Much of the West has been under varying degrees of drought for the past several years and Montana is no exception. The southwest part of the state has been the worst but this year drought conditions have become more severe across more of the state. One of the places I spend much of time is extremely dry this year. Above, what is normally a year-round shallow pond is currently baked mud. I typically make it out to this location by late May or early June and, this year, this pond has been dry since before my first visit. Typically right now this pond is full of wading birds and gulls. Another pond across the road still has water but is shrinking fast. A few birds were using it but as of my last visit, most have moved on to better locations.