Bitterroot Blues!

In the late 1960's, I worked on a blue grouse research project in the Skalkaho drainage of the Sapphire Mountains southeast of Hamilton, MT. About 10 days ago, an opportunity to revisit this area was too much for me to resist, and I made 2 early morning trips into my old haunts. As might be expected, there have been a few changes in the 40+ year period. The accepted name for these Blue Grouse has now been changed to Dusky Grouse. Genetic studies and other characteristics have lead those scientists who deal with these things to separate our Rocky Mountain birds from those inhabiting on the Pacific Coast ranges, the latter now named Sooty Grouse.

It didn't take long for other changes to strike me. On my drive up to the study area, several bighorn sheep crossed the road in front of me at one point. In the more than 200+ trips I had made into this area in the late 1960's, bighorns were never seen. They are a new and welcome addition. As I ascended the steep, narrow gravel road up to the study area, there were some rather obvious changes in the vegetation, with the young conifer thickets that were the center of grouse breeding territories noticeably different. Some of this change was due to increasing age, and some was due to an ill-advised thinning project implemented by the Forest Service a number of years ago. These changes left me somewhat concerned that some of the area might no longer be suitable for breeding blue/dusky grouse. But my fears were soon allayed. I stopped several times to listen for the distinctive "hooting" and wing clap sounds that signal the presence of these mountain grouse. And it wasn't long before I followed these sounds to my first displaying male grouse. It was in the same area where I had located a breeding territory 43 years previously.

Dusky grouse, like people and other animals , seem to have differing personalities. Some are brazen and outgoing, and others are somewhat retiring and shy. My first male of the day was of the latter persuasion, so my attempts at good photo images were not very successful. This male was a little less shy but still not very cooperative. But later that morning, I was fortunate to find a more accommodating male, albeit one whose tail was just regrowing, perhaps after a lucky escape from a predator of some sort. Here is the more friendly fellow with the stubby tail! Males would often flush into a nearby tree where they were often very difficult to spot and get pictures of. But occasionally, they posed in the open. When I was working in this area in the 1960's, my data indicated that the peak of the breeding season for these grouse was about May 7-10 or so. This year, I was about 2 weeks earlier than that, but there seemed to be plenty of activity, and some females were found throughout each morning. This one posed nicely for me along the side of the road. At one of my initial listening stops, the sound of a new, bonus bird was heard, a gobbling wild turkey tom! This was certainly unexpected, but perhaps not unusual in this scattered Ponderosa Pine habitat which is typical of where this species is often found in Montana. On my trip into the area on the second morning, I was rewarded with a tom turkey displaying for several nearby hens. It was comforting for me to know that these grouse that I had worked with and come to know over a 3-year period were still easily found in many of the same places. Were they as abundant as they were 40+ years ago? That is a question that cannot be reasonably answered in such a short visit. But my curiosity about their presence was resolved and the reminiscing I enjoyed made for a very fulfilling experience on this Return to the Bitterroot Blues!

Leucistic Redtail in Helena Valley

In January, I wrote about a leucistic red-tailed hawk that was present in the Helena Valley since last summer. This bird was on the "spooky" side and I had not been able to get any very good images of it when I first sighted it in January. The landowner and birder who first reported this unusual bird called last week to report that she had found a nest that this white hawk and a partner had been attending. So yesterday, I accompanied her - Marsha - to take a look.

Marsha had been doing her homework and noted that the white hawk was smaller than the other pair member so was likely a male bird. The birds were around the nest but not especially attendant to it, so perhaps they were not yet incubating or maybe there were no eggs at all. The nest itself was a bit disheveled and perhaps had been damaged by the strong winds of the past week. Whatever the case, it was a great day to be outside looking at such a beautiful bird. We first spotted it soaring quite high in the mostly calm air.As it circled, the sun through its wings highlighted the mostly pure white primaries. About 5 of the tail feathers were mostly light red, more so than I recalled from my first sighting of the bird. And the under wing coverts showed some pigment to go along with the darkish throat patch. What a beautiful bird it is! The partner and apparent female of the pair was obviously larger when the two were seen soaring near each other. It was pretty much a typically plumaged western redtail.

As we watched these birds soaring, several other raptors came by and our white bird initiated some interaction with them, perhaps in defense of the nest site. These included a Rough-legged Hawk, heading north to its breeding grounds in Canada/Alaska. And then there was a Cooper's Hawk, the only raptor of the day smaller than the white bird. A sub-adult bald eagle also drew a little action from same. But several turkey vultures soaring in the vicinity of this probable male white redtail seemed to be ignored, perhaps because they had been frequenting the area for a number of days! We did get a few dorsal views of the bird, and the only pigmented feathers apparent in that view were the tail feathers. This gorgeous white redtail remained soaring quite high in the air while we watched, so I never did get high quality images of it, but this anomaly of nature sure was quite a sight.

Thanks Marsha for sharing this great find of yours!

