Posts by Vermont Center for Ecostudies 
Field Guide to January 2023
Although the days are slowly growing longer, life in the Northeast now finds itself in the coldest depths of winter. January is about survival. Wildlife that doesn’t migrate adapts instead to make it to spring. Here are a few tidbits of natural history happening outdoors this month around you.
VAL Gets a ‘Boost’
Vermont Atlas of Life (VAL) director Kent McFarland was recently recognized on behalf of the VAL team’s work with a 2022 SciSTARter Boost Award. He is among ten individuals who received this inaugural award for their outstanding work with community science.
Field Guide to December 2022
Fear not; during these short days and long nights of December, there’s still plenty of life in the fading light. Once we pass the winter solstice, which strikes at precisely 4:47 PM on December 21st, more light will creep back. Until then, here’s some wintry natural history to keep you going.
Field Guide to November 2022
With November comes a stronger nip to the morning air and the rushed activity of wildlife either preparing for their winter stay or leaving Vermont for their winter location. There is a sense of fall finality as the last deciduous trees drop their leaves. November also hails some of Vermont’s winter migrants, coming just in time to catch the first flakes. Learn more in our Field Guide to November.
Field Guide to October 2022
October is a memorable month for many reasons. The leaves change from summer emerald to autumn auburn and gold. Creatures of all sizes flit and scurry as they prepare for winter. And people’s homes become adorned with carved pumpkins, cackling witches, and looming ghosts. This field guide highlights a handful of Vermont’s Halloween-themed biodiversity in honor of the season. But beware—some of nature’s marvels can be frightful.
Field Guide to September 2022
It can happen almost anywhere. On a cool, foggy morning, for example, when fall warblers drop from their nocturnal migratory flights into your backyard. Or when the Monarchs gliding past you under a cool blue sky convince you that summer is indeed over. Here is your field guide to life slowing down and on the move in September.
ECO Americorps Members Reflect on Their Time at VCE
ECO Americorps members Abbie Castriotta and Julia Pupko reflect on their term here at VCE. Abbie has been involved with multiple invertebrate studies, and has even created regional field guides for VCE. Julia has been working on the Lady Beetle Atlas project, surveying the entire state. She has even discovered several new species of Lady Beetle during her time here.
Field Guide to August 2022
FEAR NOT— we’ve still got plenty of summer here in Vermont and points north. So in this edition of VCE’s monthly field guide to nature, we’ll celebrate a few summer-breeding species. But we’ll also alert you to animals on the move. Yeah, the “M-word.” So if you’re not quite ready for fall migration, well, sorry…too late.
VCE’s Bicknell’s Thrush Work Recognized with Prestigious Award
VCE’s 30+ years of Bicknell’s Thrush work was recently recognized by the Wilson Ornithological Society, which awarded us the prestigious Margaret Morse Nice Medal at its annual meeting in Santa Fe, NM. Nice’s pioneering studies of Song Sparrows in her Ohio backyard during the 1930s set the benchmark for “longitudinal” avian population research, an approach VCE has embodied through our hemispheric work on Bicknell’s Thrush.
Field Guide to July 2022
‘Tis the season for summer foraging! June has passed, with its delicious wild strawberries and serviceberries. July is ushered in, bringing wild blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries, along with some non-berry foraging opportunities–true Chanterelles (Cantharellus sp.). Start the month here.
Field Guide to June 2022
Spring ephemerals have begun to fade, and baby critters abound—June has arrived, and summer is hot on its heels. Across the landscape, wildlife dramas large and small unfold. Warm breezes carry away the last memories of winter frost. June has much to offer, from tapeworms using mind-control to Eastern Cottonwoods shedding their downy seeds. Start the month off here.
Field Guide to May 2022
Trees are leafing out, and newly arrived migrant birds are dripping from branches. Insects are emerging and pollinating blossoming flowers. Discover all the sights May has to offer with our Field Guide.
