• Posts tagged with nature

    Field Guide to March 2024

    Field Guide to March 2024

    March is a month of battles between warm and cold, between winter’s refusal to leave and spring’s insistence on arriving. So, here are some signs of spring to look out for this month.

    Field Guide to February 2024

    Field Guide to February 2024

    This month, wildlife and the rest of us here in New England will cross a significant threshold: 10 hours of daylight. You can sense it when you head out in the morning. Even though we’ve got lots more winter, at least the sound of spring is in the air. So here’s a Field Guide to February to keep your hopes up all day long.

    Reflections from 65 (Collective) Years of Birding the Upper Valley

    Reflections from 65 (Collective) Years of Birding the Upper Valley

    Some retirees seek new pursuits in life, branching out and diversifying with their newfound free time. Others simply do more of what they always did. Chris Rimmer and Kyle Jones embody this latter approach, birding local Upper Valley haunts more than ever since their recent retirements. Read their reflections on 65 collective years spent birding the Upper Valley.

    A Tale of Two Loon Chick Rescues

    A Tale of Two Loon Chick Rescues

    This past summer VCE was involved in two very different loon chick rescues with very different outcomes.  Although these ordeals did not have a lot in common, they each had dedicated and caring volunteers, willing to use their time and resources to help these birds.

    Field Guide to November 2023

    Field Guide to November 2023

    “Stick Season,” as we call this gray, leafless time in New England, is anything but lifeless. With November comes 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 2023

    Field Guide to October 2023

    The month of October reminds us of the cyclical nature of life. Like spring, autumn is a season of change. The forested hills fade from summer emerald to a watercolor painting of red and gold and brown. Here’s your field guide to some moments that you might not otherwise notice during these few precious weeks that feature colored hills beneath a deep blue sky, with the calls of migrating geese high overhead and the last Monarchs gliding silently southward.

    The Rising Seas and Stakes for Coastal New England Wildlife

    The Rising Seas and Stakes for Coastal New England Wildlife

    Many conversations about sea level rise in New England center the disastrous effects it will have on coastal infrastructure and economies. But damage to fragile coastal ecosystems and the species that rely on them may be unmeasurable and irrecoverable. A recent study reveals new predictions about Saltmarsh Sparrows’ fate under moderate sea level rise scenarios.

    Using Both Old and New Technology to Monitor Forests

    Using Both Old and New Technology to Monitor Forests

    When VCE first partnered with Raritan Valley Community College to monitor forest response to prescribed burning in the Green Mountain National Forest, we had some basic questions to address—what data do we want to collect and how will we collect it?

    Field Guide to September 2023

    Field Guide to September 2023

    It can happen almost anywhere. On a cool, foggy morning, when fall warblers drop from their nocturnal migratory flights into your backyard. Or on a hilltop when the Broad-winged Hawks circling above and Monarchs gliding southward convince you that summer is indeed coming to a close. Here is your field guide to some life on the move in September.

    Vermont eBird Volunteer Data Experts Retire

    Vermont eBird Volunteer Data Experts Retire

    After more than a decade of service, two of the first-ever Vermont eBird volunteer data experts are hanging up their keyboards. Ian Worley and Craig Provost first joined the project in 2010. Over the past 13 years, they have reviewed tens of thousands of records submitted by bird watchers and have been outreach champions for Vermont eBird.