Join Neal Brown of Flathead Audubon and Anne Morley of the Montana Native Plant Society from 10 a.m. to 12 noon for a morning of bird and wildflower identification along Bigfork’s Wild Mile of the Swan River. Difficulty: An easy amble on the Swan River Nature Trail. Meet in front of the Bigfork Playhouse at 10 a.m. Bring water, binoculars, hand lens and field guides.

The Montana Loon Society and the Montana Common Loon Working Group need volunteers to help look for and count loons on the lakes throughout northwest Montana on this day. To volunteer and for more information, please contact one of the following: for areas north of Kalispell contact Laura Holmquist at 758-3501, for areas west of Kalispell call Gael Bissell at 751-4580, for southern Flathead Lake and Mission Valley call Brett Gullett at 883-2888, Ext. 7292, for the Libby area call Glen Gill at 295-7495, for the Swan Valley call Jane Ingebretson at 837-5081, for the Eureka area call Christi Ferruzzi at 882-4451, for Glacier National Park (May 17) call Billie Thomas at 888-5827.

Common Loon photo by John A. Winnie.

Come help The Glacier Institute get ready for its 25th year of educational activities. Volunteers are needed for a variety of tasks, including cleaning, painting, light carpentry and outdoor work. Work will be done at both the Field Camp in GNP and at the Big Creek Outdoor Education Center. Interested volunteers may call The Glacier Institute at 755-1211 or email register@glacierinstitute.org.

The Big Birthday Bash--speakers and special guests, recognition ceremony for Student Art Contest, US Postage Stamp cancellations, visit by Honker the Blue Goose mascot, trivia contests, free posters and book signings. Free entry to all scenic drives. And, of course, birthday cake! Come join the celebration, have some cake and watch some birds. It’s an ideal way to spend a lovely day in May. If you would like more information, please call Pat Jamieson at the National Bison Range at (406) 644-2211, Ext. 207.

In conjunction with the 2008 Bird Festival, Montana Audubon is offering a birding tour to Westby, located in northeastern Montana. This “Westby Weekend” tour is appropriate for both experienced and beginning birders. It operates from May 24-28, which coincides with the peak migration of warblers and shorebirds through this area. This tour is being led by John Shipley, who will be assisted by Steve Hoffman. It is limited to 10 non-smoking participants.

The city park in Westby will be our main focus for birding. Many bird species visit this oasis in their spring migration during this last week of May. Westby is the migrant warbler capital of Montana, and we expect to find about 15 species, all in fresh breeding plumages! We hope to see most of the following: Tennessee, Orange-crowned, Blackpoll, Yellow, Magnolia, Chestnut-sided, American Redstart, Black-and-white, Cape May, Northern Waterthrush, Yellow-rumped, Ovenbird, Mourning, Wilson’s, Canada, and Common Yellowthroat.

We’ll see about a dozen species of sparrows. And we should find Baird’s, Field, LeConte’s, Clay-colored, Grasshopper, and Nelson’s Sharp-tailed. Shorebirds will be plentiful at nearby Round Lake. We hope to find Piping Plover and White-rumped Sandpiper, along with about 20 other species of sandpipers.

Other resident or migrant birds that we should see on this tour include Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Purple Martin, Sprague’s Pipit, Broad-winged Hawk, Alder Flycatcher, Orchard Oriole, Baltimore Oriole, Philadelphia Vireo, Blue-headed Vireo, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Sedge Wren, and Purple Finch.

This trip begins in Billings on the morning of May 24 (Sat.). We’ll travel by 15-passenger van to Westby, a distance of nearly 400 miles. We have three full days to bird in this delightful town and the surrounding areas. Our four nights of lodging in Westby are at the Hilltop House B&B, along with rooms in other neighborhood homes. They are clean, quiet and comfortable accommodations. Most of our meals will be at the Prairie Kitchen restaurant. We return to Billings on May 28 (Wed.), arriving there in the afternoon.

The cost for this tour is $495/person from Billings. The tour fees include all transportation and lodging during the tour. They also include the guide services of the tour leaders. The tour fees do not include meals. You should allow a daily average of about $30/person for meals. Participants will be able to count $50 of their tour fees as a tax-deductible contribution to Montana Audubon.

Come join us and immerse yourself in the wonderful birds of Westby, Montana! To register for this tour or for additional information, please call John Shipley at (406) 465-8247. You may also Email John via his website at: www.KingfisherBirdTours.com

Common Yellowthroat photo by Jeannie Marcure.

