New posts coming soon!

So far ...

I'm surprised it's as many as that ― we've had nothing but northwest winds ...

We're finding them, but it's requiring a lot more effort and steps than usual. The Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor has been pretty quiet. When I checked from Park Lawn to Parmenter Street this morning, there were only a few Nashville Warblers and a Northern Waterthrush. Nearer to Century Avenue there was Blue-winged, Golden-winged, Northern Parula, American Redstart, and more Nashville Warblers. 

 

Oh, how I long for a May like 2014! 

 

As a backup, we've been hitting nearby Marshall Park along Lake Mendota, but that's been fairly quiet as well. It seems birders have been having a bit better luck at the UW Arboretum and Frautschi Point, but I'm not giving up on the creek corridor just yet.

Marshall Park's Forest © 2026 Mike McDowell

Something for Saturday ...

"There really is no correct way to hike the trail, and anyone who insists that there is ought not to worry so much about other people's experiences."

― Adrienne Hall

I hadn't been to Governor Dodge State Park in almost two decades and was looking for a change of scenery — something with fewer people. Up until Saturday, bird migration had been held in check by the prevailing northwest winds. 

I opted for Driftless Horse Trail, located just west of Twin Valley Lake. Despite overwhelming number of paths to choose from, I stuck with one I knew reasonably well. While the bird sightings were sparse, the abundance of butterflies gave me plenty of opportunities for Nature photography.

This is a Pearl Crescent Phyciodes tharos.

There were multitudes of Juvenal's Duskywings Gesta juvenalis.

Naturally ...

Spring Azures Celastrina ladon were plentiful as well.

Other butterflies present that escaped my lens were:

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

Black Swallowtail

Eastern Comma

Question Mark

This is a Sharpshooter Leafhopper in the genus Draeculacephala, but I'm unsure of the exact species. I had to kneel in the grass to capture this image, all too aware that it's shaping up to be a banner year for ticks. While I've managed to avoid them so far this season, I know plenty of friends and colleagues who haven't been as lucky. 

The tick uptick even made our local news. 

Nasty little creatures!

To my surprise, tiger beetles were entirely absent from the day's observations. I kept a sharp eye out for Six-spotted given the ideal habitat, but it may simply be a week or two too early for their emergence.

The only bird I managed to get a good look at was a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, which was busy fussing about for insects. To my ears, their vocalizations always sound like they're airing a list of grievances.

I eventually ended up on Lost Canyon Trail, which was also bereft of birds. Long ago, I remember finding Louisiana Waterthrush here, which should have been on territory by now. 

Spring birding's peak is coming up!

 

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell

David Byrne!

"Music drives you. Your wings to soar, your charms to flee & your soul to reveal. Melody mirrors you in those quiet moments when ‘you and me’ attempt to stay."

― Shaa Zainol 

In keeping with our shared goal of seeing more live shows, Sue and I headed to Milwaukee yesterday to catch David Byrne's Who Is the Sky Tour at the Miller High Life Theatre. It was absolutely stunning—crystal-clear sound paired with mesmerizing, visually captivating performances. I didn't expect the musicians to be wireless, which let them move freely and fully lean into the show's tight, well-choreographed numbers. For that, I'm grateful I didn't spoil the surprise by watching performances of previous tour stops on YouTube. 

Setlist:

 

Heaven
Everybody Laughs
And She Was
Strange Overtones
Houses in Motion
T Shirt
(Nothing but) Flowers
This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)
What Is the Reason for It?
Like Humans Do
When We Are Singing
Independence Day
Slippery People
Moisturizing Thing
My Apartment Is My Friend
Air
Psycho Killer
Life During Wartime
Once in a Lifetime

Encore:

Everybody's Coming to My House
Burning Down the House

I've been a Talking Heads fan since the early 1980s, but I also enjoy Byrne's solo projects, especially Everything that Happens will Happen Today with Brian Eno. Strange Overtones is my favorite song from that album. 

 

The backdrop videos were clever. One showed close-ups of the actual singers' mouths, previously recorded, singing along with the song being performed live.

For Like Humans Do, stage performers copied the movements of those (wearing animal masks) in the video. It wasn't perfect, but it was very effective. 

Such a strange variety of visuals—one of the best concerts I've ever been to.

The photos don't do it justice. The videos were perfectly selected to pull the audience into the performance. At times, I felt like I was moving on some kind of ride.

Finishing the song Heaven, Byrne said, "There she is—our heaven, the only one we have," as he pointed to the Earth.

 

100% And that's a big part of what this blog has been all about for the past 20 years.

 

New Nature post coming soon! 

 

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell 

It's May!

"I don't care what you think unless it's about me."

― Kurt Cobain 

 

Part I: Narcissistic Supply 

 

Did you see this? 

What the actual f ...

 

One must observe, with clinical detachment, the spectacle of a man brandishing a real medical instrument as if it were a trophy from a battle he never fought. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment is, in fact, a legitimate tool—a simple test used by physicians to determine if a patient can still remember what day it is or draw a passable clock. To transform this humble diagnostic into a proof of towering genius is an act of such profound, almost artistic, self-deception that it deserves a kind of morbid admiration. It's the equivalent of a man boasting of his literacy because he can successfully identify the letter 'A' on an eye chart. 

 

We are not witnessing the confidence of a superior mind but the frantic, twitching anxiety of mediocrity haunted by the suspicion of his own inadequacy. It's the classic behavior of the con who fears exposure, whose bluster and hyperbole are not tools of persuasion but shields against the crushing reality of his own limitations. He might not believe his own lies; he needs his audience to, for their belief is the only thing that can sustain the fiction he has built of himself. 

