The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes’ Wildlife Management Program is pleased to announce our 2018 Community Birds & Bears Festival.  Please join us for a free community event!  The 6th annual celebration of birds & bears in science, art, and Salish, Pend d’Oreille and Kootenai Tribal culture! Everyone welcome!   All Ages Event!  Refreshments provided! Featuring our 16th annual 3rd Grade Bird Drawing Contest winners, exhibition dance and drummers, non-profit & educational stations, safety demos, art vendors, & hands on craft tables.  Opening Ceremony starts at 4:30pm, SKC: Johnny Arlee/Victor Charlo Theater with the remainder of the program in the Joe McDonald Health and Activity Center/Sherry McDonald Hospitality Room.  Hosted by: Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes Natural Resources Wildlife Program; Salish Kootenai College Division of Natural Resources; Mission Mountain Chapter of The Audubon Society

In 2002, our International Migratory Bird Day celebrations began as a 3rd grade migratory bird poster contest, including 3rd grade classes from both public and private reservation schools. We continue this annual tradition of educating local students about migratory birds and have given them the opportunity to celebrate International Migratory Bird Day with us through this poster art contest.

2017 brought about the decision to add outreach information about living with bears to our event.  The Flathead Reservation has two native bear species; grizzly bear and black bear. With a growing human population on the Flathead Reservation we took this opportunity to give people tips on living with bears, how to distinguish between the two species, as well as what to do when you encounter a bear either at your home our while recreating.

In 2018, the parent organization for Bird Day activities, Environment for the Americas (EFTA), joined the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) to create a single, global bird conservation education campaign, World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD). Continuing their tradition with IMBD (International Migratory Bird Day), WMBD in the Americas celebrates and brings attention to one of the most important and spectacular events in the Western Hemisphere – bird migration.  The 2018 conservation theme, Year of the Bird, highlights their new educational campaign and provides participants with simple actions that they can do to help birds each and every day of the year. Visit their dedicated website: http://www.environmentamericas.org/imbd/

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