by Denny Olson I have to admit that a good part of my attraction to tree-line in Northwest Montana — aside from pikas in the talus, whitebark pines, nutcrackers and rosy finches — is the 50-50 chance of a conversation with Boreal Chickadees. They are relatively tame and curious after the breeding season when they…
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by Darcy Thomas There are some birds we expect to see in certain locations and the Black Scoter (Melanitta americana) is one of those birds. It is, after all, a sea duck so one would expect to see them in open salt water. I viewed scoters many times along the Washington Coast and Puget Sound…
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by Margaret Parodi Sandhill Cranes are truly magnificent birds and are usually seen in large, awe-inspiring flocks. They have a very distinctive loud, rattling bugle-like call that is memorable and are also known for their ritualistic dancing and leaping displays during the courtship and mating season. Sandhill cranes have been around for a long time…
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by Darcy Thomas My first introduction to the American Pipit Anthus rubescens was in the Skagit valley in Washington state where I saw a small flock foraging for insects in the winter. They were a rather nondescript brown bird that I did not notice at first glance as they blended in so well to the…
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by Pam Willison Haunting, quavering, buzzy, isolated and resonant, lacking melody and fluidity, and musical but dissonant. The Varied Thrush (Ixoreus naevius) provides a challenge for those who seek to describe the song. Possibly the best description is polyphonous: 2 or 3 notes sounded simultaneously resulting in a sound that sometimes seems harmonious, and sometimes…
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by Lewis Young One look at an individual of this species and it’s easy to see where part of the name comes from. The ears are nearly 1 ½ inches long. Townsend’s comes from being named in honor of naturalist Charles H. Townsend even though it was first described in 1837 by William Cooper. Besides…
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by Margaret Parodi A recent sighting of a flock of Clark’s Nutcrackers in my neighborhood in Bigfork sparked my renewed interest in this bird; the flash of the white and black tail feathers caught my eye. They were feeding in trees and on the ground in a stand of Ponderosa Pines and were going after…
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by Kat Peterson As birders, we search out extraordinary birds, whether that be a quick glimpse at a rare and elusive bird or to visually dissect beautiful plumage. The latter is just what is in store for us who are lucky enough to view a striking male Wood Duck (Aix sponsa). This small dabbling duck…
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by Anthony Nelson Starting my career as an animal keeper, penguins were the last animal I wanted to work with. As fate would have it, the African Penguins were the only species needing a “primary” keeper at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, and so began my connection to these ridiculous birds. There are around 18 species…
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by Taryn Bushey 2020 was a devastating year for California wildfires. This year summer I had the privilege of getting to help out on one of these fires for three weeks working as an equipment driver for the Forest Service on the Sequoia Complex fires. When I heard about the California Condors that were killed…
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