Information from the Great Wisconsin Birding and Nature Trail, Southern Savanna Region.

Birds of Pleasant Valley Conservancy

Because of its diversity of habitats, Pleasant Valley Conservancy has a wide variety of bird life. Bluebirds, Baltimore and orchard orioles, red-winged blackbirds, red-tailed hawks, bald eagles, and a variety of woodpeckers are often seen. Sandhill cranes have been nesting in the nearby wetland for over 30 years.

Breeding bird surveys have been done a number of times and results can be found at the following link.

Cavity-nesting birds at Pleasant Valley Conservancy

A number of desirable bird species nest in cavities of trees. Many species of cavity-nesting birds have declined in the United States because of habitat reduction. Cavity-nesters include woodpeckers, swallows, wrens, nuthatches, and owls.

Cavity-nesting birds either excavate holes, use cavities resulting from decay, or use holes created by other species. The trees used by cavity-nesters are dead or deteriorating specimens, commonly called “snags”. Snags are often considered undesirable by forest and recreation managers, and they are often eliminated from the forest. At Pleasant Valley Conservancy we leave snags unless they are in danger of falling over roads or our public trail.

One cavity-nester, the red-headed woodpecker, is a species of special interest because it has declined drastically over the past decades. Since our restoration work, red-headed woodpeckers have returned in significant numbers and are now one of the glories of our savannas.

Cavity-nesters also live in our wetland area, where dead willows provide appropriate habitat.

The majority of cavity-nesting birds eat insects. Because they are a major part of the forest-dwelling bird population, they play an important role in the control of forest insect pests.

The photo below (a November view of the south-facing slope) shows an ideal habitat for cavity-nesters.

Typical cavity nesting habitat

Cavity-nesting birds that have been identified at Pleasant Valley Conservancy include the following:

Wood duck
Turkey vulture
American kestrel
Barred owl
Northern flicker
Pileated woodpecker
Red-headed woodpecker
Yellow-bellied sapsucker
Hairy woodpecker
Downy woodpecker
Great-crested flycatcher
Tree swallow
Black-capped chickadee
White-breasted nuthatch
Tufted titmouse
Eastern bluebird
Starling

In addition, there are numerous other bird species associated with forests or savannas that are listed in the breeding bird surveys that have been since 2003.

Birds of the Oak Savanna.

Red-headed woodpecker. We have emphasized that the oak savanna habitat is one of the rarest vegetation communities. Because it is now so rare, bird species that once lived in oak savannas, such as the red-headed woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) have either disappeared or have adapted to other habitats. Fortunately, at Pleasant Valley Conservancy the red-headed woodpecker appears to have made a nice recovery since we began restoring oak savanna. We started to see resident pairs of these attractive birds after the west part of our bur oak savanna was cleared and now they are residents. In 2003 we saw immature birds for the first time, confirming that the are nesting here. They are also usually found in our Christmas bird count for the Madison Audubon Society.

In July 2004, a team led by Richard King, a specialist on red-headed woodpeckers from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, made a survey at Pleasant Valley Conservancy. His group found numerous individuals and located and marked two trees with confirmed nests. Both trees were dead birches (Betula papyrifera). King and co-author William Mueller have published an article on the “redheads” in the August 2005 issue of Wisconsin Natural Resources. This article has some nice things to say about Pleasant Valley Conservancy. Click here for a pdf version.

Orchard oriole. Although rare in the Midwest, the orchard oriole (Icterus spurious)is fairly common at Pleasant Valley Conservancy and is known to breed here. The breeding habitat of this species is semi-open areas with deciduous trees, conditions that are common here. This species is categorized as Special Concern by the Wisconsin Society of Ornithology.

Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Wild turkey. The wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), a native species of the New World, is the largest game bird in North America. It has made a remarkable recovery in southern Wisconsin since it was first reintroduced in 1976. According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, one important reason for the turkey success has been intensive habitat improvement, supported to a great extent by private landowners. Although turkeys are adaptable animals, they prefer oak forests, especially those that are interspersed with openings. Thus, the oak savanna habitat is ideal.

Turkeys need good roosting and nesting habitat and dependable food sources. The preferred roosting habitat is large trees with horizontal limbs, such as open-grown (savanna) oaks. For nesting, turkeys need moderately dense understory vegetation that helps conceal the nest but at the same time allows the hen to survey her surroundings.

Since we began restoration at Pleasant Valley Conservancy, we have observed turkey nests every year. Turkeys have nested on the restored south slope prairie, as well as on the restored savanna. One year we observed four separate nests, all being tended at the same time. Females with broods of young are seen almost every year.

Breeding bird surveys of Pleasant Valley Conservancy have been carried out by Roma Lenehan and associates since 2003. The table below summarizes the most recent results.

Ruffed Grouse The ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) is another bird that prefers open woods. According to the Ruffed Grouse Society, they thrive best in forests that are kept open by frequent clearing or fire. We hear grouse drumming occasionally and nests have been sighted. One year there was a ruffed grouse nest within less than 100 feet of a turkey nest, both on the White Oak Savanna (unit 12A).

Sandhill Crane. The sandhill crane (Grus canadensis) is a conspicuous summer resident of the wetlands at Pleasant Valley Conservancy. Every year for at least the past twenty years, sandhills have nested on our marsh. Most years they are successful in raising one or two chicks.

