The Great Wisconsin Birdathon at Holy Wisdom Monastery


The Great Wisconsin Birdathon is Wisconsin’s largest fundraiser for bird conservation. Each year bird enthusiasts from across the state form teams with the goal of finding as many unique bird species as possible while raising important funds for bird conservation.

Holy Wisdom Monastery participated in this event for the third time this year on May 13, 2023! Thank you for supporting our team Wrens of Wisdom Prairie.

We found 69 species of birds at Holy Wisdom, handily beating our performance from last year, when we found 56 species, and nearly matching our all-time record of 70 species from 2021. Highlights for the day include Northern Waterthrush and Scarlet Tanager, both of which are uncommon at this site. We were also happy to spot an Orchard Oriole and a Green Heron and had great looks at a female Baltimore Oriole building a nest.

But perhaps best of all, we were delighted to have 59 people participate. Great things happen when we flock together in the name of fundraising for bird conservation!

Photos from 2023 Birdathon at Holy Wisdom Monastery

Click on photos below to enlarge.

Bird species

Here is a list of the 69 bird species seen and heard at the 2023 Great Wisconsin Birdathon at Holy Wisdom Monastery.

Swallows

  • Tree
  • N. Rough-winged
  • Barn

Chickadees

  • Black-capped

Nuthatches

  • White-breasted

Wrens

  • House

Gnatcatchers

  • Blue-gray

Thrushes

  • Eastern Bluebird
  • Veery
  • Gray-cheeked Thrush
  • Swainson’s Thrush
  • American Robin

Mimids

  • Gray Catbird

Starlings

  • European

Waxwings

  • Cedar

Warblers

  • Tennessee
  • Nashville
  • Yellow
  • Chestnut-sided
  • Magnolia
  • American Redstart
  • N. Waterthrush
  • Common Yellowthroat

Tanagers

  • Scarlet

Sparrows

  • Chipping
  • Field
  • Song

Cardinals

  • N. Cardinal
  • Rose-breasted
  • Indigo Bunting

Blackbirds

  • Red-winged
  • Common Grackle
  • Brown-headed Cowbird
  • Orchard Oriole
  • Baltimore Oriole

Finches

  • House Finch
  • American Goldfinch
Old World Sparrows

  • House Sparrow

Geese

  • Canada

Ducks

  • Wood Duck
  • Mallard

Turkeys/Qualls

  • Wild Turkey

Bitterns/Herons

  • Great Blue Heron
  • Green Heron

Vultures

  • Turkey

Hawks/Kites/Eagles

  • Cooper’s Hawk
  • Red-tailed Hawk

Cranes

  • Sandhill

Plovers

  • Killdeer

Gulls

  • Ring-billed

Pigeons/Doves

  • Mourning Dove

Owls

  • Great Horned Owl

Swifts

  • Chimney Swift

Hummingbirds

  • Ruby-throated

Woodpeckers

  • Red-bellied
  • Downy
  • Hairy
  • N. Flicker

Flycatchers

  • E. Wood-Pewee
  • Least
  • E. Phoebe
  • Great Crested
  • E. Kingbird

Vireos

  • Blue-headed
  • Warbling
  • Red-eyed

Jays/Crows

  • Blue Jay
  • American Crow