Road Trips for Wildlife

 

This bird was not even on our target list, we haven't seen the

 Long-eared Owl for years.

Sitting at the edge of Divide Creek Road with it's wings spread 

to try to appear larger.  We wondered if it was injured?

We knew it was a juvenile because of the downy head feathers .  We purposely flushed the bird three times making sure it could fly well.  Then encouraged it to fly into the thick evergreens to be safe from the fast traffic along this gravel road.

A covey of Gray Partridge scurry through the grass.

Male Mountain Bluebird with some moulting.

Fledged juvenile Mountain Bluebird still food begging along with it's siblings

Mill Creek is the perfect habitat for the American Dipper that blends in very well with the rocks.

We observed at least two families of Dippers

Three juveniles begging parent for food found under the water.

They dive and walk underwater to find invertebrates.

This one is calling for more food, not ready to do it on it's own.

A family of Mink were playing along the creek.

So fast it was hard to get a clear shot.

These two practically ran over Ty's feet.

Yellow-rumped (Audubon's) Warbler

Not many species of warblers nest here or even migrate through.

Dusky Grouse hen, but she's not alone

Chicks were following close behind.

A trip northeast to Martinsdale Reservior produced a new bird for the year for us.

Marbled Godwit

American White Pelicans joined by many Franklin's Gulls and one Cloifornia Gull.

Mule Deer doe and her twins

Black-necked Stilts and American Avocets at Cottenwood Reservior

Juvenile Bald Eagle returns to it's nest tree

Bullock's Oriole near it's bulky nest to the right.

She made many trips to feed the young

Flock of Wild Turkeys make daily visit to resident's feeding station on Convict Grade Road.

Male Belted Kingfisher over Shield's River

MacGillvray's Warbler with insect

Pair of Hairy Woodpeckers, a rare treat

Sunrise over the Yellowstone River along Sheep Mountain Ridge

The high rock cliffs are very porous and loose stones roll down continuously

Violet-green Swallows nest here and hundreds of swallows gathered here before migrating south.

Violet-green Swallow actively feeding on insects over the river

These holes provide great nesting areas for a variety of birds and animals.

Ida saw a Bobcat climb up the cliff face.

Golden Eagles and Bald Eagles were flying along the cliffs 

Golden Eagle

American Kestrel escorting Red-tailed Hawk out of it's territory

A series of close dive bombing accelerated it's exit

Female Broad-tailed Hummingbird responded to pishing

Smoke moved in from Washington's and British Columbia's fires turned the sunrise red.

Five foot high Teasel  starting to bloom

New backyard visitor to our feeder - Downy Woodpecker..

White-tailed Buck also visits our backyard

A trip south to Tom Miner Basin to look for Grizzly Bears was successful.

This bear was the closest chowing down on wheat grass tubers.

One of the eleven bears we saw.  Looking to check us out.

Least Chipmunk at the Tom Miner Campground

Mountain Chickadee

White-crowned Sparrow

Brown Creepers were feeding close to the road.

They start at the bottom of the tree and work their way up checking bark fissures for insects.

Rainbow touches Livingston Peak.

So many different areas nearby that we can see God's creation all around.

Thankful to live here!

❤️ Love & Prayers  🙏🏽

Ty & Ida Baumann

Our Livingston Osprey Story

 

We have enjoyed birding for 56 years and have observed Osprey

 all over North America

For the last 10 years we have been observing the Sacajawea /Miles Park neesting pair

 in Livingston Montana

With each visit we witness fascinating behavior in the lives of this nesting pair.

This week I had the good fortune to visit online with biologist Dr. Marco Restani, who is the lead scientist on the Yellowstone River Osprey nesting project.  He works along side volunteer nest monitors and local utility companies who provide bucket trucks to safely reach the elevated nest platforms

These birds are part of he Yellowstone Valley Audubon Society monitoring initiative.

He shared his banding details and brood success data. You are looking at two of the three chicks that hatched this Spring.  Ospreys usually have one to four young per season where enviromental factors and food sources are stable. 

Osprey continue to bring sticks to the nest throughout the whole summer.

Male Osprey delivers a Sucker to his mate and young.

Next fish is even better, a Rainbow Trout.

A second trout is delivered to the hungry brood.

We have observed Trout, Suckers, White Fish, Bullheads, Carp and even a Sturgeon being brought to the nest.

The male goes to a nearby utility pole and feeds on the head.  When the female chirps he brings the rest over to the nest.

Here the female is tearing up the fish to feed the young.

The first hatched chick grows the quickest because ite takes the first dibs on the food.

Full time job to keep this family fed.

The young are banded prior to fledging.  

The young practice "helicoptoring" over the nest to build their flight muscles up for their first flight.

Notice the Yellowstone River's signiture green bands used to identify these birds from a distance.

The banding project celebrated a major milestone by banding it's 1,000th osprey chick from the 80 nests along the Yellowstone River.

Juveniles start leaving the nest in July before migrating in September.  The females are the first to leaave flying to Central and South America for the winter.  The next to leave will be the juveniles but they don't fly together.  Instinct is amazing in that they know where to go even though they have never done it before.  The young remain for two to three years before migrating back north to establish their own nesting territory.  The males are the last to leave.

Before migration, our trio have been returning every night to roost on the nest plaatform so they collectively food beg the parents for fish in the morning.

We have certainly enjoyed watching this family throughout the years.

For more information, go online as there is plenty of data to find.

❤️ Love & Prayers, 🙏🏽

Ty & Ida Baumann