Another Record!

"There is an incessant influx of novelty into the world, and yet we tolerate incredible dulness. I need only suggest what kind of sermons are still listened to in the most enlightened countries. There are such words as joy and sorrow, but they are only the burden of a psalm, sung with a nasal twang, while we believe in the ordinary and mean."

― Henry David Thoreau

Sunday's unseasonably warm weather called for a quick sparrow check at Pheasant Branch Conservancy, so Sue and I headed out to see what was lingering along the prairie trails.

Bird activity was quiet, with only a few Dark-eyed Juncos, American Tree Sparrows, and a single White-crowned Sparrow spotted. The stiff breeze likely had most birds hunkered down out of the wind.

 

At least I went birding for a change! 

On Saturday we decided to check on the newly opened bridge near Sauk City. The ribbon-cutting on November 5th marked a major milestone for our local trail network: the new 500-foot Wisconsin River Recreational Bridge is officially in place. Spanning the main channel alongside a restored 100-year-old railroad bridge over the side channel, this multi-use crossing bridges the gap between the Great Sauk State Trail and Dane County's expanding network, opening up continuous year-round access for hiking, cycling, and winter recreation as the Walking Iron Trail extension wraps up by late 2027. Naturally, I noted new access to tiger beetle and birding habitat.

 

You can read more about the bridge here. 

Pretty spiff! We can't wait to bike it.

Here's the thing: I just had to see if any tiger beetles were still active. Sure enough, finding them on November 8th sets my latest record yet. You might recall that this 2026 season got an early start, too, back on March 8th. It makes the winter so much easier to tolerate knowing it's only three months until I can get back out to observe and photograph them again.

These are all Bronzed Tiger Beetles ... no Festives were out this time.

Despite my best effort to document all the ones found, none appeared to be repeats from last week.

Interestingly enough, by 2:00pm all the beetles began returning to their burrows ...

However! Look what's coming ...

They might have been out again today, but with the cold weather moving in, I doubt there will be any more seen this season. But I've been wrong before and I'll likely be wrong again!

 

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell

I couldn't resist!

"Sure enjoy looking at all your photos. You see nature like most of us never get to see. Sure glad you have such an enjoyable hobby."

― Joanne L. Kellerman 

The weather on Sunday (November 1st) was so nice I decided to check the Wisconsin River again for tiger beetle activity. Temps were into the lower 70s, which we all know is a tad warm for this time of year. I decided not to wait until the weekend because we're going to get lows in the 30s, and that ought to drive over-wintering adults into their burrows until spring.

Far from the two or three I was expecting, the count easily topped ten this time.

 

Is it a good thing I'm finding tiger beetles more regularly in November? Probably not. 

 

Portrait time ... 

All the above shots of of the same individual, but check this out ...

I've run into this one before ...

The photo on the left is from October 19th (from this blog post), and I managed to cross paths with the same tiger beetle two weeks later on Sunday. If you look closely at the rear markings, you'll spot two tiny, offset dots, one at the end of each maculation. See that? You'll note that there are several other matching patterns on the middle maculations. Cooler yet, I remember the exact spot where I took the first photo, and this same beetle turned up 400 yards further up the shoreline. Well, they can fly, don't you know.

But the day's surprises were just beginning ...

My first November Festive Tiger Beetles!

Dr. Brust said this blew away his latest record for this species. 

Note the connected front and middle maculations on this one ...

Because they were out, I thought I'd experiment with using a flash for Shoreline Wolf Spiders.

I think using a flash makes them standout better ...

Photographing tiger beetles means accepting that these spiders are going to use me as a jungle gym. Do I mind? Not at all. They're harmless, won't bite, and are simply treating me like a walking bridge to get to wherever they're headed. I don't want to crush them, so I'm always careful when moving to a new spot.

The simple rewards of the river! While it's never had a reputation as a local birding mecca, it still surprises me—I've crossed paths with Yellow-breasted Chats here more than once. Because Pheasant Branch steals almost all my attention during spring and fall migration, I've never truly put this stretch of the habitat to the test, leaving its real avian potential an open question. It's a great spot for insects, though.

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell

October Ends

"Every part of nature teaches that the passing away of one life is the making room for another. The oak dies down to the ground, leaving within its rind a rich virgin mold, which will impart a vigorous life to an infant forest."

— Henry David Thoreau

Devil's Lake State Park felt like the perfect spot to cap off October. While fall color maps show our part of Wisconsin is at peak or already fading, it was still a great outing. I've definitely seen Devil's Lake put on more stunning fall displays in past years, but this one certainly didn't disappoint.

Well, what's this adorable little critter?

It's an American Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), though I've always favored the name Pine Squirrel. Older folksy nicknames like "boomer" or "chickaree" fit them well—both inspired by their loud, machine-gun chatter. While ubiquitous throughout the timber and bluffs of Devil's Lake, these small arboreal rodents are far more often heard than seen by passing visitors. 

"Relax, pal ... I'm not going to steal your food."

Finally ...

The squirrel made repeated sorties to the leaf litter, snatching up meals before darting back to the relative safety of the lower tree limbs.

Why not make a stop at the Sauk Canoe Launch on such a beautiful afternoon?

A few Swamp Sparrows were present in habitat along the shoreline, first heard and then seen. Several Ring-billed Gulls stood poised for flight on a sandbar. From across the river came the familiar rattling call of a Belted Kingfisher. A few Eastern Bluebirds passed overhead, heading south. Not a single Yellow-rumped Warbler was found. I do cherish my hearing. It's still my most valuable bird-detection tool, and I'm grateful I didn't destroy it with all that loud music in my younger days.

Surprise! There were at least three Bronzed Tiger Beetles.

I wanted to photograph their elytra to compare against the individual I documented here a few weeks back, but every beetle I found was a different one. Given temperatures pushing into the 70s, it wasn't much of a surprise to find active tiger beetles still out and about along the shoreline. There are enough subtle differences in maculations that it's pretty easy to tell them apart in close-up photos.

You can see that this individual's front maculation is less curved on the rear tip, and it's middle maculation is more flattened compared with the one found two weeks ago. You can see other differences if you look closely. In any case, I have encountered the same individual a week apart, which I've observed with Ghost Tiger Beetles at Sauk Rec. Naturally, when the habitat is crawling with them, it's much harder to repeat, which is the case with Hairy-necked at Arena.

So, my prediction was wrong. Looking at the 10-day forecast for November, there might still be a chance to find them next week. If I do, it will be only the third time I've documented tiger beetles past October.

This time, there were some remarkably large Shoreline Wolf Spiders! They weren't quite as massive as the palm-sized ones I've encountered in the past, but they were still impressively formidable.

 Now you see it ... now you don't ...

Lighting is everything with these super-camouflaged critters.

And so that's it for October. The changing seasons bring different subjects, different challenges, and sometimes a different kind of reward. Before long, the tiger beetles will be gone, the leaves fallen, and most migratory birds will have moved on. But there's no shortage of reasons to get outside. Winter has its own natural history, after all, and I'm not one to spend it looking out the window.

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell