We Are Sauk Prairie Lecture: The Recovery, Management and Future of Wisconsin’s Peregrine Falcons

Join us in welcoming Greg Septon and Bill Smith as they present their richly illustrated overview of peregrine falcon recovery efforts in Wisconsin between 1987-2018, mainly focusing on Sauk County and the Lower Wisconsin River. Topics will include recovery methods and approaches utilized in the creation of an urban nesting population along the Lake Michigan shoreline as well as nest box designs and urban nest site management issues. This talk also covers dispersal of hacked and wild-produced falcons, nesting chronology, prey species, overwintering, environmental contaminants and the role of electric power generating plants in the recovery of the population. The reoccupation of historical cliff eyries along the Mississippi River, Devil’s Lake and the Door Peninsula will be covered as we further discuss the future of the Peregrine Falcons in Wisconsin.

Greg Septon is a peregrine manager and researcher with Peregrine Management & Research, LLC. Bill Smith is a retired DNR conservation biologist and volunteer with the Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation doing surveys of nesting northern goshawks and peregrine falcons.

This event is free and refreshments will be provided. We’d like to thank the Alliant Energy Foundation for their generous financial support of our monthly We Are Sauk Prairie lecture series.