Author Archives: Dottie Moon

This morning, Papa woke me up to go hunting. It was 5:00 AM! I got dressed quickly. Then we got in the truck and drove towards Sawmill Gulch, Rattlesnake. We had packed yesterday, so it was really easy to get out of the house. Yesterday, while I was packing my bag, I included my natureContinue reading “Hunting while birding or is it birding while hunting?”

Last week I interviewed Erick Greene, a professor of Biological Sciences at the University of Montana. He is the resident ecologist for the Montana Osprey Project and my friend.  I had never interviewed someone before, so I was excited! I hope you listen to the interview and learn lots of new facts about ospreys andContinue reading “The Montana Osprey Project”

This month I have been interested in fires and how some birds depend on them. To learn more about fire-dependent birds. I asked Papa if he could get me a book from the library. Last week when we went to the library, Papa went to the reserved section of the library and came back withContinue reading “Fire Birds”

A few days ago, we went to Tower Street Open-space Park to band Osprey chicks. I went with Papa, Lucy, Dalit, Rob, Adam, and Erim. When we arrived, we saw one of the Ospreys. I used my binos to take a look at it (Papa had forgotten his binos). I saw a blue band butContinue reading “We Banded Osprey Chicks”

For the last two days, I have been sketching birds from my new Sibley’s Guide to Birds. I sketched the Blue-and yellow Macaw, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Baltimore Oriole, Wood Duck, American Kestrel, Great-gray Owl, Varied Thrush and California Quail. I chose these birds because they are detailed and difficult. They are difficult because IContinue reading “My Bird Sketches”

Mom and I took a nature journaling class from the Montana Natural History Center in Missoula. In this nature journal entry, I combined three of our homework assignments into one entry. They were called Zoom in, Zoom out, Species Account, and Palette of Place. A few weeks ago, Lucy, Mom and I went down toContinue reading “Salmon Flies : A Food Source For Birds”

Last week we got a surprise phone call from Erick Greene, an expert in behavior ecology who teaches at the University of Montana. Erick asked us if we wanted to go rescue a gosling with fishing line stuck around its leg at McCormick Park. Bird Emergency Rescue Mission! We drove to McCormick Park and spottedContinue reading “The Good and Bad of Fishing Line”

This morning I heard a song of a large finch called an Evening Grosbeak. I learned that gros means big and all grosbeaks have a pretty big beak. There were 21 Evening Grosbeaks in our tree singing like crazy. Evening Grosbeaks make me joyful because of their sun-shinny yellow feathers. I get ecstatic when IContinue reading “This Yellow, Black and White Bird is Worth Seeing”

The Global Big Day is tomorrow! The GBD is when the world goes birding and people record the birds they see or hear on Saturday, May 8th. The GBD is called the GBD because it’s global and for birders it really is a big day! The GBD is on May 8th and really anyone canContinue reading “I’m a Citizen Scientist And You Can Be One Too!”

Ospreys are on every continent except Antarctica. They are awesome fishers, nearly their whole diet is made up of fish and they catch fish by hovering then diving. In most places Ospreys migrate, the Ospreys in Florida and Mexico stay year-round and most of them migrate to those places. They build large nests like eaglesContinue reading “Ospreys”