With only a couple hours available today for birding, I thought I would give the male Western Tanager a try that was reported yesterday at the Lion’s Den in Ozaukee County. I arrived at 5:15 am with heavy fog and very little light. The images show that. After about 30 minutes walking along the bluff and different areas, I spotted the Western Tanager on a bluff trail. This species is well out out of it’s normal range. Typically I think we get 1 or 2 in the state each year but their presence is usually short lived with a day visit. A male Scarlet Tanager was usually within the area of the Western Tanager. They both actively feed while I was present for a few minutes I was there as I had to head back home. A cool life bird that I did not have on my life list for Wisconsin yet. Life bird #339 for the state. Sorry for the poor quality of the images, but I tried to capture some of the action to share. A gloomy early morning at the park with heavy fog, little light, but temps where mild, so that was a good thing. Thanks to the finder of this bird and for those who got the word out for others to see it. Images were taken on May 22, 2018.
Western Tanager, the male in the fog…
Western Tanager
Binomial name: Piranga ludoviciana
Category: Piranga Tanagers and Allies
Size: 7” long, 11.5” wingspan
Weight: .98 Oz
Note: Normal range for this species is Wyoming and west.
With a gnat…
Looking for a gnat…
Going for a gnat…
Getting the gnat…
Congrats on life bird #339 and thanks for sharing the photos of this beautiful bird!
Never even heard of this bird. Thank you!
Hi Jim, We are so glad we found your post. We saw this bird at the very top of a huge blue Spruce next to our house near Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. It was Saturday evening September 22, 2018 at 5 PM. It sat there for at least 10 minutes. It looked to me like a Robin and a peach faced lovebird had a baby. We have never seen a bird like this in Wisconsin.
My wife and I just saw one at Horicon Marsh yesterday. Had our binoculars but no telescoping camera. Was def a male western tanager. Made us then question if some of what we thought were either goldfinches or yellow warblers might have been female western tanagers.
I wouldn’t have believed it, but actually saw a male just north of Cedarburg WI this morning. Raining, and lousy out, but was sitting on a branch above my jam feeders for the orioles. Been a amature bird watcher for >25years, so knew it was different. No pics (yet).
(I did get pictures finally, and a short video). Awesome to see.
Thank you for your photos from 2018. This late morning, May 21, 2020, we had a sighting of this bird, in a hickory tree near the house, rural Dane County. Verona, WI. Beautiful Western tanager was a first sighting for us. We opted for binoculars instead of the camera. If we are fortunate to get another chance, we will try for a photo.