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Overview
About Birds
Important Bird Areas
Bird Conservation
Bird Distribution
Birds of Montana Book Project
Citizen Science
Resources

montana audubon - citizen science

You don't need to be a professional biologist to contribute to sound science and have a great time doing it.  Consider joining one of these citizen efforts and provide invaluable information of the birds, wildlife and natural systems of Montana and beyond. 

These are a mix of projects in which Montana Audubon is directly involved together with those we like and recommend!

• Christmas Bird Count - Join us! Over 30 counts in Montana (opens new page)
  
  
• Your Bird Sightings - please submit! It is incredibly valuable for birders to share their Montana bird sightings and lists. Collectively, this helps contribute to our understanding of where our birds live and how their distribution and populations change over time. There are a number of ways to help; use whichever system below you find most effective and convenient. Ultimately these different programs collaborate and share.
  
  
  • eBIRD. This real-time, online checklist program is a collaboration between Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Audubon. It's an easy way to submit your bird checklists and is now one of the largest biodiversity data resources out there (link will take you to the eBIRD website).
    
    
  • Montana Natural Heritage Program's Tracker. Within this system there are a few different ways to submit your bird data. Find the one that works best for you. The data the Heritage Program receives is quickly utilized in on the ground conservation and will be used for the newest Montana Bird Distribution - MBD (link will take you to our MBD web page).
    
    
  • Adopt a QQLL. This Montana Audubon effort to engage Montana's talented birders will help make the next edition of P. D. Skarr's Montana Bird Distribution the best yet!
    
    
    
• Important Bird Areas Program - we conduct volunteer surveys on many of our IBAs. This link will take you to the IBA program section of our website.
  
  
• Greater Sage-Grouse Adopt-a-Lek - New for spring 2012! Montana Audubon is now the home to this great citizen monitoring program,a dn we are looking for lek adopters.
  
  
• Great Backyard Bird Count - THe next count takes place Feb 17-20, 2012. 2011 Highlights are posted. (Weblink takes you to the GBBC page).
  
  
• Bridger Raptor Migration Count - this link will take you to our Raptor Page.
  
  
• Nightjar Surveys - A national survey with routes available to adopt in Montana. We welcome -- and need -- surveyors in our state during the summer of 2011.
  
  
• Flammulated Owls - in collaboration with the Avian Science Center and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks - Missoula and Helena areas.
  
  
• Colonial Waterbirds - with Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks. Opens new Waterbird Page.
  
  
• Project FeederWatch - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
  
  
• BUDBURST - a national project to track the impacts on plant phenology with our changing climate.

If you find a banded or color marked bird, report to the Bird Banding Laboratory.

If you know of citizen science projects in your community, contact Amy, and she'll add a link! 

More citizen science ideas and opportunities from National Audubon Society >>

US Nightjar Surveys

Common Nighthawks and Common Poorwills in Montana may be in serious decline. Nation-wide some species of Nightjars appear to be declining but data from Montana are limited.

Working with Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks, we hope to increase efforts in our State. If you are interested, contact Amy Cilimburg or Catherine Wightman with FWP.

The nationwide survey is best describes in this FLYER.

The U.S. Nightjar Survey Network is fast becoming a vital program to gather data on the population distribution and population trends on this group of declining species. All birders and conservationists are welcome to participate in the program by adopting Nightjar Survey Routes in 2011.

Nightjars are the group of nocturnal, insectivorous birds that includes species such as the whip-poor-will, common poorwill, chuck-will's-widow, and the nighthawks among others. The U.S. Nightjar Survey Network was introduced in the southeast in 2007 and then expanded in 2008 to gain full coverage across the conterminous United States. We are grateful to the number of participants already involved in the program. The beginning years of data collection has already helped in explaining how the composition of habitats in local landscapes influences nightjar abundance. In turn, these data will one day help to explain population declines. However, there is still need for more routes to be surveyed, greater geographic and species coverage, and longer-term count data.

Nightjar Surveys are standardized counts conducted along census routes at night. Observers count all Nightjars seen or heard for a six-minute period at each of 10 stops along the route. The entire survey will not take much more than one hour to complete and only needs conducted one time per year. We have produced a series of routes in each state with many that are still in need of adoption by survey participants.

Please consider adopting a Nightjar Survey Route in your area. The continuing success of Nightjar Survey Network relies entirely on volunteer participation.

For details on route locations, methods of survey, and more go HERE.

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Flammulated Owls Citizen Surveys in Western Montana

With funding from Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks and in collaboration with the University of Montana's Avian Science Center and the Helena National Forest, Montana Audubon has organized this citizen science program continues to survey for owls for a number of years. We are taking a year off in 2011.

Members of the Five Valleys Audubon Society Chapter and friends adopt owl survey routes in and around the Missoula area. And members of the Last Chance Audubon Society Chapter and friends can do the same on the Helena National Forest and City of Helena lands. A special thanks to Birds & Beasleys in Helena.

REPORTS: 2010 Flam surveys; 2009 efforts

More information about these surveys (2005-2010) - can be found at the ASC's website: Flammulated Owl

CONTACTS:

Montana Audubon's Amy Cilimburg (406-465-1141)

Avian Science Center's Megan Fylling (406-360-9814).

Helena National Forest's biologist Denise Pengeroth (406-449-5201).

Above, Matt Seidensticker photo

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