired longtime DNR naturalist and educator at Horicon Marsh, and Vicki Piaskowski, an ornithologist and bird bander who has conducted research on birds in Wisconsin, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Belize, Central America.
Attendees will participate in field tours covering topics including:
What birds need for food, shelter and roosting in rural areas or city backyards.
What native trees to plant and how to care for them to provide food for migratory birds.
How to eliminate hazards to birds on their property.
Why Lake Superior is important for migration
Where migratory birds go in fall, winter, spring and what they need during those times.
How to use native plants to attract and sustain migratory songbirds and the insects they feed on.
Every spring and fall, tens of millions of migrating birds sweep through the Great Lakes region and stop at a variety of sites on their way to breeding grounds as far north as Greenland, the Arctic Ocean, and wintering grounds as far south as Argentina's Tierra del Fuego, she says. These stopover sites provide birds with critical food and shelter during migration. Loss of stopover habitats poses an ongoing threat to the health and stability of migratory bird populations in the Great Lakes region.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Kim Grveles, 608-843-5729