Vagrancy in Birds

A vagrant bird is an individual that appears in an area well outside of the known range for that species. Several weeks ago, a Carolina wren was ID'ed near Arlee, MT, about 25 miles north of Missoula. Pending acceptance by the Montana Bird Records Committee, this will be the first recorded appearance of this species in Montana, and will grow the Montana bird list to 425 species. The species has previously been recorded for Alberta, and southern WY and SD. These were also very rare sightings. Some may question the significance of such a record, but it is important to track these occurrences so that vagrancy is not confused with the range expansion that is occurring in MT with some other species. High quality photo images of the wren were difficult to get because of low light conditions in the riparian habitat where it was located. But I did manage to get a few!
Last summer, another unusual vagrancy occurred when an Eastern Meadowlark was found in the Madison River Valley just south of Ennis. If this species were to be spotted in MT, it would seem most likely that it would be found along the eastern border with the Dakotas rather than 400 miles to the west. This record is just as or perhaps more unusual than the Carolina wren. In both of these instances, the birds' song was the factor that lead to the initial discovery of the species. While the plumage patterns and colors of the wren are quite distinctive, the eastern Meadowlark appears very much like its eastern counterpart, and so would likely be more easily overlooked if it were not for its distinctive song.

Sightings of rare and/or vagrant bird in MT will continue to spark the interest of dedicated birders. And the "listers" among us will continue to put mileage on their vehicles in the hopes that they can add one more notch to their Montana Bird Lists! That keeps the interest and excitement going in this great avocation.

Happy Birthday Brother Clifford!!

The White Geese Phenomenon

At Freezout Lake near Choteau, MT last weekend, while almost everyone else was marveling at the huge flocks of white geese - mostly snow geese - , I was looking with amazement at the crowds of people! These spring concentrations of geese on this area have been occurring for many decades, and perhaps longer. But it is only within the past 10 or fewer years that Montanans have begun to flock to this wondrous place to witness and enjoy this great spectacle of nature.

On the afternoon of March 27, I stopped on my way home to Helena to see what sort of action there was at Freezout. And quite a sight it was. There was an estimated 200 or so vehicles in various locations on the area and who knows how many people. Motels in local communities were mostly full for the weekend. My recollections is that this is more vehicles than are normally present on the opening day of waterfowl hunting season. On Pond 5, there were an estimated 50,000 or so white geese resting on the water not very far from the throngs of delighted people. Hopefully, most of the folks present were cognizant of the fact that funding provided by hunters of past and present generations was responsible for the preservation and development of this area.

Instead of inserting a bunch bird pictures in this blog, I will substitute mostly images of the many folks enjoying this annual event. They include the young and restless, old and infirm, many birder friends of mine, old friends I haven't seen in many years, and lots of new faces that I hope to see in future years.

Spring Waterfowl Shoot

Over the past three or so years, the juncture of my birding and photography passions has evolved into what seems to be a new tradition - a spring waterfowl shoot. Each March, the arrival of migrant waterfowl coincides with the beginning of ice melt in our Montana waterfowl marshes. Initially, the melt takes place mostly along the margins of the water bodies before openings occur farther out in the marshes and lakes. At the same time, the ice in the cattail and bulrush stands is slower to melt, probably because of the shading and insulating influences of these dense stands of vegetation. This differential melting provides a perfect opportunity to get closer to the openings used by the variety of early arriving waterfowl. And, of course, the cattails & bulrush also act as a pretty good opportunity for camouflage and hiding. In addition, these plants provide some comfort and insulation for sitting hours in one location.

The window of opportunity that these conditions present may be limited to 10 or fewer days, depending on the progression of ice melt. This year, the window was quite short because of the warm and windy weather we experienced in mid-March. In the previous 2 years, good conditions persisted longer.

To get positioned properly, one has to take into account the wind and sun direction for best photo opps. "Shooting" birds in flight is every bit as challenging with a camera as it is with a shotgun. And believe me, on a good day, I take many more shots with a camera than I ever did with a shotgun, so the success rate for the camera is generally far below that of the shotgun. But it is great fun and a fantastic way to enter the spring season of new birding/photography opportunities.

To date, this new tradition has focused mostly on the Lake Helena area of the Helena Valley and on Freezout Lake Wildlife Management area. The latter has the advantage of a potentially spectacular backdrop of the Rocky Mountain Front. Northern pintails are the are usually my prime targets, but there are numerous other species present that also spark my interest.Canvasback are also high on my list but are not nearly as abundant as other species.My photographer friends and I are not the only Montanans that "flock" to Freezout Lake at this time of year. Huge concentrations of snow geese and swans use Freezout as a way point on their migration to breeding grounds in the far north. Concentrations of 100,000 or so geese are not unusual during spring migration, and weather events sometimes temporarily slow northern movement with a resulting buildup approaching a quarter million geese. Swan numbers sometimes approach 10,000 or so, but this is somewhat unusual and a peak of 5,000 or so would be more normal. These large concentrations of waterfowl a truly an amazing spectacle of nature!

