Brookfield Zoo Program

If you are in the Chicago area next Tuesday, stop by the Brookfield Zoo for a Raptors of the Rockies program. No birds for this one, but a 40 minute PowerPoint I have been working on for weeks called "Conservation Education in the West," or There's An Eagle in the Classroom." (Okay, I lifted that second one from the Wild Sentry Program, but got permission from Bruce.) We are the speaker for their Spring Lecture Series this month, more info on the Brookfield web site. Gary Wolfe, Executive Director of the Vital Ground Foundation suggested that we speak, and lo and behold, the folks in Chicago went for it. Brookfield was my first zoo as a kid when we lived in Glenview, and I guess they had to drag me out of the Reptile House. This slide will be at the end, our young friends the Browders and Jack Petty in the Bitterroot.

Great Egret in the 'Root

Rumor was kicking around that a Great Egret had been hanging out a near-by Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge, and sure enough, here it is. You can't miss it - the only huge white wading bird around. We had one of these in our yard last time we flooded, the only other time I've seen a Great Egret in the Bitterroot. Cool!

Audubon Birding Festival 2010

Believe it or not, Missoula has never hosted the annual Montana Audubon Conference, despite us thinking that we are the center of the birding universe! So join us all on June 4th through the 6th for "Wings Across the Big Sky," Holiday Inn Downtown at the Park. Starting with an icebreaker social then Raptors of the Rockies Program Friday night, the next two days are packed with speakers and dozens of field trips lead by the experts. The other two keynotes are U of M professor Dr. Erick Greene and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Steve Running. I designed the poster this year, Sibley flying over the Bitterroot Valley, a view from Sula Peak. This came from a field trip led by Montana Audubon Director Steve Hoffman last fall. For tons of information and registration, visit their website at mtaudubon.org or call 406-443-3949. And order a T-shirt! I'm trying to get them to print more...

Miserable Weather, But Happy Students

It seems like we waited until the worst possible weather for a tour of the Raptor Ranch, but no complaints from the eight high school students and three teachers from China today. They attend Shude High School in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, population 12 million. Over 4000 students go to their school, a tad different than what most of us are used to. Geography teacher from Hellgate High, their sister school, John Marks organized the trip to the Bitterroot. With umbrellas, raincoats, and ball caps we all braved the pouring rain and wind to see the birds, their animated teacher (3rd from left) translating at 100 miles per hour. Or kilometers. When back home in China, their photos will prove that in the United States, people keep falcons on perches in their living rooms, with stuffed ducks and peacocks hanging on the wall.

Incubation Time

A big drive along Rock Creek starting at the Skalkaho Road last Sunday confirmed our suspicion that Peregrines are going to be tough to spot for a while. During the 32 to 35 day incubation period, nesting duties are shared and the falcons lay low with a change of guard a few times a day, perhaps a quick food delivery by the male. This is quite a contrast to the spectacular courtship flights and outright aggression to anything that flies through their air space by the nesting cliff. Jay Sumner tells us that we have a month off now, and next are increasing food deliveries to the young, and my favorite, fledging. We did see a pair of Prairie Falcons and pictured here is a Golden Eagle nest, occupied for as long as Jay can remember. (A long time.)

Budding Artists

Today we returned to Hellgate High School as guests of art teacher Marvin Pauls, this time for a program for MAI (Montana Arts Something-that-starts-with-I). This "Birds And Art" workshop was for students from around the state: Lewistown, Troy, Havre, Superior, even good ole Florence. Our tried and true team of Alisa the Red-tail and Miles the Great Horned stayed at their posts for the full two hours, models for sketches in many mediums. And they will no doubt be on dozens of cell phones for weeks to come. Here Marvin shows off some great giant gesture drawings done on butcher paper, as these students were not shy. I started the program with the story of my high school art teacher in Cincinnati, Jack Walther, who encouraged me, inspired me, and secretly entered my pieces in art shows. I named our Kestrel after him, in his honor, and we are still pals to this day.

Score!

Mac Donofrio and I wanted to confirm the mystery birds, Peregrines spotted way back up One Horse Creek the last two years, and this time we approached from the north. Starting with a big drive up logging roads, the top still holding deep snow, we then had to hike to the canyon edge. We brought some homing pigeons that we planned to toss off the top to see if we could inspire a chase, had we not been able to locate the falcons. Instead, we spotted the pair within minutes soaring around the big air space, encouraged to see the male perch repeatedly on a sentinel snag at the top. He gave chase to a few of the pigeons (that were back at my house when I got home) then fetched a particularly attractive item from a cache in the rocks. For ten minutes he flew back and forth in front of the cliff face dangling the stripped pectoral girdle of what we guessed was a duck, bare bones and just the wing tips intact. It dragged below him like a banner, three feet in length and larger than he was. I'm sure the female was impressed, and he finally dropped it into the trees below. Too bad I just had the wide angle lens. So Peregrines are back to One Horse Creek, nesting over a mile back, Prairie Falcons at the mouth of the drainage. The best of both worlds.

