BIRDATHON REPORT 2024
Critical funds raised for bird conservation by a record number of teams!
by
Bobolink
HIGHLIGHTS
The Great Wisconsin Birdathon continues to raise critical funds for Wisconsin’s birds. We raised $117,846 for the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin's Bird Protection Fund! We’re grateful for all our birders, donors, and sponsors who joined together to protect and conserve our native bird populations.
Discover team stats, species found, an announcement of the projects funded, and more highlights from our 2024 Birdathon.
600+
86
280 birders across Wisconsin incredible teams bird species spotted
$
117,846 raised for bird conservation
BIRDING FOR A CAUSE
Over the 13 years of the event, the Great Wisconsin Birdathon has raised more than one million dollars for the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin's Bird Protection Fund!
These funds support Wisconsin's highest priority bird conservation projects. Birdathon participants protect our feathered friends at every stage of their lifecycle in Wisconsin and at their wintering grounds.
Congratulations to our 86 teams across 37 Wisconsin counties that made this year a success! More than 600 participants joined in the birding fun to celebrate Wisconsin birds. The Birdathon continues to grow and bring along more eager-to-learn birders interested in nature and conservation.
The Birdathon is welcoming to everyone! Teams choose how, when, and where to bird. We had teams and individuals watching their backyard feeders, birding solely by boat, and even staying awake for a full 24 hours!
We welcomed 29 teams joining for the first time, along with many returning long-time teams. Plenty more birders flew solo instead of participating on teams. From families to coworkers, from classrooms to youth groups, from nonprofits to bird clubs, our birding community is ready to do what it takes to bring birds back.
Top Fundraisers
Our teams represented 37 counties this year!
1. Cutright's Old Coots $23,882
2. Lake Superior eBirders $10,456
3. River Raptors $6,930
4. The Motmot Crew $5,201
5. Finch Gang $4,190
Most Species Seen
1. Good Godwits 188 species
2. Don’t Be Cross, Bill! 182 species
3. Lake Superior eBirders 178 species
4. River Raptors 165 species
5. MuirLand Merlins 161 species
Classroom Teams
Comet Birders, Riverview School in Kenosha County
Lincoln 3rd grade Lions, Lincoln Elementary School in Dane County
Mr. Dargatz's Nature Kindergarten, Woodside Elementary School in Waukesha County
RBMS Science, River Bluff Middle School in Dane County
West High Whip-poor-wills, Madison West High School in Dane County
WHS Biology, Winter High School in Sawyer County
SEE A BIRD, SAVE A BIRD
Together, our birders spotted a record 280 bird species! That included 37 species considered Special Concern, 12 species considered Threatened, and 8 species considered Endangered in Wisconsin.
20+ teams spotted our Bird of the Year, the bobolink! Through funding grassland habitat restoration and management initiatives, the Birdathon supports this Species of Special Concern.
Thanks to local artist Brooke Weiland of Studio Equinox for creating our 2024 t-shirt design (left)! Brooke is a Birdathoner herself and also designed our past Kirtland's warbler, piping plover, whooping crane, and Connecticut warbler designs.
"I especially loved getting to know the birds in my neighborhood. I am not a birder, so this was the first time I really took the time to focus on the birds and pay attention to their behaviors and songs."
- 2024 Birdathon participant
Birds
Varied Bunting ... and many more!
- 2024 Birdathon participant
Sandhill crane by Ryan Michalesko of team Yes We Pelican!
Hooded warbler by
Jeff Galligan of team
The BIPOC Flock
Varied bunting by Jacob Collison of team Schlitz Audubon Screech Owls
Aldo Leopold Nature Center Owl or Nothing
Baraboo Range Preservation Assoc. Baraboo Rangers
BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin The BIPOC Flock
Chippewa County Land Conservancy Chirp Chasers
Elm Grove Bird City Birders of the Grove Feminist Bird Club - Madison Chapter Yes We Pelican!
Friends of McFarland Parks McFarland Bird Festival
Friends of Owen Conservation Park Owen Park Owls
Glacial Lakes Conservancy GLC Chickadees
Groundswell Conservancy Grousewell
Holy Wisdom Monastery Wrens of Wisdom
Prairie
Ice Age Trail Alliance Yellow-Blazed Sapsuckers
Madison FUN Friends of Urban Nature
Pedaling Paddling Prius Pewees
MuirLand Bird Club MuirLand Merlins
North Lakeland Discovery Center Up North Hammerheads
Northwoods Land Trust NWLTurkeys
Pheasants Forever Funky Pheasants
Richland Center-Santa Teresa Sister City Project The Motmot Crew
Schlitz Audubon Nature Center Schlitz
Audubon Screech Owls
Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance Reckless Wrens, The Flockadelics
Tomahawk Public Library Tomahawk Public Library
Tropical Wings Lower Chippewa
Titmouseketeers, Tropical Wings
Wisconsin Sharp-tailed Grouse Society
Wisconsin Sharp-tailed Grouse Society
Yellow River Protection Conservancy Yellow River Bird Sleuths
“The Birdathon is a fun, engaging way for our bird club to create a sense of community around an important cause, while also giving back.”
- 2024 Birdathon participant
MAKING LOCAL BIRD CONSERVATION PROJECTS POSSIBLE
Nonprofit organizations, Bird Cities, and bird clubs that participate in the Great Wisconsin Birdathon have the option to keep 50% of the funds they raise for their own organization while the rest goes to support NRF's Bird Protection Fund projects.
This year, we had 26 organizational teams that are collectively putting $21,924 back into their local bird conservation and outreach programs across our state.
What are they up to? They're creating bird-friendly windows, building and installing nest boxes, funding bird banding projects, reaching children and adults with educational materials, planting native plants, restoring habitat, and much more!
Team GLC Chickadees, representing Glacial Lakes Conservancy.
Photo by Cathy Del Valle
ANNOUNCING THIS YEAR'S BIRD PROTECTION FUND PROJECTS
The Great Wisconsin Birdathon participants raise funds for the Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin's Bird Protection Fund, which funds Wisconsin's highest priority bird conservation needs. The following projects were selected by the advisory committee to receive this year's funds:
Advancing Bird Conservation within Wisconsin's Important Bird Area System
Wisconsin Bird Conservation Partnership
Audubon Conservation Ranching Audubon Great Lakes
Bird Conservation for All BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin
Building an Inclusive Bird Conservation Partnership for Milwaukee
Lake Michigan Bird Observatory
Federally Endangered Bird Conservation Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources - Natural Heritage Conservation
Lincoln Creek Habitat Research and Restoration Nearby Nature
Long-term Bird Monitoring at Restoration Sites on the Oneida Nation Reservation
— Northeastern Wisconsin (NEW) Bird Alliance
Open Spaces, Bird-Friendly Places The Prairie Enthusiasts
Save our Songbirds: Bird Protection in Southern Wisconsin through Community
Outreach Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance
Whooping Crane Reintroduction International Crane Foundation
THANK YOU TO OUR 2024 BIRDATHON SPONSORS
