Conservation Educator’s Niche – February 2023

by Denny Olson From a recent, unfortunately unattributed, social media post … “When Florence Merriam Bailey was born in 1863, birds were more often seen ornamenting women’s hats than they were in the wild. In fact, on one walk through Manhattan in 1886, she counted 40 different species, stuffed and mounted for fashion. The pioneering…

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Glacier National Park CBC 2021 Results

by Lisa Bate Glacier National Park (GNP) held its annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC) on Sunday, December 19, 2021. Twenty-two participants contributed to this event by covering 10 different routes in Glacier. Participants spent the day counting all bird species and individuals detected. The weather was overcast with light winds, and temperatures ranged between 29…

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Conservation Educator’s Niche – April 2021

by Denny Olson Frustrated with Birding ID by Ear? Help is on the way! There are 270 nesting species of birds in Montana, and 435 species that we know have at least passed through on their travels. They all make some kinds of noises, and those noises are at least slightly different from each other,…

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close up photo of brown wooden tree

Conservation Corner – December 2020

by Carole Jorgensen DEAD WOOD Before you remove or burn those dead trees or brush piles, think about the critters that live there. Dead wood (standing and down dead trees and logs, bark, stumps and roots) creates a complex community storing carbon, moisture, invertebrates and fungi. Primary excavators such as woodpeckers, create cavities for nesting…

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Kinglet

Ruby-crowned & Golden-crowned Kinglets

By Linda de Kort Last week, the serviceberry bushes by our home were buzzing with royal activity. Kinglets of both local species were flitting and hovering, gleaning the insects from the leaves of the bush. This gave me a golden and ruby opportunity to compare the field markings of these two diminutive birds. The kinglets…

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