What is snake River raptor fest?

Snake River Raptor Fest is an annual celebration of the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area (NCA). The inaugural event was held in 2018 during the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the conservation area. Raptor Fest has been held at Indian Creek Winery in Kuna, Idaho each year since (with the exception of our virtual celebration during the Covid pandemic). The aim of the festival is to create a day where conservation, restoration, and community come together in an easy, inviting way. People come for the live music, local food and drinks, beautiful winery gardens, and children's activities, and find themselves immersed in the educational and outreach activities provided by non-profit organizations, land management agencies, educational institutions, and other local partners during the event. And, did we mention that live ambassador birds are intermixed throughout the venue thanks to our partners at the Bureau of Land Management, the Peregrine Fund, the Idaho Falconers Association, as well as our good friends Monte Tish and Slim the golden eagle.

Why we host this annual celebration

The NCA was designated by congress in 1993 to protect birds of prey, their prey species, and the habitats they rely on. However, many had begun to see that there was something remarkable about this area long before that. Morley Nelson was the first to notice the unusually high numbers of birds of prey in the Snake River Canyon near Swan Falls Dam in the 1950’s, and researchers began to document the unique assemblage of eagles, falcons, hawks, owls, and other raptor species found here in the 1960’s, leading to the protection of a 26,000 acre ‘Snake River Birds of Prey Natural Area’ in 1971. The protected area was expanded to roughly 482,000 acres by then Secretary of the Interior, Cecile Andrus, in 1980. The NCA now consists of more than 485,000 acres of public lands along an 81 mile stretch of the Snake River Canyon in southwest Idaho and is managed by the Bureau of Land Management.

The NCA hosts one of the densest nesting areas for birds of prey in the world and supports additional raptor species during migration and throughout the winter months. However, many area locals and recent transplants to southwestern Idaho are not familiar with the area's importance for raptors, the hard-fought campaign to protect the area, or how they can help ensure this amazing landscape continues to support healthy raptor populations for years to come. Threats like frequent wildfires, habitat conversion, irresponsible recreational, illegal shooting, littering, and trash dumping are impacting the landscape in ways that we do not yet fully understand. Our hope is that this event changes the lens through which visitors view the NCA landscape and the natural resources that it supports, leading to a stronger sense of appreciation and ownership of this truly unique and amazing area of public lands.

Festival Highlights

Live ambassador birds

Children's activity area

Local arts & craft vendors

Live music from you favorite local musicians

Food trucks, ice cream, and non-alcoholic beverage vendors

Wine and beer from our sponsors at Indian Creek Winery & Lost Grove Brewing

Education and outreach activities provided by BOPP and our partner organizations

Short, informal talks from researchers, policy makers, and conservation advocates

Pre-festival field trips to the NCA — birding excursions, native plant walks, and more

Get Involved

Eventbrite Tickets (coming soon) — There is no charge to reserve tickets. We do ask that everyone register for tickets so that we can track attendance and provide additional event information, including optional field trip details and registration forms.
Volunteer Registration Form (coming soon) — We rely on help from our supporters to host high-quality and well run events.
Vendor Application Form — Do you want to be a vendor at this year’s Raptor Fest? If so, sign up here!