By Denny Olson “The last word in ignorance is the man who says of an animal or plant, ‘What good is it?’ … Who but a fool would discard seemingly useless parts? To keep every cog and wheel is the first precaution of intelligent tinkering.” Aldo Leopold One of the things that my dad could…
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2024 Flathead County Science Fair Judges Needed!
We’re looking for a few good judges, for the Flathead County Science Fair on Thursday, March 7, from 8:30am to approximately 1pm, Flathead County Fairgrounds Expo Building (south side). Complimentary continental breakfast and lunch. Register online at: https://www.flatheadcountysciencefair.org/judges, or visit the website, https://www.flatheadcountysciencefair.org, and click on “More,” “Judges” and “Sign Up“. The registration page allows you to choose grades…
Read MoreKids’ Corner – March 2024
Hey there young birder! Welcome to our first edition of Kids’ Corner. Below we have two fun activities for you! Check out our “Owl Facts” crossword puzzle below, then color in your Great Horned Owl drawing below and email your finished artwork to info@flatheadaudubon.org so we can feature it in next month’s Kids’ Corner. Don’t…
Read MoreConservation Educator’s Niche – February 2024
by Denny Olson It’s been a busy winter of Christmas Bird Counts, Flathead and Mission Valley raptor surveys and Short-eared Owl roosting research. Birds are everywhere, all-the-time on this Planet. The winter, and the surveys, are not done with me yet. That’s why it seems counterintuitive to be sitting here thinking about breeding birds just…
Read MoreConservation Educator’s Niche – January 2024
by Denny Olson The long dark nights of this winter solstice time of year give us much opportunity to quietly contemplate the big unknowns in this world, and what constitutes the “spiritual” in our lives. For me, it is a sense of wonder and awe about the size and mind-boggling complexities of our Milky Way…
Read MoreConservation Educator’s Niche – December 2023
by Denny Olson The Value of “Our Place” in Education In Montana, we are lucky in that education has always had a tradition of local control. Unfortunately, it has seldom had a tradition of local emphasis. In fact, the primary key to living well politically, economically, ecologically, spiritually and as a community member (on all…
Read MoreConservation Educator’s Niche – November 2023
by Denny Olson I’ve been lucky enough to sit on a high promontory and watch a group of raven rascals – who always seem to have spare time on their talons – showing off their flight skills. Twice, perhaps the same raven both times, one cackled the raven version of “Hold my beer, watch this!”…
Read MoreConservation Educator’s Niche – October 2023
by Denny Olson As with most good things in life, it starts with getting up. Early. Lunch for the day, raingear, extra layers of clothing to adjust to the autumn temperature swings at high elevation, extra drinking water, bear spray, binoculars, foam sit pad, first aid kit, sunscreen and hat, hiking poles, multi-tool and headlamp…
Read MoreConservation Educator’s Niche – September 2023
by Denny Olson In the last issue of the Post, I tried to point out the human tendency to frame our thinking about our relationship to the land that sustains us as “self-absorbed”. It is looking at nature in the framework of “what good is nature to me?” The range of responses to that question…
Read MoreNatives Rule!
Here at Flathead Audubon, we’re passionate about birds, which of course means we have to include a passion about their life support system, namely their habitats and food. We’ve been telling this story for over 20 years, and recently produced a 23-minute video on the relationships between native birds, which eat native insects, which eat…
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