"I have my own views about Nature's methods, though I feel that it is rather like a beetle giving his opinions upon the Milky Way."
— Sherlock Holmes
Spring migration started with a whimper this year and has continued in much the same way. It's shaping up to be one of the slowest migrations I've ever seen at Pheasant Branch. Maybe it's just this location, but veteran birder Charles Naeseth, who has 30 more years of experience than my own 35, agrees. It's also worth noting that early on there were sustained strong south winds for two or three days, which makes me wonder if many birds simply flew right over southern Wisconsin, bypassing the area altogether.
I remember when hitting 20 or more warbler species in a day was common during the middle weeks of May. This spring, 17 has been my highest single-day warbler count. Today at the corridor, I found just one Blue-winged Warbler, a Redstart, and a Yellow Warbler. Migration used to carry well into late May, but now it seems to be fading out before mid-month. Maybe that politician who claimed birding would get "more exciting" as bird populations decline was onto something—at this rate, nearly everything will become a rarity worth chasing.
Are we losing these birds? Sure seems like it.
I doubt any of the bird species that pass through or nest in Wisconsin will go extinct in my lifetime, but their disappearance is likely inevitable at some point—perhaps sooner than we'd like to imagine. Despite the dedicated work of countless bird conservation groups, their efforts haven't been, and likely won't be, enough. Some might say this means the modern conservation movement has failed. But perhaps without these efforts, the situation would be even worse. Even so, it's hard to believe we're doing enough to truly preserve these species.
The 2025 Tiger Beetle season hasn't been all that great, either. Repeated visits to the bluffs at Spring Green Preserve yielded a single Splendid Tiger Beetle.
This one fooled me for a moment, thinking it was a Splendid ...
But it was a Six-spotted!
I don't often find them atop Spring Green's bluffs.
Here's a Splendid:
Fringed Puccoon ...
Wood Betony ...
Not the greatest focus, but a handsome and intact Black Swallowtail ...
Hoary Puccoon ...
A view of the eastern bluff at the west unit of Spring Green Preserve ...
At the Sauk City Canoe Launch, there were Festives ...
And my first Big Sand Tiger Beetles of the season ...
It's hard not to feel a sense of loss as each migration season grows quieter. The birds still come, but fewer in number, fewer in variety, and for a shorter time. While conservation efforts may have slowed the decline, they haven't stopped it. Still, for as long as these birds return, however modestly, I'll be here to greet them—binoculars in hand, appreciating each fleeting moment while I still can.
Well, there will always be cockroaches and starlings.
All images © 2025 Mike McDowell