Last Chance Audubon Society
Promoting understanding, respect, and enjoyment of birds and the natural world
through education, habitat protection and environment advocacy.

About LCAS
Membership
Contact
Calendar
History

Birding
Field Trips
Christmas Bird Count
Birdathon
Birding in the Helena Area

Learning
Chapter Programs
Monthly Newsletters
Natural History Lecture Series

Conserving
Habitat Protection
Environmental Advocacy

Bird of the Month
Ruby-crowned Kinglets are found in the City of Helena, on Mount Helena and the gulches south of town often associated with Douglas-fir trees. Kinglets are among the smallest passerine birds in North America, weighing in at about one-half of a chickadee. They are overall gray with pale olive-green on their back and wings. They have two white wing bars on relative dark wings. Kinglets have bold, incomplete white rings which give them a "wide-eyed" appearance. Male Ruby-crowned Kinglets have bright red crests which are seldom visible except when the bird is excited. Kinglets are constantly active, and are easily recognized by characteristic rapid, wing-flicking.

Kinglets nest and forage in the canopy of older, taller, and denser tree stands and this makes them difficult to observe. During the breeding season their presence is easily detected by their song. Their song is long, bubbly, and amazingly loud and seems outsized for such a small bird. A cup shaped, suspended nest is constructed and the female often lays large clutches of eggs and their total weight may exceed that of the adult female.

The Ruby-crowned Kinglet is a summer resident and migrates south in the winter unlike its cousin the Golden-crowned Kinglet which is found in conifer forests year round.

As you walk the streets of Helena or surrounding forests listen for Regulus calendula - the glowing little king! (Dan Sullivan) (Photo - A.J. Hand)

Upcoming Programs
MEMBERSHIP MEETING: Last Chance Audubon Society meets the Third Monday of the Month, September - May, at 7:00 pm at the Montana Wild Center. The Montana Wild Center is located on 2668 Broadwater Ave off of Euclid Avenue across from Kessler Elementary School on the west side of Helena.(map)

The program -- Bats and Backyard Bat Habitat by: Matt Bell. Monday - May 21, 2012.

Matt Bell has been bat detecting in the Helena area for the past 7 years. An avid bat enthusiast, he will introduce us to these fascinating and often misunderstood animals. His program will cover the bats in our community and ways we can make our backyards more bat friendly including the construction and placement of bat houses. Other topics include bat myths, current threats to bat populations, echolocation, how scientists use acoustic data to identify species and how to build your own low-cost ultrasonic detector.

Matt is the founder of the Helena Bat Group that educates the public and promotes local bat conservation efforts. He hosts summer bat walks at Spring Meadow Lake and bat house building workshops through the Montana Wild Center. He uses mostly acoustic monitoring technologies to experience and enjoy these amazing nighttime predators. After the program you are invited to join Matt down by the dock at Spring Meadow Lake to hear bat echolocation first hand!

Recent News

Every year during May LCAS conducts a Birdathon. This is a fundraising event where teams of birders spend 24 hours counting as many bird species as possible. Each team finds sponsors for their count and pledges are made. Some pledges are per species and some are straight donations.

Birdathon is a lot of fun. How often do you get an excuse to spend a whole day (and night) out looking for birds? And, how often does a birding trip result in funding for LCAS habitat protection and other programs?

If you'd like to try your hand at a Birdathon, get a team together and give Jo Lace a call (443-6640), If you don't want to conduct a Birdathon, please be generous when solicited.