Success: Crossing Boundaries for Conservation
VCE announces finalization of the Strategic Conservation Plan for Sierra de Bahoruco National Park in the Dominican Republic. The plan, which VCE helped to both fund and facilitate, aims to preserve the park’s unique forested habitats for the benefit of plants, wildlife, and humans alike.
VCE Birdathon Terns up a Last-minute Surprise
Boreal birds, balsam fir spires and peat bogs proved an irresistible lure to the Green Mountain Goatsuckers, drawing us back to Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom for our 2018 Birdathon. From the Barton River wetlands to the larch and fir forests of Victory, we covered a lot of ground. Our species count topped out at 103, and the day’s most surprising bird was our very last tally.
VCE Partners with BirdsCaribbean for Post-hurricane Relief
VCE is partnering with BirdsCaribbean to raise funds for humans and wildlife affected by the succession of devastating hurricanes throughout the Caribbean this season. Please join us in helping get the region back on its feet!
VCE’s Cuba Expedition a Resounding Success
VCE’s inaugural field trip to Cuba may not have yielded many Bicknell’s Thrush (2, to be exact), but it laid a strong foundation for our future work on this captivating island. We forged a promising partnership with our sister institute BIOECO, made many great friends, learned the ropes of conducting field there, and, yes, managed to see half of Cuba’s 26 endemics.
Cuba Next on VCE’s Horizon
Cuba is on VCE’s horizon, as Chris Rimmer and John Lloyd venture this week to the island’s eastern tip, in search of overwintering Bicknell’s Thrush. Backpacking to cloud forests of Sierra Maestra, where Fidel Castro famously hid out in the 1950s, and then venturing east to the serpentine forests of Humboldt National Park, they expect to find some thrushes, and a good number of Cuba’s 26 endemic birds.
Weather and Blackpolls Storm Mt. Mansfield
VCE completed its 25th consecutive field season on the Mt. Mansfield ridgeline in dramatic fashion, encountering a storm of both weather and migrant birds. We banded a record 46 Blackpoll Warblers, and Bicknell’s Thrushes were vocalizing actively even as we took down our last nets in the gusty rain.
Owls and Tennessee Warblers Find VCE Nets on Mansfield
VCE enjoyed an eventful, if quiet, final summer field trip to our long-term study site on the Mt. Mansfield ridgeline. Banding highlights included a juvenile Northern Saw-whet Owl, 2 adult Tennessee Warblers, and 12 juvenile Bicknell’s Thrushes.
Mt. Mansfield Yields Avian Surprises
VCE’s seventh weekly visit to our long-term study site on the Mt. Mansfield ridgeline yielded a few avian surprises, including the only Indigo Bunting recorded in 25 years of field work.
Miracles on Wings
They say that miracles only happen once, but for VCE biologists a miracle with wings has now hit their nets three times.
Loon Chicks in November
By early November, the majority of adult Common Loons in Vermont have departed for the New England coast, where they…
