by Dan Casey Rare and Notables – September/October 2023 It was an excellent month for migration, with record numbers of Broad-winged Hawks at the Jewel Basin Hawk Watch, and an influx of gulls (including Lesser Black-backed and Short-billed). A small group of Greater White-fronted Geese in Somers was followed by two which spent several days…
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Morning at Smith Lake Field Trip
by Darcy Thomas Clear skies and cool air greeted a group of six in Kila the morning of September 16th. We got off to a shaky start with crows, starlings, house sparrows, coots, robins, magpies, and mallards on our list. It was worth a chuckle. We kept birding and were rewarded at the fishing access…
Read MoreJewel Basin Hawk Watch 2023 Early Results
by Dan Casey The 16th fall monitoring season at Jewel Basin Hawk Watch (JBHW) kicked off August 25th, and as of September 15th we had conducted 18 surveys. It has been an interesting and rewarding early season, with high species diversity and higher than average counts. We suspect that the extensive fires in British Columbia…
Read MoreFlathead Lake Biological Station Tour Report – May 2023
by Darcy Thomas On a drizzly day in May, a group of twelve from Flathead and Mission Audubon met at the University of Montana’s field station in Yellow Bay to learn about ecology and research of the Flathead Watershed, hear the famous food web disaster of Mysis shrimp, and enjoy a quick picnic before tromping…
Read More2023 Tally Lake Campout recap
by Pam Willison One in a Thousand! During Warbler Weekend at Tally Lake, Whitefish Lake Institute Executive Director Mike Koopal presented unique information on Tally Lake. Mike’s working hypothesis is that the lake is meromictic, meaning the deep lake water doesn’t mix with the surface water, leading to a depletion of dissolved oxygen at depth….
Read MoreThanks to our 2022-2023 Bird of the Month Authors!
by Darcy Thomas Please give a big shout-out to our fabulous Bird of the Month (BOM) authors who wrote great articles for your reading enjoyment this year. Sneed Collard gave us the Black-backed Woodpecker, Theresa Ciraolo imparted her newfound love of the Common Merganser, Kat Peterson imparted her knowledge of the American Crow, Karen Nichols…
Read MoreMay 2023 Annual Meeting and Potluck details!
by Cory Davis Our May potluck and silent auction are one of our favorite events of the year. We enjoy seeing everyone, eating together, and having time to visit before the summer break. This year, silent auction proceeds will go toward the Owen Sowerwine Conservation Easement. We’ll meet in Room 26 of the Gateway Mall…
Read MoreMay 2023 Program – Tracking Montana’s Osprey
Presented By Rob Domenech Rob Domenech, executive director of Raptor View Research Institute (RVRI), will be the featured speaker at the Monday, May 8 meeting of the Flathead Audubon Society at 7 p.m. (There won’t be a virtual component to this meeting). His presentation will include a brief history of the Montana Osprey Project (when…
Read MoreOsprey – the Finest Fishers
by Darcy Thomas “There’s an Osprey” I pointed out to my sister as our kayaks sliced through the serene waters of Smith Lake. We stopped paddling and watched as this beautiful raptor circled the shallow waters of the lake scanning for fish beneath the surface. Ospreys have incredible vision. Visual adaptations that allow them to…
Read MoreDave Hadden Awarded Lifetime Conservation Achievement Recognition
by Darcy Thomas Flathead Audubon Society is pleased to present a Lifetime Achievement Recognition to longtime community activist Dave Hadden. Dave lives and works in the Flathead Valley where he has dedicated his life working as an environmental professional to change the political climate of the community set in the magnificent mountains of the Crown…
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