Birch Lake Swans

Here are some pictures from Jerry and Kay of the swans that were on Birch this week.

It took me a little while to get these posted as I tried to determine if they were trumpeter or tundra swans. I'd always assumed that the trumpeters were more common. I found this page, Endangered Resources Program Species Information, at the DNR site and was more confused when I found the EEK! Critter Corner site with information for kids on trumpeter "lookalikes". They have a separate page for Tundras.



Kay mentioned that we only see them in the spring and fall so that means they could be tundra swans. However, she also mentioned that there are lakes in the area that have swans all summer so they could be trumpeters just moving from another area lake.

I've posted a picture below that I took in the spring of 2010 that gives a closeup of the head.

Any bird watchers out there??? Please chime in.

Hwy W Eagle

Thought I'd post this picture of an eagle that was taken on Hwy W near W. Birch Lake Road. Thanks, Steve, for forwarding Julie's great picture.

Birch Lake Fall

If you haven't been lucky enough to be up north this fall, I thought I'd post a picture of the lake on one of the peak days. This picture was taken on September 30.

At least some of our loons are still around. They were calling last night. The common loon migration site has tracked the Island Lake loon to Lake Michigan but the other loons in our area are still here.

You may have noticed a list of community events on the blog so you'll have a better chance of finding something to do when you're up north.

Loon update

Looks as if our loons are still here. Sorry this picture isn't clearer but they were a little far away. I could hear other loons calling from further north on the lake.

Smoke and Loons

Some of you may have noticed the news articles about the wildfire smoke last night or, if you've signed up for all the options on Code Red, you may have received a call early this morning. We had some really strong winds come through last night and they brought the smoke from the wildfires in MN into the Northwoods. This was the second wildfire phenomenon of the week. The full moon looked orange on Sunday night. According to the Rhinelander TV station that's because the smoke filtered out every color except red.

In an earlier post, I listed this link to the Common Loon Migration site. They have started doing updates for this year's loon migration. They don't have the Manitowish Lake loon listed this year but the one on Island Lake -- listed as "IS" -- is probably the closest to us. We can still hear loons calling on the lake but John and Hal indicate that they think a few have moved on. It appears from the migration site that the loons move from lake to lake in their area before actually migrating.

UPDATE -- At least some of our loons are still around. There were three in front of the dock yesterday (September 17). By the time I got this picture, there was only one adult and one young.  Looks like the little one is getting instructions.

From the loon migration site tracking information from last year, all of the loons had started migrating by mid-September so our loons should be going south pretty soon.

2011 Annual Picnic

More than 60 people braved the weather yesterday to attend the Birch Lake picnic. Even with the occasional shower, it was a great picnic with lots of good food and a chance to talk with and meet new neighbors.

Thanks to Louise and Cindy for getting everything organized, to Marty for providing the music and to all the Association members who pitched in to work the event.

If anyone has pictures from yesterday, you can email them to me and I'll post them on the blog.

Birch Lake on Facebook

An earlier post featured some great pictures of Birch Lake that were sent to me. Thanks to Dianne, Birch Lake now has a Facebook presence and you can see even more of her great photography from around the lake.

Here's another picture she took of the loons in August. To see all of Dianne's pictures, just follow the Birch Lake Photo link on the right or click here.

Picnic Reminder

Just a quick reminder that the Association Picnic is coming up. Reservation contact information can be found on the most recent newsletter or on the postcard you received. Hope to see you there!

Loon Banding Pictures

Here are some pictures of our loon family. Hal and John met the folks at the boat landing and were able to watch the banding and test processes. In doing some research on migration, I found the USGS site on the Common Loon Migration Study. If you go to the Migratory Flight Data, you can see the satellite tracking of a loon from Manitowish Lake for 2010-2011. If I can get more information on our loons, I'll post it here. Thanks to John and Hal for providing these pictures.

Bands in place -- Notice plastic box on right with loon waiting

Clipping feather for testing

Taking blood sample

One of the young ones

Looks like it's time to go back into the box

John holding loon

Wildlife Sightings

One of the truly great things about being able to have a place on the lake is the opportunity to observe wildlife of all kinds. There were links on the original website to a number of animal and nature guide links and those will be added to this site.

 

A few years ago, Louise and Russ sent this picture of a moose swimming across Birch. Michigan has been working at reintroducing moose for a number of years so it probably found it's way down from the UP. This past fall another one crossed the road just past the bridge in Winchester on Old O.

Wolves have been seen a couple of times this year. Once by a Board member and his daughter while driving and once by our neighbor's son while he was mowing the lawn. There are some interesting sites about wolf populations in Wisconsin that I've added to the "Wildlife Links" list.

If you come across any interesting animal links I may have missed, just send me an email or post a comment below.

Birch Lake Association Picnic

Birch Lake Association Picnic

Sunday, September 4th, 2011

1-4 pm Winchester Town Park

(eating around 1:30)

Please make your reservations by August 23th,

if you are planning to attend.

Meat (hamburgers and hot dogs) will be provided. Bring a dish to pass, table service and whatever you like to drink. Hope to see you there.

All current members will be getting a postcard in the mail with contact information included. If you have a Birch Lake neighbor who isn't a member, consider inviting them as a guest. We'll have membership forms available.

