Three Wisconsin books and a calendar to consider as gifts this season

Paul A. Smith
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The Aldo Leopold Foundation of Baraboo is offering a 2020 Phenology Calendar. The calendar includes recorded dates for natural events in Wisconsin, including bird migrations and wildflower blooms.

With the holiday season at hand, here are three new Wisconsin books and the latest in a popular calendar series to consider as gifts.

For the birder and wildlife watcher, Charles Hagner of Shorewood has written "Field Guide to Birds of Wisconsin."

Released this fall, the book was produced as part of a series of state-specific books by the American Birding Association.

A Field Guide to Birds of Wisconsin by Charles Hagner was published in 2019. It is part of birding guides to states produced by the American Birding Association.

Hagner teamed up with photographer Brian Small to create a comprehensive guide with written descriptions and high-quality color photographs of 299 species that frequent the Badger State.

It includes a bird checklist, maps and tips on when and were to see species.

Hagner, former editor of BirdWatching magazine (then known as Birder’s World), previously authored "Guide to Ducks and Geese" and "Wings of Spring: Courtship, Nesting, and Fledging" (both Stackpole Books, 2006).

At 4.5 by 7 by 0.5 inches, Field Guide to Birds of Wisconsin is small enough to fit in many pockets and easy to carry afield.

The book is available for $24.95 at Boswell Books, 2559 N. Downer Avenue, Milwaukee, as well as online at Barnes and Noble, Powell's Books, Buteo Books and Amazon

Randy Hoffman of Waunakee has written "When Things Happen - a Guide to Natural Events in Wisconsin."

The 240-page book covers a wide range of biological diversity from lichens to mammals. 

Although its main theme is phenology, it doesn't focus on first arrivals or last departures but rather details the best time to observe and experience natural events in Wisconsin.

Author Randy Hoffman released his book "When Things Happen, a Guide to Natural Events in Wisconsin."

Each month is divided in thirds and has a primary article featuring prominent events from that time period. Smaller articles and snippets of events peaking during that time period are also featured.

At frequent intervals, Hoffman emphasizes the high value derived by humans when they connect with nature.

Hoffman is also author of "Wisconsin's Natural Communities."

"When Things Happen - a Guide to Natural Events in Wisconsin" is self-published and only available on Amazon. The print book sells for $19.98 and the Kindle ebook $4.49.

"Spider Lake, A Northern Lakes Mystery" by Jeff Nania of Portage is a murder novel set in the fictional town of Musky Falls in northern Wisconsin.

It's Nania's second book and follows last year's release of "Spider Lake."

Once again, the central figure is John Cabrelli, a decorated law enforcement officer who moved to a lakeside cabin in northern Wisconsin to recover from injuries suffered in the line of duty and start a new life.

Author Jeff Nania of Portage has produced "Spider Lake," his second mystery novel set in northern Wisconsin.

However, the local chief of police asks Cabrelli to help untangle a string of strange events in the small town and the retired cop is forced into action.

Nania's fiction includes a range of characters and real place names cultivated over his decades of visits to northern Wisconsin.

Nania is a Wisconsin native well-known to the state's conservation community as a wetland restoration specialist and former director of the Wisconsin Waterfowl Association. Together with Victoria Rydberg, he also helped establish one of the state's first environmental charter schools.

His first career was in law enforcement. Nania's father started a 70-year family tradition of vacations at Spider Lake, one that Nania happily continues today.

The book is available for $17.95 at www.feetwetwriting.com.

Phenology calendar from Leopold Foundation

Among Aldo Leopold's many interests was phenology, or the timing of natural events.

Leopold maintained meticulous records of his sightings and observations in Wisconsin, including at "The Shack," his family's restored cabin and property near Baraboo. His daughter Nina Leopold Bradley and the Aldo Leopold Foundation continued the practice after his death.

The Aldo Leopold Foundation subsequently began a tradition of producing an annual Wisconsin Phenology Calendar. The 2020 edition is packed with photographs and information, including monthly sidebars written by Stanley Temple, UW-Madison professor emeritus and senior fellow at the foundation.

The 2020 Wisconsin Phenology Calendar produced by the Aldo Leopold Foundation includes historical dates of arrivals of migrating species and emergences of hibernating species.

In addition to seeing the average date when, for example, the tiger salamander emerges from hibernation, the calendar describes how the variability in weather conditions can affect the timing. the salamanders wait for the first warm, rainy spring night.

In addition to the Leopold records, the calendar includes data provided by the Wisconsin Breeding Bird Atlas.

The calendar has specific dates to look for the first blooms and bird returns, but also serves as a reminder of when to look for them.

The phenology calendar sells for $15 and is available from the foundation at aldoleopold.org.