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Give the gift of conservation!
photo by member: Monica Spaeni
Stories from Members and Updates from the Community
Stories from Members and Updates from the Community
March 2026 Highlights and Submissions
March 2026 Highlights and Submissions
My Noisey Neighbors submitted by Chris Worley
My Noisey Neighbors submitted by Chris Worley
Well, the neighbors are at it again. Every January I have to be subjected to their late night discussions which I can hear even through our closed windows. This goes on for multiple evenings per week for at least a month and it doesn’t matter if it’s 30 below or a calm January night. I’m sure there’s a city ordinance being violated from this clamoring happening well past my bedtime. If you haven’t already guessed, I’m talking about a pair of Great Horned owls, and my wife and I actually really enjoy the verbal “intrusion”.
Owls have fascinated me since I was a kid when I heard a Screech Owl in the backyard in Green Bay. I suppose like most folks, what makes owls so mysterious is you just don’t see them very often. One of the easiest ways to locate a Great Horned Owl is to listen for a murder of crows. For some reason crows absolutely despise Great Horned Owls and once a crow locates one, they call in the others and will harass it for hours. Hopefully I still have your attention, because at this point I can’t help but talk about their physical adaptations that make Great Horned Owls (also known as the “The Tiger on Wings”) such efficient predators. If you’ve had a chance to see a Great Horned owl, I’m sure you’ve noticed the “horns” on top of their head. They are not horns, they aren’t ears, they are just feather tufts. Their ears are located on the side of their heads. They are long slits hidden beneath the feathers, but what is interesting is they are not symmetrically located. Nope, one is positioned higher/lower than the other. This helps Great Horned Owls locate (triangulate) prey better due to sound arriving at slightly different times. Ah, but that’s not all (I know you’re excited)! I’m sure you have heard a pigeon or a duck fly by with its wings whistling, or a humming bird’s wings humming. You won’t hear an owl. They have modified feathers (edges) which makes them silent when flapping their wings coming in to nab a rabbit or even a skunk (one of the few predators that will take on a skunk). Of course, as everyone knows, owls have rather large eyes. Because they are nocturnal, every light photon they can use helps to see prey in the dead of night. So the larger the eyes the better. Great Horned Owl eyes are so large they don’t actually move in the sockets. That’s why they can turn their head 270 degrees. Their eyes have 30 times more rod cells (low light sensitive) than cone cells (more for color). In addition at the back of their eye they have a reflective lining which reflects back any light that might have slipped past the rods the first time (you can see this in action with cat eyes as they “glow” when you shine a light at them).
There are other interesting physical owl adaptations, but for the sake of not dragging this on too long, I’ll assume I’ve piqued your interest and you’ll do your own research! Ok, last item, the reason we are hearing the owls right now is because they are in full courtship mode. They will begin nesting as early as January/February. Not too many other birds will raise a family in the dead of winter (there’s a theory as to why they do this).
(photo from outforia.com)
Feb 2026 Highlights and Submissions
Feb 2026 Highlights and Submissions
My Noisey Neighbors submitted by Chris Worley
My Noisey Neighbors submitted by Chris Worley
Well, the neighbors are at it again. Every January I have to be subjected to their late night discussions which I can hear even through our closed windows. This goes on for multiple evenings per week for at least a month and it doesn’t matter if it’s 30 below or a calm January night. I’m sure there’s a city ordinance being violated from this clamoring happening well past my bedtime. If you haven’t already guessed, I’m talking about a pair of Great Horned owls, and my wife and I actually really enjoy the verbal “intrusion”.
Owls have fascinated me since I was a kid when I heard a Screech Owl in the backyard in Green Bay. I suppose like most folks, what makes owls so mysterious is you just don’t see them very often. One of the easiest ways to locate a Great Horned Owl is to listen for a murder of crows. For some reason crows absolutely despise Great Horned Owls and once a crow locates one, they call in the others and will harass it for hours. Hopefully I still have your attention, because at this point I can’t help but talk about their physical adaptations that make Great Horned Owls (also known as the “The Tiger on Wings”) such efficient predators. If you’ve had a chance to see a Great Horned owl, I’m sure you’ve noticed the “horns” on top of their head. They are not horns, they aren’t ears, they are just feather tufts. Their ears are located on the side of their heads. They are long slits hidden beneath the feathers, but what is interesting is they are not symmetrically located. Nope, one is positioned higher/lower than the other. This helps Great Horned Owls locate (triangulate) prey better due to sound arriving at slightly different times. Ah, but that’s not all (I know you’re excited)! I’m sure you have heard a pigeon or a duck fly by with its wings whistling, or a humming bird’s wings humming. You won’t hear an owl. They have modified feathers (edges) which makes them silent when flapping their wings coming in to nab a rabbit or even a skunk (one of the few predators that will take on a skunk). Of course, as everyone knows, owls have rather large eyes. Because they are nocturnal, every light photon they can use helps to see prey in the dead of night. So the larger the eyes the better. Great Horned Owl eyes are so large they don’t actually move in the sockets. That’s why they can turn their head 270 degrees. Their eyes have 30 times more rod cells (low light sensitive) than cone cells (more for color). In addition at the back of their eye they have a reflective lining which reflects back any light that might have slipped past the rods the first time (you can see this in action with cat eyes as they “glow” when you shine a light at them).
There are other interesting physical owl adaptations, but for the sake of not dragging this on too long, I’ll assume I’ve piqued your interest and you’ll do your own research! Ok, last item, the reason we are hearing the owls right now is because they are in full courtship mode. They will begin nesting as early as January/February. Not too many other birds will raise a family in the dead of winter (there’s a theory as to why they do this).
(photo from outforia.com)
JAN 2026 Highlights and Submissions
JAN 2026 Highlights and Submissions
The Greater Prairie-chicken of Wisconsin (Factoids)
The Greater Prairie-chicken of Wisconsin (Factoids)
The last Wisconsin hunting season for Greater Prairie-chickens was in 1955.
Prairie chickens are the most intensely managed grouse species in North America.
Grasslands are the most endangered vegetative ecosystem in Wisconsin.
The foot stomping breeding display of male prairie chickens probably inspired their scientific Latin name, Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus, which means “drummer of love.”
Other names for Greater Prairie-chickens have included pinnated grouse, prairie hen, and old yellowlegs.
The breeding grounds of prairie chickens, also known as booming grounds, gets its name from the low, resonant call of the males during the breeding season.
The long neck feathers that stand up on males during breeding displays are called pinnae.
The Greater Prairie-chickens of Wisconsin were listed as a state threatened species on October 1, 1979.
The original Greater Prairie-chicken range was the prairie and savanna areas of southern 1/3rd of Wisconsin, but today they are only found in Central Wisconsin.
The Greater Prairie-chicken is one of four native grouse species in Wisconsin, the others are ruffed grouse, sharp-tailed grouse, and spruce grouse.
Following extensive logging in the late 1800’s throughout Wisconsin the Greater Prairie-chicken spread throughout the entire state.
By the early 1900’s, there were Greater Prairie-chickens in every Wisconsin county.
The Greater Prairie-chickens existed in such great numbers that market hunters sent them in barrels to the restaurants of Chicago by train.
Early research on Greater Prairie-chickens (GPC) by such individuals as Leopold, Grange, and Schmidt led to the pioneering work of Drs. Frederick and Frances Hamerstrom in Central Wisconsin. Their work helped save the GPC from extirpation (local extinction) from the State where these birds remain in low but relatively stable numbers (est. 500 birds).
Submitted by Sharon Schwab
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