Loons Sporting New Jewelry

Hal and John spent a couple of hours last night with the DNR folks who were attempting to band our loon family. I talked with Judy today and she indicated that the first two (an adult and one young) were pretty compliant. They had to work a little longer for the others but finally did get the last young one banded and released. Judy also said there would be some pictures coming. I'll get those posted when I get them.

I found a couple of videos on YouTube about loon banding. (They both take a little while to load but, once they get going, it's not too bad.) The first, from the Northland Adventures television program, is called  Northland Adventures Loon Lookers  The other video from Petosky, MI is also interesting. Petosky MI Banding

If you're looking for even more loon information, the Northland College LoonWatch  is a good site.

Membership Numbers

As of the Board meeting on Saturday, membership in the Association was at 78. We have nearly everyone from last year and a number of former members who have signed up again. If you haven't renewed yet, we hope you'll consider joining.

Birch Lake Pictures

In response to a request in the most recent newsletter, a Birch Lake resident sent a number of pictures she had taken indicating they could be used for the history project and on the blog. There were so many good ones from which to choose. Here are just a few. Thanks, Dianne!

If you're into photography, you can go to the Shutterfly website and set up a free account that provides unlimited storage and a free website to showcase your photographs. They also have a number of items for sale that can be personalized with your pictures.

Vilas County Code Red

After last night's thunderstorms rolled through, it seemed like an appropriate time to add a link to the Vilas County Code Red system. This is a fairly new service up here. Some of you may have the service in your home area and are already familiar with it. All you do is sign up at the site with your address and contact phone number and you will receive emergency notifications through a computerized system. We received three separate calls last night -- as the storm approached, as it got worse and when the flash flood warning was issued. A cell phone number can be used so even those without a local phone at the lake can set up notification.

Vilas County Emergency Government  -- You'll see "Code Red" on the right side of the emergency government site. If you click the link, it will bring up the notification form.

Birch Lake Blog

Welcome to the Birch Lake Blog. I hope the blog will serve as an electronic bulletin board for the lake and the events of the Lake Association.

This format makes it so easy to keep things current. The links from the website have been updated and transferred so you can still search for additional information. You can also access the page from web-enabled mobile devices.

Please feel free to comment at any time. And, if you get a good picture from the lake that you'd like to share, email it to me at dittz.geo (at) gmail.com.   

Another Benefit of Membership

A "For Sale" page has been added for Birch Lake Association members. If you have something you'd like to sell, send me an email at dittz.geo (at) gmail.com and it will be listed. I won't list names, addresses or telephone numbers and your email address will be listed online in the "username (at) domain name" format so you shouldn't get computer-generated responses. Anyone interested in purchasing the item will be able to send you an email inquiry. If you sell an item or just want it taken down, send me an email and it will be removed. After the page gets going, we'll remove items after 90 days to insure that the page stay current.

Birch Lake Loon Watch

We now have two pair of loons nesting at Birch Lake. One pair has two young that have just hatched within the past day or so. If I can obtain a picture, it will be posted here on the blog. No one has noticed babies around the other pair -- but I'll let you know if I hear that they've hatched.

Here's a picture of one loon family. They were at the end of the dock this morning.

Loon Family -- 6/20/11

 Here's another picture that I received via email this morning (6/29).

Annual Meeting Update

We had a very enjoyable Annual Meeting today.  Our guest speaker, Jeff Richter, did a wonderful presentation on his photography, how he got started and some of the techniques he uses. After answering questions from the audience, he did a slide show from his recent book, Pure Superior.

There were some questions about the white deer and he related some funny comments he’d heard. One woman in Boulder Junction heard a knock at the door. The man, after seeing a white deer, had stopped to tell her that “some of her goats got loose.” Another person had commented that the white deer were beautiful --“too bad they aren’t real.”

(We know they are real. As you can see from a previous post, the oldest one is back. She did not look pregnant as of last week. However, one of the residents has seen one of the other white deer and she did look very big.)

The formal meeting followed Jeff’s presentation.  More detailed information will be coming in the next edition of the newsletter, but some of the items covered included:

·         The officers will remain the same as last year.

·         We are looking for a Newsletter Editor beginning with the spring edition.

·         We now have one representative on the Town Lakes Committee but are looking for a second person to serve as a backup.

·         The Critical Habitat Lake Study should be completed this year. If you’d like to learn more about the program, there is a link to the left that will take you to the DNR website that describes the program and has a list of completed lakes with maps and information.

·         The website will be discontinued but the blog will be expanded. The blog is more current, requires no special computer program and is currently free.

·         The Birch Lake Picnic will be held on September 4.

2011 Annual Meeting

Birch Lake Association Annual Meeting

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Winchester Town Hall

Coffee and Treats at 9:30

Program and Meeting at 10:00

Speaker: Author and Photographer Jeff Richter

White Deer

Seasons of the North

Pure Superior

Nature's Press (Jeff's website)

Wisconsin Public Television's "In Wisconsin"

(This program focuses on white deer and features interviews with 

Jeff Richter & John Bates)

Spring is officially here -- the oldest white deer showed up in the yard about a month ago. She looks so healthy and strong this year.