iPod the Owl

The new kid on the block just joined us, and is settling in nicely. Our Pygmy-owl DotCom was a program staple for over 9 years, and he passed away in July. We now have a "replacement" owl, one that came from Bitterroot rehabilitator Judy Hoy, and I swear, he's even smaller than DotCom. He got his name from our friend, Jurgen Knoller that owns Bayern Brewing in Missoula. We had our Raptor Backer Appreciation Party at Bayern a few weeks ago, and Jurgen was asking about the birds. "How's that little one, iPod?" he queried, mistakenly referring to Dottie. So that's how we got the name! iPod was struck by a car over the winter, and Judy kept him indoors as the feathers grew back. He lost that wing tip that was broken, so a keeper bird. His building is draped with shade cloth until he gets used to the sights and sound of the out of doors again. And sounds abound as his next door neighbor Buster the Saw-whet Owl is serenading us night and day.

Falcons In the Bitterroot

An early morning falcon survey across the road was fruitful indeed. I am a volunteer for the Montana Peregrine Institute and was "assigned" three cliffs in the Blackfoot and three in the Bitterroot Valley near our home, to determine if Peregrine Falcons had taken up residence for nesting. After a quick hike up the drainage at One Horse Creek this morning, I spotted a Prairie Falcon hunting the canyon, then two Peregrines soaring way back an hour later. Finally and after three hours, one Peregrine escorted two Red-tails from the drainage and I hope this means occupancy, or a nest in the works. This photo is from the Frenchtown eyrie a few years ago, and I wish the birds from today had been closer. Another trip up the drainage next week and hopefully courtship and prey deliveries, if I'm very lucky. We have thought that both falcon species, Prairie and Peregrine, set up housekeeping in One Horse Creek the last two years, and it remains to be seen. More news on the way!

English Language Institute Day

Our friend, English professor from the University of Montana Josh Rosenberger promised it would be fun, but we had no idea how much fun! We hosted 40 multi-national students for a tour at the Raptor Ranch then picnic at Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge, and got this photo with the Bitterroots as a backdrop. The students represent nine countries, get this: Saudi Arabia, Japan, Korea, Tajikistan, Burkina Faso, Kuwait, France, Iraq (Kurdistan), and Spain. One universal language we found is humor, with students and instructors alike cracking up. I found that the word for shy in Arabic is pronounced tee. No tee's here. Many will remain in the U.S. for several years, and others may return to their home countries and recount the story of a hawk (Chesty) catching mice tossed in the air. Or else, how the two Golden Reteivers didn't really retrieve anything.

Be The First On Your Block

The new Raptor Round-Up Number 34 has just been posted on our web site, and it still hasn't even been printed. So get a jump on the masses and see it here in living color! As webmaster Steve Palmer puts it, "Best in Show photo, upcoming State Audubon Conference, new photography web site, Alisa, our new Red-tailed Hawk, Birds and Art programs, upcoming public program schedule, and much, much more."

Click on this text for an automatic link.

You Know It's Spring...

...When You Have Western Bluebirds On Your Penguin. This pair has been exploring the bird boxes in the yard, and are the most inquisitive birds we have ever seen. They even flit around inside the garage, perhaps deciding a nice nesting spot. These two have perched on every sculpture in the yard, including the big king penguin and 7 foot pheasant to the left.

Sharp-tailed Grouse Leks

On a “business” trip to the Columbus, Montana area, I just met up with photographer Rob Palmer to shoot some grouse leks. The males pick a stomping ground to dance and spar with other suitors, and have a fidelity to a certain spot called a lek. I was surprised to see twenty birds in one little spot only 30 yards across, surrounded by the hundreds of miles of open grassland. Rob took this photograph of a particularly handsome grouse dancing. Unfortunately, the day after I left a Prairie Falcon blasted through the lek right as the sun came up, and scared them away before Rob could get any good images. We thank Kevin Thompson for his vast knowledge of the area and its avian inhabitants, and Ken and Lora Mesch for their hospitality.

BirdFest 2010 at The Artists' Shop

Steve Thorstenson of the downtown Missoula gallery and artists' cooperative, The Artists' Shop invited me to participate in the April event, BirdFest 2010. I had Gale Johnson of Custom Digital Imaging (CDI) print up some favorites, and voila, instant photography exhibition. They even chose the flying Snowy Egret as the image for their cards and publicity. We had a great opening last night and the first piece to go was the flying Short-eared Owl. Check it out at 304 N. Higgins, and tell 'em you're a Raptor Backer!