WILDLIFE WATCHING -- A startling report has been filed by a birdwatcher surveying species recently at the Little Pend Oreille Wildlife Refuge east of Colville.

Although Mike Munts of Arco, Idaho, observed nearly 50 species in two days at the refuge, one observation was remarkable.

For those who may not have been there , LPO is an amazing birding site. One of the few refuges that is predominantly forested it has some impressive birding for species many folks don’t encounter much. The scenery here in the southern Selkirk Mountains is not bad either.

One of the highlights was a flock of more than 200 Clark’s Nutcrackers at the refuge headquarters Sunday afternoon. I have seen hundreds possibly thousands of nutcrackers over the years but I have never seen a flock anywhere near this size before. At one point most of the flock took flight and the sky seemed to be filled with nutcrackers. Truly an impressive sight that I will remember for some time.