to increase coverage of the study area when it became apparent that weather would be an 

 important factor in determining how many routes could be conducted. A fixed radius of 150 m 

 was used on all counts, which varies from the BBS standard (a quarter mile, which is about 400 

 m). This was done to allow for a more accurate assessment of bird association to small-scale 

 habitat conditions, which are not recorded on BBS surveys. During counts, no acoustical lure 

 (recording or vocalization) was used to attract birds or make them more detectable. In a few 

 cases, however, vocalizations were used following a count to aid in identification of a bird 

 detected but not identified during the count. In a few cases, especially in forested sites, 

 vocalizing birds were stalked after counts terminated to identify their distances from count 

 centers. Generally, point count boundaries were estimated by pacing to objects estimated to be 

 near count perimeters, at least until a sense of count radius was developed. 



Data were recorded on standardized data collection booklets modified for Montana PIF 

 (J. Hoffland personal communication) from an original design used by the USPS Region I 

 Landbird Monitoring Program (Hutto and Young 1999). Distances to individual birds were 

 recorded, but orientation from the point center was not. Species and number of individuals was 

 also recorded. Some species were recorded flying over the circle but never landing within the 

 count area These were recorded as flyovers, and are reported as such for each stop where they 

 occurred (see route descriptions in Resuks). 



During the period when transects were conducted, especially in 1999, a campsite in the 

 acid shale pine forest near War Horse Lake was occupied, A daily record was made of birds 

 occupying this unique plant community (see Appendix 1), and breeding or probable breeding 

 was also recorded. These records contribute to the information on the bird fauna of the study 

 area that were gathered during the point count transects. 