When looking at flocks of white geese, it is a challenge to see if you can distinguish the Snow geese from Ross's geese. Although the plumage is nearly exactly the same, the latter species has a smaller body and the head shape and bill are diagnostic. These are snow geese.Tundra swans are by far the most numerous of this group but trumpeters are sometimes mingled among them. Bil shape and the yellow spot usually found at the base of the Tundra swan's bill are the best way to separate these species. Click on this image to view the yellow spot.The call of the Trumpeter is also noticeably lower than that of the Tundra swans.Common goldeneye are usually fairly abundant at this time of year but seem to fly faster than other species and are difficult to get good shots of.And, of course, there is the ubiquitous mallard. I try to ignore this species because they are so common, but that is often difficult to do when they fly nearby.
Redheads can also be a challenge, but every now and then I get lucky with them - birds that is!!But with all of the different opportunities, pintails are still my species of choice. I wonder if that will change in future years. My best shot of a single pintail drake I took 2 years ago, but there is always room for improvement - and that perfect shot!!

A Change of Pace!

In recent years, a pine bark beetle epidemic in the Northern Rocky Mountains has devastated stands of Ponderosa and Lodgepole Pine. I must admit that when this huge infestation hit our area around Helena, I was skeptical that it would or could do the damage that others had predicted. But all I have to do is look out my office window to the south to see what nature has wrought! Just to the south of our home in Helena, no more than 75 yards or so, there is or was a stand of Ponderosa Pine that several years ago seemed to be reasonably healthy. Then about 3-4 years ago, some of the trees began dying. This was not unexpected because that happens in nature, especially in forest stands that are too dense and in need of some natural thinning. But over that 3 or 4 year period, it appears that nearly 90 percent of the trees have died from the beetles, and the epidemic may not be over.

Over the past few weeks, the whining and buzzing of chainsaws could be heard throughout the day as dead trees were being felled and stacked for burning by crews employed by the city of Helena. Under other circumstances, my instinct would be to object to such an operation because dead trees are beneficial to many bird and other wildlife species. And indeed, the numbers and diversity of woodpecker species in other areas of dead and dying trees near Helena are noticeably greater than only several years ago. But these dead trees above our home actually border the back yards of our neighbors and likely pose a significant danger of wildfire during the hot days of summer.

This morning, as I returned home from visiting a friend, smoke billowed upwards from the remains of the Ponderosa Pine forest just to the south of our home. Fire crews were igniting and tending to the numerous piles of slash that remained from the weeks of chainsaw action. And I concluded that in this instance, that is a good thing! As you might expect, there is some debate about the conclusion by some experts that this insect infestation has been exacerbated by the trend to warmer temperatures in our area over the past several decades. They say these Pine Bark Beetles do not fare well during periods of intense cold that use to be the norm around here. I don't know whether this is the case or not. But I do know that this insect epidemic seems to be the worst to hit forests in the Northern Rocky Mountains in recorded history - so there is certainly something going on in nature that should have a rational explanation!

I took the following series of photos to record the happenings of the day to compare them with what the area will look like several years down the road. Hopefully, there will be some natural tree regeneration resulting from seeds produced by the fortunate few mature trees that remain.

Some Montana Winter Birds

With winter beginning to fade here in Montana, I decided to take a look at what I had acquired for bird photos over the past 4 months or so. Compared with past years, the results are on the meager side. There are at least several reasons for that - less effort on my part and what seemed to be fewer bird species and numbers in the Helena area this winter.

As a general observation, our winter birds are not as colorful as the spring migrants and summer breeders. An exception to this may be the waxwings that are among our most photogenic winter visitors. But what our other winter residents may lack in color, they seem to make up in being quite photogenic. That is to say that their color patterns make for very good photographs. And there is no better example of this than Black-capped Chickadees. Last winter, a friend who feeds birds where he lives in the pine hills south of Helena invited me to take photos of the good variety of birds he had attending his feeders. A visit there last week was productive for several species such as Red-breasted Nuthatches and Brown Creepers, many of the species present last year were no where to be seen on this latest visit.
Out in the Helena Valley, one of the species that seems to be relatively plentiful are Gray Partridge. And the few open water areas that we have in winter usually support several of our hardier waterfowl species such as one of my favorites, the Hooded Merganser. And the Missouri River below Hauser Dam is a great place to view Common Goldeneye numbering in the hundreds. Perhaps surprisingly, our National Bird - Bald Eagle - is also quite easy to find in winter, with some of them likely being residents breeders and other maybe migrants that winter here. Now, as the weather warms and the ice loses it grip on our ponds and lakes, the spring waterfowl migration is upon us. This is a great time to get out into the frozen cattail marshes and wait for opportunities to photograph some of the abundant ducks, geese, and swans that stop over on their way north. Assuming we will get some nice weather in the next week or so, my next blog will feature some of images of these fast flying targets.