Please join us for our last chapter meeting of 2025 on Monday, December 8, 2025 at 7:00 PM. We are excited to wrap up the year with welcoming our speaker, Cara Thompson, who will present her talk: Avian Biodiversity of the Flathead Nation.
The diversity of avian life on the Flathead Indian Reservation is impressive. Not only is the reservation home to five Audubon-designated Important Bird Areas, but the surrounding Mission Valley is a raptor, waterfowl, and exotic gamebird hotspot. One can find Brewer’s sparrows, bobolink, common loons, black swifts, and white-tailed ptarmigan all within the 40-mile width of the reservation. In addition, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes’ Wildlife Management Program has been a key player in the revival of the trumpeter swan in western Montana.
In her talk, Cara will dive into what makes this area so special. She will also tell us about tribal management of wildlife while taking a look at avian reintroduction and restoration efforts done by CSKT’s Wildlife Management Program. Cara will also discuss what local challenges these birds are facing, as well as talk about current research being conducted and interesting avian-related projects being done on the reservation.
Cara Thompson is a wildlife biologist for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. Her work focuses on non-game species and biodiversity within the Flathead Reservation, particularly in relation to habitat restoration efforts. Cara has spent the past 12 years working with a wide variety of wildlife, ecosystems, and agencies, spanning from the Rockies to the Ozarks and the Caribbean.
The meeting will be held in Room 110 in the Interdisciplinary Sciences Building (ISB) on the University of Montana campus. The building lies on the south end of campus on Beckwith Avenue between Maurice and Mansfield avenues. You also have the option of watching the meeting over Zoom:
https://umontana.zoom.us/j/96641215107
Meeting ID: 966 4121 5107
One tap mobile:
+16694449171,,96641215107# US
+16699006833,,96641215107# US (San Jose)
Join instructions:
https://umontana.zoom.us/meetings/96641215107/invitations?signature=q873x38kU4duxkgz_C9vsdGBuhMBXpu4dKlBmRRRVqo
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