By Shannon Donaldson Flathead Audubon’s 2024 Birdathonwill be Sunday, June 23. Birdathon is a fun and friendly competition to see who can find and identify the most bird species in a day. Everyone is welcome to participate, from beginner to expert birders. Last year, nearly 30 participants got together and went “birding for a caws”. The cause…
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Flathead Valley Bird Report – May 2024
By Dan Casey Rare and Notables – MAR/APR 2024 In typical fashion, late March and early April provided a variety of migrant waterfowl at Flathead Valley hotspots. Eurasian Wigeon were seen at multiple sites, and a hybrid wigeon was photographed at Church Slough. Greater White-fronted Goose and the Siberian form of Tundra Swan made appearances…
Read MoreSpring 2024 Waterfowl at Church Slough and Lower Valley Wetlands
by Darcy Thomas 15 enthusiastic birders met at Church Slough on March 21 for a wonderful morning of watching waterfowl of all sorts. After an hour at the slough we followed the river, hopped over to Forest Hill Road, and finished up by walking a portion of Sonny Boon Trail. The rain blessedly kept at…
Read MoreFlathead Valley Bird Report – April 2024
By Dan Casey Rare and Notables – February/March 2024 In typical fashion, early March was a time for waterfowl migration to begin in earnest, with good numbers of Northern Pintails present by the end of the period, and multiple sightings of Eurasian Wigeon, Greater White-fronted and Snow Geese. First-of-year (FOY) arrivals included Varied Thrushes, Western…
Read More2024 Wings Across the Big Sky Birding Festival speaker announced
Montana Audubon, in partnership with Last Chance Audubon is pleased to announce Tiffany Kersten as the keynote speaker for the 2024 Wings Across the Big Sky Birding Festival! Birdie Big Year: Elevating Women Birders Tiffany Kersten didn’t set out to do a Big Year, but after a series of unanticipated and serendipitous events, she suddenly…
Read MoreFlathead Valley Bird Report – March 2024
Rare and Notables – January/February 2024 Generally mild and relatively dry since the deep cold spell early in the period, this was a month with few rarities. People continued to enjoy the widespread Pine Grosbeaks and sporadic flocks of Common Redpolls. Thousands of Canada Geese and Mallards could be found throughout, particularly along the lower…
Read MoreKalispell CBC 2023 Results
by Shannon and Bridger Donaldson The 25th Annual Kalispell Christmas Bird Count took place on Sunday, December 31, 2023. It was New Year’s Eve and most everything on the valley floor was cloaked in an amazing amount of hoar frost. Very low visibility was the theme for the day, as it was incredibly foggy, especially…
Read MoreTroy CBC 2023 Results
Upper Swan Valley CBC 2023 Results
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…
Read MoreNinepipes CBC 2023 Results
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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