Bridger Raptor Count Fall 2023
Season Summary
Species Composition
Species composition changes over time depending on weather, seasons, and many other factors. This chart displays the composition over a time period you select.
Click on pie pieces to see more detail. If there are more than seven species, click on "Other" to see a breakdown of the rest.
Display
Many sites have a protocol that is designed to maximize finding particular species. If you select "Focus Species," only these species will be shown.
Date Selector
The control box below the pie chart lets you select a date period for the chart.
You can push the buttons "1d," "1w," or "1m" to zoom the graph to 1 day, 1 week, or 1 month.
The graph shows the overall volume seen on each day. You can drag the sliders on each side of this graph to adjust the start and end dates.
Species Composition
August 15th to December 31st
Hourly Data
The time shown in the top row is the start of the one hour period.
Select Day
Choose a date to load the hourly table for that day. Only days that have data are shown.
Daily Counts
These charts show which species are most numerous at different parts of the season. Hover your mouse over a chart to see the number for a given day. The right column shows season totals and the left side shows the maximum for a single day. Each graph is scaled so that the single-day maximum is the highest point on the chart.
Sort By
- Focus Species: Show the highest priority species at the top of the list.
- Taxonomic Order: Sort the species by their scientific classification.
- Alphabetic Order: Sort the species by their common name.
- Abundance: Sort the species with the largest number counted at the top.
Daily Counts
Site Weather
Bridger Raptor Count Fall 2023
The Bridger Mountains site lies within the Gallatin National Forest on the east slope of the mountain range, about 25 km north of Bozeman and 3 km north of Saddle Peak. The count occurs from a helicopter platform located atop the ridge above Bridger Bowl Ski Area. This ongoing effort monitors long-term trends in populations of raptors using this northern portion of the Rocky Mountain Flyway. The flyway is noted for the largest concentration of Golden Eagles in the lower 48 states, with peak eagle activity (sometimes more than 200 eagles/day) in mid-October.
Directions
From Bozeman go to the Bridger Ski Area, approximately 15 miles NE of town on SR 86 (Bridger Canyon Road). Once at the ski area, the site is accessed from the ski area's Deer Park Chalet by following a primitive dirt road for 1.5 miles to the top of Bridger chair-lift, then continuing a short way along a footpath to the observation site at the top of the ridge. The climb is 2,100 feet in elevation gain and will take from 1.5 to 2 hours. Warm clothing, binoculars, and extra food and water are recommended.
Bridger Mountains Raptor Watch
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About the Data
All data displayed on this site are preliminary and have not yet undergone quality control. Written permission is required to use the data.