92,000 snow geese push through Freezout Lake Wildlife Management Area

MISSOULA, Mont. — Bird counters estimate 92,000 snow geese pushed through Freezout Lake Wildlife Management Area near Choteau on Thursday.

That's the largest single-day number of birds counted this season. March 26 it was estimated that 53,000 birds were spotted.

"Yes, 92K is the estimate today," the update from the FWP migration status site notes. "Strong late pulse of birds arriving to the WMA. Winter like weather in the area is likely allowing numbers to build on the area. Suspect numbers will not last long once weather clears in the next day or two."

Every spring tens of thousands to more than 100,000 geese and swans per day migrate through Freezout Lake. The migration usually peaks the last week of March, and bird counters noted earlier this week that large numbers were probably over for the season, but that only time would tell.