Four Federal (Yes, Federal!) Bills for Bird Conservation
We can’t deny the bad environmental news, but people across the U.S. are still working to protect wild birds with several positive, bird-related bills currently before Congress.
Legal Lead Fishing Gear Is Still Killing Loons
I watched Mark Pokras, a seasoned veterinarian from Tufts University, pull a jig out of the loon’s gizzard. “If you can scrape the top layer, it’s probably lead,” he explained.
Teaching the Teachers About Community Science
Science educator and naturalist Ron Smith partnered with VCE to facilitate our fourth Community Science Teacher Education Workshop this July. Here he shares all the invertebrate investigations the teachers engaged in on just one day of the four-day workshop.
The Ripple Effect: Wakeboats Pose Risks to Loon Nests
For many, current rules on wakeboats, which create ocean sized waves for wakeboarding, may not go far enough to ease concerns about safe recreation and impacts on aquatic environments. Loons and their nests may especially be at risk.
A Letter From Our Executive Director: Prepared for This Moment
These are not normal times for science or conservation. And many of you have asked how recent federal actions have affected VCE’s work.
Is Our Tick Anxiety Affecting Pollinators?
In a soon-to-be-published VCE study, tick spraying was associated with a five to 30% immediate decline for most invertebrate groups, especially less mobile and soft-bodied arthropods, like native caterpillars that turn into moths and butterflies.
Field Guide to August 2025
In August, birding efforts are fruitful if you know where to look. Berry-bearing trees and shrubs feed thrushes, waxwings, and bluebirds, while migrating shorebirds pause along gravel bars and mudflats. Where else can you see gems of summer’s end? One of the many public lands that make the woods and waters of northern New England accessible to all.
Community Science in Action: How I Recruited 700 Volunteers to Our Plant Ecotype Project
The Adopt-A-Plant project paired native plants with volunteers eager to grow them in their backyards and report observations back to VCE.
Two Biologists and Every Loon in Vermont: the Power of Community Science
Loon surveying for VCE’s Loon Conservation Project is a time-consuming task, between all of the paddling and what seems like an hour-long drive minimum to get anywhere on Vermont back roads. All of that monitoring is managed by just two loon biologists…and hundreds of volunteers.
How eBird Vermont Checks Your Observations
Unlike iNaturalist, where photos or audio are required to reach “Research Grade” validation, eBird does not require physical evidence of most sightings. So how do we know that people saw what they say they saw?
Field Guide to July 2025
Summer is the season to discover unsung (and often unseen) wildlife—like the wild bees, moths, and beetles who play vital roles in the ecosystem. Dive into July’s field guide to learn more about these animals and uncover the buzz, hum, and scuttle of summer.
Are Honey Bees Good?
As a wild bee biologist for VCE, I’ve spent the better part of the last five years studying, counting, and watching native bees, which are often overlooked in favor of their domesticated cousins.
In the Silence of Whip-poor-wills
I’m neither bored nor disappointed on zero-count nights. I relish the chance to pay close attention outside at night, and to do so as part of a community ritual.
New Study Shows Native Cherry Trees Better Support Native Moths
Native plants are great and all, but what if all they have at the garden center is a closely related, non-native species imported from Asia or Europe? A new paper by VCE biologist Desirée Narango has the answer.
A Bittersweet Goodbye to Steve Faccio
While intrigued by research questions and inspired by fieldwork, Steve’s focus has never wavered from applying his findings to guide conservation.
Observing Protected Species: How We Hide Their Location Data
For species under poaching pressure, like many reptiles and amphibians (due to collection for the pet trade), sharing exact locations could be catastrophic. That’s why location data is automatically obscured for threatened and endangered species.
Field Guide to June 2025
With nice weather finally (finally?) upon us, many are turning their attention to outdoor adventure. While out exploring, may come across these early summer sights: montane birds at the trailhead or White Bog Orchids in a marsh or bog. Or wildlife may come to you, with a colony of house bats and their pups! This June’s guide gives you insight into their behaviors and life history.
Proposed Rule Threatens to Narrow Endangered Species Protections
For more than 50 years, the Endangered Species Act has been considered “our nation’s most effective law to protect species from extinction.” However, a proposed rule throws the future of this law’s protections into question.
How We’re Taking Species Mapping to the Next Level
Using Species Distribution Models based on observations submitted to the Vermont Atlas of Life by community scientists, in combination with environmental data collected by satellites, can help land stewards create habitat conservation and restoration plans.
How Avian Influenza Might Be Affecting Loons
The iconic Common Loons may not be as vulnerable to bird flu as some species, but cases are emerging. Learn how researchers are monitoring this evolving threat and how you can help protect loons.
Field Guide to May 2025
This month is filled with natural delights. Bees buzzing around flowering trees, lively Blackpoll Warblers in backyards, and bud burst await. Grab your binoculars and take a neighborhood walk — here are the sounds and sights of May.
Does No Mow May Invite Invasives and Ticks to Your Yard?
The term “No Mow May” seems to imply that helping our pollinators is as simple as that: not mowing. But there are drawbacks.
New Names for Some Vermont Birds: a Primer on Taxonomy
Each year, experts on the American Ornithological Society (AOS) North American Classification Committee carefully review proposals to split and lump species based on new scientific evidence, to make sure species are grouped based on the best available science. And this typically calls for a new set of common names as well.
Why Are Evening Grosbeak Numbers Rising in the Northeast and Declining Everywhere Else?
Evening Grosbeaks have declined by about 90% in the last 50 years in most of the country. But in the Northeast, the population has been increasing. We hosted a team of researchers to tag these birds and find out why.
Field Guide to April 2025
It may be mud season in Vermont, but there are pops of color to be found if you know where to look! From small flowers on the forest floor to fluttering moths and spotted frogs calling from the ponds, there are so many beautiful reasons to get outside and muck around. So grab your raincoat and keep your eyes and ears open for April’s coming attractions.
February 2025 Photo-observation of the Month
Congratulations to iNaturalist user @cgbb2004 for winning the February 2025 Photo-observation of the Month for the Vermont Atlas of Life on…
Field Guide to March 2025
March has arrived in classic New England spring fashion this year. With rapid shifts between blistering cold and warm rainy days, this month is reminiscent of its’ eponymous Roman god, Mars. Being named after the god of war, March is a month of battles between warm and cold, between winter’s refusal to leave and spring’s insistence on coming.
Follow this contest as it unfolds to an inevitable conclusion with these signs of spring.
Lamoille Birders Win 14th Annual Vermont eBird County Quest
Vermont’s robust birding community took part in the 14th Vermont eBird County Quest in 2024. The annual year-long contest pits county versus county, birder against birder, all engaged in a friendly rivalry for top birding honors. The main idea behind the County Quest is simply to get people out birding, promote camaraderie, and better document bird life across the state using eBird Vermont. Lamoille County captured the gold medal for this first time in 2024.
February 2025 Field Guide
This month, wildlife and the rest of us here in New England will cross a threshold – arbitrary yet not insignificant: 10 hours of daylight. So here’s a Field Guide to February to help get your hopes up, no matter what that Groundhog predicts.
January 2025 Photo-observation of the Month
Congratulations to iNaturalist user @rebelgirl73 for winning the January 2025 Photo-observation of the Month for the Vermont Atlas of Life on iNaturalist! Her photo of a Barred Owl perched on a street sign received the most faves of any iNaturalist observation in Vermont during the past month.
