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Sundays
The Wisconsin Metro Audubon Society hosts weekly walks 8 a.m. at Wehr Nature Center (9701 W. College Ave.), where the massive central pond is often host to migratory waterfowl such as loons, swans and diving ducks as well as hawks and ospreys. On the second Sunday of the month, walks take place 8:30 a.m. at Lakeshore State Park, where the Milwaukee Lakefront’s situation on the Mississippi Flyway serves as the perfect environment for migratory birds like scaup, mergansers, grebes, common goldeneyes, double-crested cormorants, willets and snow buntings. Eagles and Caspian terns are often seen flying overhead while birdhouses for tree swallows and purple martins are erected near the water. Besides the second Sunday, Milwaukee Birders-led walks vary by location and can be checked weekly at milwaukeebirders.org.
Mondays
Weekly walks take place 8 a.m. at Estabrook Park, where a small lagoon is host to a diverse ecosystem that includes various species of heron, woodpecker, swallow and raptor.
Tuesdays
The Urban Ecology Center Menomonee Valley Branch (3700 W. Pierce St.) hosts weekly 8 a.m. walks. Secluded between American Family Field and the Mitchell Park Domes, this area is prime for spotting songbirds, swallows, woodpeckers and even the occasional belted kingfisher along the Menomonee River.
Wednesdays
Weekly walks take place 8 a.m. at Washington Park, where a massive lagoon is home to all kinds of ducks, herons, shorebirds and migratory songbirds. Note that Washington Park is home to a branch of the Urban Ecology Center (1859 N. 40th St.) as well.
Thursdays
The East Side Branch of the Urban Ecology Center (1500 E. Park Place) is adjacent to Riverside Park, where weekly 8 a.m. walks are the ideal place to find indigo buntings singing high up in trees during summer. On trails near the Milwaukee River, one is likely to find many migratory species of warbler as well as orioles, woodpeckers, song sparrows and rose-breasted grosbeaks.
Fridays
Cudahy’s Warnimont Park hosts weekly 8:30 a.m. walks through woods and fields near Lake Michigan. Folks meet at the Kelly Senior Center, with an additional walk at 7:30 a.m. from mid-April through mid-October. This is prime habitat for warblers, vireos, wrens, sparrows, hawks and even owls. There are also 7 a.m. weekly spring migration walks at Waukesha’s Retzer Nature Center led by Goss Bird Club.
Saturdays
Havenwoods State Forest (6141 N. Hopkins St.) hosts 8:30 a.m. walks on the second Saturday of every month. Here, a robust chorus of warblers, nuthatches, bluebirds, chickadees and woodpeckers fills the landscape. Sandhill cranes and woodcocks are frequently spotted here as well. At 8 a.m. on the third Saturday of the month, Schlitz Audubon Nature Center (1111 E. Brown Deer Road) hosts walks, where the comprehensive ecosystem of woods, prairies and wetlands is home to everything from barred owls to wood thrushes to cedar waxwings to wood ducks to turkeys. Also, weekly “warbler” walks take place 8:30 a.m. at Lake Park during spring migration.
