Field Guide · Regional

Wildlife in Wisconsin

The birds, plants, and insects most often recorded in Wisconsin. A starting field list, drawn from iNaturalist research-grade observations, for what is likely living near you.

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Birds

Birds Commonly Recorded In Wisconsin

Most-recorded birds reported across the state.

  1. Mallard Mallard Anas platyrhynchos 7,088 records
  2. American Robin American Robin Turdus migratorius 6,635 records
  3. Canada Goose Branta canadensis 6,354 records
  4. Red-Winged Blackbird Agelaius phoeniceus 5,372 records
  5. Sandhill Crane Antigone canadensis 5,169 records
  6. Wild Turkey Wild Turkey Meleagris gallopavo 4,557 records
  7. Northern Cardinal Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis 4,187 records
  8. Black-Capped Chickadee Black-Capped Chickadee Poecile atricapillus 3,895 records
  9. American Goldfinch American Goldfinch Spinus tristis 3,704 records
  10. Bald Eagle Bald Eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus 3,664 records
  11. House Sparrow House Sparrow Passer domesticus 3,610 records
  12. Mourning Dove Mourning Dove Zenaida macroura 3,398 records
Plants

Plants Commonly Recorded In Wisconsin

Plants observers log most often statewide.

  1. Common Milkweed Common Milkweed Asclepias syriaca 7,459 records
  2. Bloodroot Bloodroot Sanguinaria canadensis 5,169 records
  3. Jack-In-The-Pulpit Jack-In-The-Pulpit Arisaema triphyllum 4,879 records
  4. Common Buckthorn Common Buckthorn Rhamnus cathartica 4,849 records
  5. Wild Geranium Wild Geranium Geranium maculatum 4,819 records
  6. Wild Bergamot Wild Bergamot Monarda fistulosa 4,711 records
  7. Eastern White Pine Eastern White Pine Pinus strobus 4,630 records
  8. Mayapple Mayapple Podophyllum peltatum 4,542 records
  9. Box Elder Box Elder Acer negundo 4,381 records
  10. Great Mullein Verbascum thapsus 4,150 records
  11. Wild Carrot Wild Carrot Daucus carota 4,030 records
  12. Dame's Rocket Dame's Rocket Hesperis matronalis 3,975 records
Insects

Insects Commonly Recorded In Wisconsin

The insects that turn up most in records.

  1. Common Eastern Bumble Bee Common Eastern Bumble Bee Bombus impatiens 11,757 records
  2. Monarch Monarch Danaus plexippus 8,085 records
  3. Brown-Belted Bumble Bee Brown-Belted Bumble Bee Bombus griseocollis 4,816 records
  4. Asian Lady Beetle Harmonia axyridis 4,497 records
  5. Western Honey Bee Apis mellifera 3,524 records
  6. Two-Spotted Bumble Bee Two-Spotted Bumble Bee Bombus bimaculatus 3,470 records
  7. Goldenrod Soldier Beetle Goldenrod Soldier Beetle Chauliognathus pensylvanicus 2,855 records
  8. Eastern Forktail Eastern Forktail Ischnura verticalis 2,725 records
  9. Red-Belted Bumble Bee Bombus rufocinctus 2,721 records
  10. Red Admiral Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta 2,695 records
  11. Japanese Beetle Japanese Beetle Popillia japonica 2,419 records
  12. Red-Spotted Admiral Red-Spotted Admiral Limenitis arthemis 2,382 records

Go Deeper

Use the live finder to narrow this to your town and season. Then read Who Lives Here, how to attract wildlife to your yard, and planting for local wildlife. For tools and field guides, see the recommended gear.

Photographs via iNaturalist contributors, used under their Creative Commons licenses: (c) anonymous, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)  ·  (c) John D Reynolds, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by John D Reynolds  ·  (c) Judy Gallagher, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  (c) Laura Keene, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Laura Keene  ·  (c) Kent Ross, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Kent Ross  ·  (c) Chris Fisher, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Chris Fisher  ·  (c) Glenn Perelson, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Glenn Perelson  ·  (c) Ximo Galarza, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA)  ·  (c) Donna Pomeroy, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Donna Pomeroy  ·  (c) csozanne, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)  ·  (c) Haley Selen, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Haley Selen  ·  (c) Jason Hollinger, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  (c) Robert Flogaus-Faust, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  (c) Mark Kluge, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mark Kluge  ·  (c) ziggymom, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)  ·  (c) Forest and Kim Starr, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  no rights reserved, uploaded by mefisher  ·  (c) thewindcriesmary, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)  ·  (c) Nancy Phillips, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Nancy Phillips  ·  (c) Wolfgang Bacher, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Wolfgang Bacher  ·  (c) scotstewart, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by scotstewart  ·  (c) Virginia Rivers, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)  ·  (c) Steven Mlodinow, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steven Mlodinow  ·  (c) larrytip, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by larrytip  ·  (c) Wildreturn, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  (c) Mark Rosenstein, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mark Rosenstein  ·  (c) Gilles San Martin, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), uploaded by Gilles San Martin  ·  (c) Ingrid Kaatz, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Ingrid Kaatz  ·  (c) Sharon Forsyth, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Sharon Forsyth