Highlights from the November 7, 2022 Board of Directors Meeting

Nov 7th was snowy and cold so the in-person board meeting was changed to a Zoom meeting. Some of the items under discussion are highlighted below:

  • Fundraising is now underway to protect Owen Sowerwine area and fund K-12 education in Montana with the purchase of a conservation easement. A River in Paint Event at the Montana Modern Fine Art gallery in Kalispell and on-line bidding for the paintings will raise money for the easement. Other fundraising events will be announced in the coming months.
  • Christmas Bird Counts will take place in Dec and January in Kalispell and Bigfork and nearby towns.
  • The Education Committee is likely see a significant increase in the number of requested field trips for SD5 in the upcoming months that will most likely need more volunteers.
  • The Field Trip Committee said it is recruiting new field trip leaders.
  • The Board unanimously voted to appoint Linda DuLac as the Membership Chair and as a new member of the Board of Directors. Among other things, Linda plans to greet members as they arrive at meetings and make sure everyone has a nametag. 
  • The Conservation Committee as well as the Program Committee are each in need of a Chairmanship.
  • The Board is planning to develop a strategic plan in the upcoming months 

ATTENTION ALL BIRDERS: NEW FIELD TRIP LEADERS NEEDED

Do you have a special place you like to see birds? Please consider leading a field trip in the coming season. Our Audubon bird outings have been very popular, but we need to recruit some new people to lead trips. No need to be an expert, just be willing to facilitate an outing. Leaders and participants can all learn together.

Please contact Darcy Thomas at 406-407-8263 or darcy@flatheadaudubon.org or Margaret Parodi at 406-837-1371 or margaret@flatheadaudubon.org for more information or to volunteer. Thank you.

Frogs change sex even in natural settings

Frogs can change their sex even in pristine, pollution free settings. Past research suggested that male-to-female sex changes happening in frogs in suburban ponds may be caused by increased levels of estrogen released into the water. They found more female frogs than males in suburban areas.  But now a new study by the same scientists finds that green frogs (Rana clamitans) change sex even in natural, unadulterated settings relatively free from human-caused pollution. The authors of the study speculate that the frogs are instead reacting to local changes in temperature or other environmental factors. As far as they know, frogs can only change sex during their tadpole phase.  From The Wildlife Society News