This trip will focus on identifying neo-tropical migrants by sight and by ear. We will walk along McDonald Creek listening and looking for birds and stop at the Fish Creek campground to search for Harlequin Ducks and scan the cottonwoods for vireos and warblers. We may head up the inside North Fork Road or drive along the Camas Road, stopping along the way in search of Black-backed Woodpeckers, Olive-sided Flycatchers and Northern Hawk Owls. This trip is limited to 20 participants. Please sign up for the trip with Steve Gniadek at 888-7833. We will be meeting at the Alberta Visitor Center in West Glacier at 6 a.m. and returning by 12 p.m. Please note that a Glacier National Park entrance fee or Park pass is required.

Come with FAS to the Mission Valley for some exceptional spring bird watching. We will visit the National Bison Range, driving up and over Red Sleep Mountain Drive to look for a myriad of warblers, vireos and sparrows. We may find Rock Wrens or Short-eared Owls or a swift Prairie Falcon. We will also spend some time at the Ninepipe National Wildlife Refuge, scanning the reservoir for waterfowl of all kinds and other denizens of the marshes. We will meet at the Park ‘n’ Ride at the intersection of US Hwy 93 and MT 82 near Somers at 6 a.m. For more information on this all day trip, please call Leslie Kehoe in the EVENINGS at 837-4467. Please note the entrance fee to the National Bison Range is $4 per vehicle.

Pie-Billed Grebe photo by Jeannie Marcure.

Heading east? Attend the 6th Annual Potholes & Prairies Birding Festival in Carrington, North Dakota. For details, featured birding experts and the full agenda, go to www.birdingdrives.com.

Eastern Kingbird photo by Jeannie Marcure.

Come join FAS and Dan and Susannah Casey at the Tally Lake Campground for an extraordinary weekend of birding and relaxing. the group campsite at the Tally Lake Campground has been reserved for the weekend. Throughout the weekend we will be focusing on warbler identification, birding by ear and digiscoping. This is an ideal time of the year to find all kinds of neo-tropical migrants, including all of the warbler species that can be found in NW Montana. There are plenty of other activities that can be enjoyed at Tally Lake as well. You can bring your canoes and kayaks. There is a volleyball court and one for horseshoes. Numerous hiking trails can be found close to the campground that can be explored, as well. The cost is $12 per camper per night. Please contact Dan and Susannah Casey at 857-3143 to sign up for the trip or for more information.

Yellow-rumped Warbler photo by Jan Wassink.

Montana Audubon and the Yellowstone Valley Audubon Chapter are hosting the 2008 Montana Bird Festival at Rocky Mountain College in Billings this weekend. The festival will celebrate the tremendous variety of birds found in the area's stream and river bottoms, mountain forests, prairies and wetlands. Field trips include visits to the Pryor Mountains, Pompey's Pillar, Yellowstone River, Audubon's Conservation Education Center and more. Workshops, such as, Beginning Birding, will also be offered. Check Montana Audubon's website for updates on speakers and trips. A festival brochure with all the details will be sent to all Audubon members in Montana in early April. (Click on LOCAL BIRDS, then RESOURCE LINKS at this website.)

Red-winged Blackbird photo by Dan Casey.

BIRDING BY EAR taught by Denny Olson -- June 13-15

GLACIER'S BIRDS OF PREY taught by Dave Shea -- June 14-15

THE "UNCOMMON LOON" taught by Denny Olson -- June 21-22

For detailed course descriptions and more information, please visit the GI website at www.glacierinstitute.com or call(406)755-1211.

Downey Woodpecker photo by Jeannie Marcure.

This outstanding undisturbed natural area on the Flathead River is the setting for this morning of summer birding. Over 80 species of birds can be found here, including Red-eyed and Warbling Vireos, Vaux’s Swift, Black-headed Grosbeaks, a variety of warblers and ducks, Great Blue Herons and Spotted Sandpipers. Come and spend a few pleasant hours wandering in this special riparian area that is managed by Flathead Audubon. We will meet at the Montessori School parking area at 7 a.m. (and carpool to OSNA) and bird until 10 a.m.
Please call Karen Nichols at 756-5763 for more information or to sign up for the trip.

American Robin photo by Jeannie Marcure.