Our nesting sandhills do not confine themselves just to our marsh. They move up and down Pleasant Valley Creek as well as East Blue Mounds Creek. While pulling weeds on the south slope, we often stop to enjoy their characteristic call as they fly up or down the valley. The 2005 photo below was taken by Kathie Brock at the marsh edge next to our newly planted wet-mesic “Crane Prairie”.

Kestrels The kestrel (Falco sparverius) is a small insect-eating hawk that lives in open country and woods edges. The American kestrel is a colorful bird, as can be verified by looking at its image on the one cent US postal stamp (see photo below).

According to the Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Wisconsin (Wisconsin Society for Ornithology, 2006), kestrels are usually associated with savannas and grasslands, but can be found in almost any open habitat. Pleasant Valley Conservancy is thus an ideal area, since our vegetation grades from savanna through dry open prairie into wet prairie and marsh. Our nest boxes are positioned at the edge of the wet prairie.

Several kestrel nest boxes have been installed on the site by Madison Audubon Society and are often used.

Breeding Bird Surveys: 2008 through 2017

4-Jun16-Jun14-JunMay 23 & June 135/29 & 6/96/10 & 6/1620168-Jun
Bird Species200820102012Combined 201320152016BS*2017
Great Blue Heron  1  1 ov 1 ov
Green Heron  3     
MallardX   X1ov  
Wood Duck    1 h2 f, 1+juvC1 Pair,2 f
Canada Goose h XX  29 ov
Turkey Vulture X4+2ov1 ov 3 ov
Cooper’s Hawk       Slapnick
Red-tailed Hawk 1 XXX Slapnick
Kestrel211 ad, 2+ juv2 ad (eggs in both boxes) 2-Jan[C]Slapnick
Wild Turkey  8 (2 ad, 6-8 young)    Slapnick
Ring-necked Pheasant1 mh h   1 h
Sandhill Crane1h 9 (pair with colt)32 h ovP2
Wilson’s snipe       Slapnick
Killdeerh?      
Mourning DoveXXX585PR5
Rock Pigeon    ov  1 ov
Yellow-billed Cuckoo1 h    1 hP1 h
Cuckoo sp   h (far in N woods)    
Belted Kingfisher     Susan hPSlapnick
Chimney Swift    1 ov   
Ruby-throated Hummingbird11 2 feeder (m & f)1 m1 displayP1
Red-bellied Woodpecker2hX251 + 1 outP3
Red-headed Woodpecker124+44-Mar7PR (pair going into hole)4
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker122263PRSlapnick
Downy Woodpecker1 Susan hX31P3
Hairy Woodpecker2-Jan   1   
Northern Flicker213+212PR2-Jan
Pileated Woodpecker1 h Susan h2 h 2-JanPSlapnick
Eastern Wood Pewee2426510PR3
Eastern Phoebe  22 (nest in barn)1 (nest)1[C]2
Willow Flycatcher2+13-Feb5-Mar33PR8
Great Crested Flycatcher31 h44PR1
Eastern Kingbird2 4-Mar4 (nest building)22+1 PairPR1, 2 Pair
Tree SwallowXX 33 ovovP4 ov
Barn SwallowXXX1 ovP3 ov
Cliff Swallow2X X    
Rough-winged Swallow 1 X    
Blue JayXXh632P2
CrowXXXX11+1ovP1 out
Black-capped ChickadeeXXX2 (quiet)41 PairPR1
White-breasted NuthatchXXX8 (family of 3)62+1 familyPR2
Tufted Titmouse2  Susan h22P2
House WrenX6h898PR9
Sedge Wren2 h1 hh?h? 1P3 h
Marsh Wren     Susan hP 
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher221115PRSlapnick
Eastern Bluebird10+88-Jun11 (incl family of 5)610 (1CF)C6
RobinXXX3+814PR4, 1 CF
Brown Thrasher Susan hh13  Slapnick
Wood Thrush  Susan h 3hPh
Gray Catbird2hX5 (1 carrying food)24PR2
Starling   1 over12 ovP1
Cedar Waxwing XX344P 
Warbling Vireo3-Feb   31P2
Red-eyed Vireo3-Feb1 hh? 11P1 (N woods)
Yellow-throated Vireo 1 hh2 h13PRSlapnick
Yellow Warbler3  2 h22P4 h
Chestnut-sided Warbler h ?      
Blue-winged Warbler3  1 h    
Redstart    1   
Common Yellowthroat466+111415PR13
Scarlet Tanageroth h 1 h2 h3Susan hP1, Pair def
Northern CardinalX X233PR 
Rose-breasted Grosbeak4 1651P3
Indigo Bunting1010+10+21 (incl 2 pair, 1 mated)2113+1 PairPR6, 1 f
Eastern Towhee 1 h 1 h1   
Chipping SparrowX1 hX646PR3
Song SparrowX10X8113PR5, 1 out
Swamp Sparrow23-4 h2 h10-Jul56PR13
Field SparrowX1-2 h3+11-Aug108PR6
Red-winged BlackbirdXXXmany2210+1PairPR12
Eastern MeadowlarkX Susan h 1   
Common GrackleXX  X1P1
Brown-headed CowbirdXXXX75+1PairPR3, 1 Pair
Orchard Oriole1 1st yr male singing1 ad male4 (2 pairs)3 (m & f & 1st yr m)43+1PairPR5
Baltimore OrioleX10+X13 (nest in yard)144+3 nestC4
House Finch    1   
American GoldfinchXXX4195PR9
         
Number of species514644555958 77