Project Updates

This class enrolled 12 undergraduates from Boise State, 1 undergraduate from College of Western Idaho, and 3 graduate students, along with additional community volunteers. As part of Boise State’s Vertically Integrated Project course format, students had the chance to learn field techniques and mentor each other in a cohort setting. By the end of the semester each student learned to safely hold birds and record data. And our VIP 400 level students were each able to band at least one bird on their own! Our students created posters to be presented at Boise State’s VIP Showcase from 4pm to 6pm on December 10th.

the crossbills have survived the flames of 2020, their future unfortunately remains uncertain. 

Here at IBO, we have spent the last few years working hard to try to make that future a bit more certain. 

Since 2020, we have worked alongside a team of experts from (among others) the U.S. Forest Service, Idaho Fish and Game, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of a Cassia Crossbill Working Group. The overall goal of this group is to deepen our understanding of Cassia Crossbills and to help guide current and future habitat management and restoration efforts. 

A key part of our contribution to the working group is yearly surveys conducted across the South Hills and Albions. 

During these surveys we collect a wide range of data, from crossbill sightings and behavioral observations to tree health and lodgepole pine cone availability (fun fact: we counted more than 700,000 cones this year!). We use these data to investigate questions about crossbills, and even to create models that predict where suitable crossbill habitat is found. This information helps our partners at the U.S. Forest Service make management decisions. In June 2025, the Sawtooth National Forest finalized its “Cassia Crossbill Habitat Management Plan” – produced with the support of IBO staff and many other members of the Cassia Crossbill Working Group that we helped form in 2021.

When making these management decisions, it’s easy to get lost in the abundance of data as we try to understand the different connections between crossbills, their environment, and the challenges they face. As much as we’d like to, it isn’t feasible to implement management actions in every corner of the South Hills and Albions. 

So, the challenge becomes wading through the sea of data (including over half a million pine cones) to decide what actions to take and where to take them.

While talking with one of our partners at the U.S. Forest Service earlier this year, I was reminded that sometimes challenging questions can be solved with simple answers. He mentioned that one of the most valuable – and most frequently used – pieces of data we collect, is also the simplest: our observations of perched crossbills. 

While models can predict the presence of lodgepole pine or describe key habitat features, those plain ol’ crossbill observations tell a clear story: the birds are using this habitat! 

That information helps the Forest Service make critical decisions such as when and where to perform prescribed burns, and how to prioritize which forest stands to protect in the event of a wildfire. If the crossbills are using it, then to at least some degree, the habitat must still be functional – so let’s keep it around!

In the end, these decisions are almost always complex, and we do use every piece of information at our disposal to make them. As scientists we will always relish the opportunity to dive “under the hood” and investigate things on a deeper level. But sometimes, I think it would be a good idea for all of us to take a step back, simplify, and just let the birds decide.

it ever has in a single year! Prior to 2025 we have had very few detections at this site, and we wonder if the fire may have actually increased the lines-of-sight for the antenna array and thus increased the detectability of the Motus tags on the birds that fly over or stopover on the Peak. This year the Lucky Peak Motus station detected 13 individual tags representing 6 species: 2 Common Poorwill, 1 Northern Saw-whet Owl, 1 Swainson’s Thrush, 2 Tree Swallow, 3 White-crowned Sparrow, and 4 Willow Flycatcher. These tags were deployed by fellow conservation organizations including Birds Canada, Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment and Climate Change Canada, MPG Ranch, University of Montana Bird Ecology Lab, Tatlayoko Lake Bird Observatory, and Texas A and M University. This has more than doubled the total number of tag detections this station had prior to this year!

Visit the Motus website to check out tag detections for the Lucky Peak or other Motus stations, or to learn more about the network!

Over the course of the season, we banded 109 hummingbirds — including 39 Black-chinned, 57 Calliope, and 13 Rufous Hummingbirds. Each encounter gave us important data on migration timing, site fidelity (we had 4 recaptures from our 2024 banding days!), and nesting success.

Looking ahead, we’re excited to announce that IBO received a Community Engaged Public Scholarship Initiative (CEPSI) award from Boise State to support expanded community science and undergraduate research at Bogus Basin. This new funding will help us add opportunities for students and volunteers to get involved in flower phenology and hummingbird foraging research that will grow our knowledge of hummingbird habitat use in this area. If you’d like to get involved, fill out our Volunteer Interest Form and select our Bogus Basin projects under “Additional Opportunities”

And the best news? Thanks to continued support from NFF and Wild Birds Unlimited, we’ll be returning to Bogus Basin in 2026 for another season of hummingbird banding and outreach!

Stay tuned for updates on how you can join us in the field next summer to see these dazzling mountain jewels up close.

Last Spring, we made a concerted effort to take cuttings from existing cottonwoods, willows, and other shrubs found on the property. Led by CWI Horticulture graduate Elizabeth Serocki (who is now a BSU student), the cuttings were soaked in water for at least a month before potting.

Our goal was to see if we could take cuttings, root them, and store them in pots over the summer for fall plantings. Our ultimate goal is to be able to produce locally-adapted native riparian plants to revegetate Boise River habitats after planned future ecological restoration projects. These projects are still likely 2-3 years out, but we hope to have thousands of plants ready to go when the time comes.

Our students and IBO volunteers took cuttings in late winter. Then we made our own planting mix by combining topsoil, mulch, vermiculite, peat moss, and other organic matter. We prepared the cuttings and potted them all up in April and May. 

The cuttings hung out at my house through the summer, and I watched a slow attrition over time. We are still trying to find that perfect balance of light, soil, water, pot size, and other factors. 

Despite losses, we still ended up with about 50% survival of the cuttings (more than 500 viable plants!), and they were planted at public events earlier this October. I’m very anxious to see how they fare in the next growing season. We even planted some at Lucky Peak!

Future plans involve ramping up this effort, working out the kinks, and finding a dedicated space to grow and store plants for future restoration projects. 

For students, we are designing an updated course on ecological restoration that will focus on the plant propagation efforts, highlight restoration techniques, tour nearby parks and natural areas to see different techniques and approaches, learn from guest speakers and scientists, and incorporate community volunteers. 

I can imagine a native plant nursery managed by Boise State students propagating locally-adapted plants, contributing to conservation and restoration far into the future. There is a need, and we have a solution!

If you’re interested in volunteering with IBO on habitat projects or other volunteer opportunities, be sure to fill out our volunteer interest form.