Northern Saw-whet Owl © Alex Wells
Bowfin © Nathaniel Sharp
Congratulations to Alex Wells and Nathaniel Sharp for winning the July 2019 Vermont Atlas of Life iNaturalist photo-observation of the month. In this dead-heat between the ECO AmeriCorps members serving at the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, Vermont Atlas of Life contributors ‘faved’ both the cute, and the…not so cute, with Alex’s stunning photo of a Northern Saw-whet Owl and Nathaniel’s photo of a prehistoric-looking Bowfin skull receiving an equal number of faves this month.
With over 15,600 photo-observations submitted by over 760 observers in July, it was competitive. Click on the image to visit the Vermont Atlas of Life on iNaturalist and explore more.
The Northern Saw-whet Owl is one of the smallest, and arguably cutest owls in Vermont, and its sonar-like ‘tooting’ call can be heard on quiet nights from spring through fall. Keep an eye out for upcoming Saw-whet Owl banding workshops that occur at several locations across Vermont during the fall months! The Bowfin is a large, torpedo-shaped fish with a characteristic tail spot and a startling array of teeth. Fish are one of the most undersampled taxa on iNaturalist, so if you are an angler or simply someone who appreciates everything from minnows to trout, consider uploading your observations of fish to the Vermont Atlas of Life!
Visit the Vermont Atlas of Life on iNaturalist where you can vote for the winner this month by clicking the ‘fav’ star on your favorite photo-observation. Make sure you get outdoors and record the biodiversity around you, then submit your discoveries and you could be a winner!
