by Taylor Tewksbury Swan Valley Connections (SVC) hosted the Upper Swan Valley Christmas Bird Count on Wednesday, December 20. Weather conditions were constant throughout the day with cloudy skies, calm wind conditions, and the occasional light rain shower. Temperatures remained in the mid-to high thirties. Most waterways in the valley were partially frozen and a…
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by James Oates The 31st Annual Ninepipe Christmas Bird Count was held December 17. With foggy conditions limiting visibility to 100 yards most of the day, it was no surprise to anybody that the number of birds at 6,912 were down about 39 percent and the number of species at 71 were down 20 percent from…
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by Lisa Bate, Wildlife Biologist, Glacier National Park Glacier National Park (GNP) held its annual Christmas Bird Count (CBC) on Sunday, December 17, 2023. Thirty participants contributed to this event by covering 10 different routes in Glacier and one bird feeder just outside the park, but within the circle. Participants spent the day counting all…
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by Ellen Sullivan and Lauren Michelsen The 31st annual Eureka Christmas Bird Count was held on Saturday, December 16, on a mild day that ranged from 27 degrees to 33 degrees. Koocanusa Reservoir was open as were parts of the streams, but smaller lakes and ponds were mostly frozen. Eighteen people went to the field…
Read Moreby Craig Hohenberger The 50th annual Bigfork Christmas Bird Count was held Saturday, December 16th, under cloudy skies (fog & stratus) with calm conditions. Snow depths were variable, with most areas in the valley essentially snow free. At the eastern edge of the count circle, snow depths ranged from zero to six inches. Temperatures ranged…
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by Dan Casey The 27th annual “Great Backyard Bird Count” (GBBC) will be held February 16-19, 2024. This effort, sponsored by the Cornell Laboratory, National Audubon, and Bird Studies Canada, encourages all interested people to spend at least one, 15-minute period over those four days to enter a list of birds seen in their yard…
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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 Moreby Darcy Thomas I have to say, we have the most incredible people at Flathead Audubon. Not only do you love birds and want to protect them and the places they live in, but you also want to help Flathead Audubon with its many activities and projects that make our chapter better. But we can…
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by Kay Mitchell The Montana Chapter of The Wildlife Society, professional association of wildlife biologists, has established the Lewis Young Memorial Fund. Lewis was a longtime Flathead Audubon Society (FAS) member and conservation chair. Income from the fund will provide travel expenses to the annual convention for students who are currently enrolled in a wildlife…
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