Join Flathead Audubon for a few hours fun exploring one of the birding hotspots in Kalispell. Our morning of birding will be spent at Lawrence Park at the north end of Main St. in Kalispell where we may see Wood Ducks, Lazuli Buntings, Black-chinned Hummingbirds and Black-headed Grosbeaks, just to name a few. We will be focusing on the basics of bird watching by showing you how use your binoculars effectively and teaching you how to identify some of our common birds from field marks, calls and other clues. The walking will be easy. Meet at the pavilion in Lawrence Park at 8 a.m. Please call Bob Lopp at 257-6886 for more information.

Come spend a pleasant morning of birding in one of the birdiest spots in GNP--the Inside North Fork Road. Everything from lush riparian areas to dense forest can be found here and a fabulous variety of birds may be seen from Olive-sided Flycatchers to Black-backed Woodpeckers to Spruce Grouse. We will take several short hikes. Meet at the Post Office in West Glacier at 7 a.m. For more information or to sign up for the trip, please call Bruce Tannehill and Gail Cleveland at 862-4548. Please note that a Glacier National Park entrance fee or a Park pass is required.

Junco photo by Jeannie Marcure.

This tour will take us to lakes in the area where Common Loons have nested. Possibilities include Bootjack, Tally, Blanchard, Rogers and Lower Stillwater Lake. We should be able to see loon families with chicks. The Loon Ranger will be leading this 3 hour trip. Meet at the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks building on 490 N. Meridian Road in Kalispell at 8:00 a.m., returning by noon. Plan on going in the Fish, Wildlife and Parks van, or bring a high-clearance, all-wheel-drive vehicle if you wish to drive. Sign up for the trip by calling 751-4580.

Photo of Common Loon in winter by John Winnie.

Lost Trail is located in the beautiful Pleasant Valley and is a wonderful place to see grassland and riparian birds closely. The road through the Refuge wanders through wet meadows where Wilson’s Snipe, Brewer’s Blackbirds and Vesper Sparrows sit on fence posts next to the road and enticing songs of warblers and flycatchers come from the thickets beside the road. Dahl Lake, a large shallow lake on the Refuge, has breeding populations of Black Terns, Ruddy Ducks, Red-necked, Pied-billed, Horned and Eared Grebes and Sandhill Cranes. Overhead we may see Golden and Bald Eagles soaring on the wind as both species breed here.

Meet at the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks building in Kalispell at 6 a.m. for an exciting day of birding. Please contact John Hughes to sign up for the trip or for more information at 261-2506.

Sandhill crane family photo by Jeannie Marcure.

The Montana Loon Society and the Montana Common Loon Working Group need volunteers to help look for and count loons on the lakes in northwest Montana. A day spent watching the loons can add valuable data to the ongoing study of these wonderful birds. To volunteer and for more information, please see the contacts for each area under the May 17th Loon Census Day listing.

Common Loon family photo by Jeannie Marcure.

Join Dan and Susannah Casey for a canoe trip from the Pressentine Bar Fishing access to Leisure Island in Kalispell. This beginner level float is an easy six hours on the river (no whitewater) through a variety of riparian habitats. Bring canoe or kayak, lifejackets (one for each person), lunch and raingear. Meet at 9 a.m. at the Kalispell K-Mart parking lot. Please RSVP to Dan or Susannah at 857-3143.

American Coot photo by Dan Casey.

This walk through OSNA will focus on basic bird identification. We will look for specific field marks and listen to the songs of common birds that help us identify what each bird is. It will be a lovely summer morning stroll to a very special riparian area along the Flathead River. Meet at the Montessori School parking area at 8 a.m., returning at 12 p.m. Please give Bob Lopp a call for information at 257-6886.

Magpie photo by Jeannie Marcure.

This is a unique opportunity to see shorebirds as they begin their migration southward from the Arctic. We may see up to 15 species of shorebirds, including dowitchers, phalaropes, yellowlegs and sandpipers. This trip will go to various locations around the Valley and depends on where the migrants may be found. We will meet at the Tidyman’s parking lot at 9 a.m. Please RSVP to Dan Casey at 857-3143.

American Avocet photo by Jeannie Marcure

The 2nd annual Raptor Day in Memory of Rod Ash will be at Lone Pine State Park. There will be bird walks, workshops, educational booths and many more fun family activities. Come and enjoy a day of fun, education and new experiences sponsored by Flathead Audubon Society and Lone Pine State Park. Full details will be in your September PILEATED POST.

Short-eared Owl photo by Jeannie Marcure.