The Christmas season includes an annual series of days when the public volunteers to take a tally of all the birds they see in their home area. The Christmas Bird Count has been a popular activity in the Bitterroot Valley and Western Montana. In fact, the Stevensville Christmas Bird Count has surpassed a few records over the years. Bob Danley of the Bitterroot Outdoor Journal has a list of quite a few of the Bird Counts near us.
Western Montana Bird Counts:
December 15:
Hamilton - Teller Wildlife Refuge (More Information coming)
Missoula - Contact Larry Weeks 549-5632 or bwsgenea@gmail.com
Bigfork - Craig Hohenberger 406-890-1629 or asoleado2003@yahoo.com
December 16:
Glacier National Park - Lisa Bate 406-888-7833 or lisa_Bate@nps.gov
December 29:
Stevensville - Dave Lockman 406-381-7679 or dlockman@fs.fed.us
December 30:
Kalispell - Peter Fisher 406-250-9624 or pfisher@krmc.org
First week in January - Big Hole - To Be Announced.

Bob's research shows that the about 140 species are usually found in the 31 count areas of Montana. Largest numbers usually are Canada Goose, followed by Bohemian Waxwing, Mallards and Starlings. The Bald Eagle was counted in all the Montana counting circles last year.

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