 

Have you seen the test? Here it is ...

Honestly, I'd feel a lot better if he could get these three sneaky questions correct ...
 
1. The Bat-and-ball problem

A bat and a ball cost $1.10 in total. The bat costs $1 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost?

2. The Machine problem

If it takes 5 machines 5 minutes to make 5 widgets, how long would it take 100 machines to make 100 widgets?

3. The Water lily pad problem

In a lake, there is a patch of lily pads. Every day, the patch doubles in size. If it takes 48 days for the patch to cover the entire lake, how long would it take for the patch to cover half of the lake?
 
Part II: Birding!

 

Anyway, I did go birding this morning to celebrate May.

Pheasant Branch Conservancy (general), Dane, Wisconsin, US
May 1, 2026 7:30 AM - 9:30 AM
Protocol: Traveling
3.0 mile(s)
44 species

Canada Goose  
Wood Duck  
Mallard  
Mourning Dove  
Turkey Vulture  
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  
Red-bellied Woodpecker  
Downy Woodpecker  
Hairy Woodpecker  
Northern Flicker  
Eastern Phoebe  

Warbling Vireo  
Blue Jay  
American Crow  
Black-capped Chickadee  
Tree Swallow  
Northern Rough-winged Swallow  
Barn Swallow  
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  
White-breasted Nuthatch  
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher  
Northern House Wren  
Carolina Wren  
European Starling  
Gray Catbird  
American Robin  
House Sparrow  
House Finch  
American Goldfinch  
Chipping Sparrow  
White-throated Sparrow  
Song Sparrow  
Swamp Sparrow  
Eastern Towhee  
Orchard Oriole  
Baltimore Oriole  
Red-winged Blackbird  
Brown-headed Cowbird  
Common Grackle  
Northern Waterthrush  

Yellow Warbler  
Yellow-rumped Warbler  
Northern Cardinal  
Rose-breasted Grosbeak  

Creek Corridor © 2026 Mike McDowell

The Sora!

"I know not all that may be coming, but be it what it will, I'll go to it laughing."

― Herman Melville

Before meeting up with my birding posse at the Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor, I made a stop at the Black Earth Creek Natural Resource Area for newly arrived migrants. It had been a week since my last visit, so I figured prospects were good. There were dozens of Marsh Wrens and among the swallows I picked out a few Cliff. But the highlight was a Sora that was somewhat out in the open. 

Given swampy and tangled vegetation, it was virtually impossible to get a clear shot without some obstructing plants, but these are the best Sora shots I've captured in a long time. 

What a nifty bird!

Unfortunately, the creek corridor was surprisingly quiet on the warbler front — aside from a handful of Yellow-rumps, a Northern Waterthrush, and a Pine Warbler. We made up for the lack of variety, though, by finding singing Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Carolina Wrens.

 

After a few hours of birding, we called it an outing and went our separate ways. 

Sue and I had more to do, though.

 

On our way up to Sauk, we detoured to Ashton K Pond to check for shorebirds. It's not a pond per se, but an agricultural field that floods after heavy rains (we've had them, as you know). Once I got the spotting scope set up, I was thrilled to find a pair of Black-necked Stilts, followed by two more further east; since we hadn't realized they'd already been reported, it was a fantastic surprise year bird and my first sighting of the species in about eight years. I think it was Horicon NWR where I'd last seen them.

While we were scanning for other shorebirds, they all started giving alarm calls. I said "There's gotta be a raptor coming in!" Sure enough, the whole shorebird crew took off northward, and I spotted a Peregrine Falcon diving down. It skimmed right over the pond but missed the strike, then landed on the western edge about a dozen feet from the water. I got it in the spotting scope but it didn't stick around long — it took off again and we lost it heading west. 

The amusing part was all the birders who kept showing up for the Rare Bird Alert on the stilts only to find they just missed them. That's the life of the chaser, I suppose!

Sauk Prairie State Recreational Area was alive with tiger beetles!

 

I love it so. 

Within minutes, I located several Big Sand, but there were also impressive numbers of Oblique-lined and Festives. 

Here's a rather festive-colored Festive.

And some reddish Festives making more ... Festives.

Remember the flooded Wisconsin River?

It was incredible to see how much the water had receded in just a few days. With the shoreline habitat reappearing, Bronzed Tiger Beetles were out in full force — dozens of them were busy hunting and mating along the banks. While the recent flooding likely claimed some of the population, the survivors were out in impressive numbers, carrying on as if nothing had happened.

 

Nature is resilient. 

We considered heading to Baxter's Hollow in search of Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica), but ended up finding them right along Burma Road at Devil's Lake State Park instead. If you're planning a trip, keep in mind that while you can head in from Sauk Prairie Recreation Area, you'll eventually hit a gate that prevents vehicle access into the park itself. As a bonus, though, there are on-territory Pine Warblers present.

After a solid day's adventure, we grabbed dinner at Tumbled Rock Brewery & Kitchen. A couple friends had recommend it, and we can report that the food and service was fantastic. The beer was good, too! I had the Devil's Doorway Double IPA. Generally, Sue and I would hit Vintage Brewery on our way back home from our Sauk County excursions, but being right next to Devil's Lake State Park makes Tumbled Rock much more convenient place to plan around.

I highly recommend the walleye.

 

It's a busy week coming up, so I'm not sure how much birding or blogging I'll get done. There's a wedding to attend, a David Byrne concert, and work. Alas, this likely wraps up the month of April.  

 

I'll see you in May! 

 

All images © 2026 Mike McDowell