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Hellgate Osprey Chicks’ Names Revealed After Community Vote

Iris (behind) at the at the Hellgate Osprey nest with her two chicks, Antali (younger, left) and Sum-eh (elder, right).

Thousands voted, and the names of the 2024 Hellgate Osprey chicks have been decided. Meet “Sum-eh” (elder chick) and “Antali” (younger chick)! This pair of names topped the polls by a large margin, receiving 2,081 out of 2,313 total votes. See the graph below for a voting breakdown.

The valleys, rivers, and mountains around Missoula in western Montana were the traditional homeland of the Salish people. The names were chosen for these two special 2024 chicks to honor the Salish people’s deep connection to the land and waters where Iris has raised her offspring for three decades.

“Sum-eh” was the name of a remarkable Salish woman and an extremely important person in her tribe. She served as the tribe’s midwife, as well as a disciplinarian of sorts, and lived to be 112 years old. “Antali” is a Salish name that can be roughly translated as Andrew or Andrea.

Salish teepees with horses along the Clark Fork River.  The location of the Hellgate Osprey nest is shown just across the river. Photo courtesy of the University of Montana photo archives.
Sum-eh collecting Bitterroots just west of the Hellgate Osprey nest. Photo courtesy of the University of Montana photo archives.

We especially thank Myrna and Arleen Adams, Lucy and Frances Vanderburg and Michael Thomas for sharing these names with us and graciously letting us use them.

Voting Breakdown For Naming The 2024 Nestlings

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