'Why Do Birds Sing?": In-Person Badger Talk in Necedah, WI

Join us on June 14, 2025, at 10:30 AM at the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge for a free public talk, part of their “Birds, Bees, and Butterflies” event. This day-long celebration features speakers, exhibits, hands-on activities, crafts, and more—all focused on the vital roles of birds, bees, and butterflies in our ecosystems.

Scientists have known how birds sing for decades but why they sing is still a puzzle. Do they sing for pleasure? For love? To mark a territory? And how do birds know when and what to sing? This talk will explore these questions and also address what birds learn by listening to songs.

Presenter Lauren Riters is a Professor in the area of Behavioral Neuroscience in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Wisconsin Madison. She received a PhD in Psychology in the Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience Program at Bowling Green State University where she studied how birds migrate and return home from distant locations. This was followed by postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Liege in Belgium and at The Johns Hopkins University where she began to study how and why birds sing.

You may also like the following events from Badger Talks:

• This Friday, 13th June, 10:00 am, "Water-Themed Story Times for Children Ages 3-9": In-Person Badger Talk in Trempealeau, WI in Trempealeau
• Next Tuesday, 17th June, 10:30 am, "Exploring the Future of Madison’s Lakes": In-Person Badger Talk in Madison, WI in Redgranite
• Next Wednesday, 18th June, 05:30 pm, "Who'll Stop the Rain: A Post-Vietnam Talk on Respect & Reconciliation": VIRTUAL Badger Talk in Augusta