Join Us for a Field Trip in 2025!
Throughout the spring and summer, VCE’s staff scientists are spread across the state, monitoring birds, checking up on vernal pools, identifying Vermont’s wild bees, and more. We invite you to join them in the field for a full sensory experience of New England’s natural places and their animal kingdom citizens.
Check out our currently available trips on our field trip page.
Learn from VCE Staff in Person and Online
Pull up a chair and learn about the latest conservation news, plus how you can be involved. If you have an event, group, or organization that would like to host a VCE staff member for a particular topic, please fill out our Speaker Request Form.
If you’d like to support VCE’s biodiversity conservation work, please consider a contribution. Donate easily and securely online anytime!
Partner Event: Navigating eButterfly: A Quick Guide to Getting Started
May 22, 2025If you are looking to learn how to use eButterfly and missed our recent webinar this is your chance to get up to speed! 7:00 pm. Register Here »
VCE Field Trip: Birding a Spring Migration Hotspot in Windsor, VT
May 22, 2025THIS EVENT IS FULL. Spring migration at Lake Runnemede, one of east-central Vermont’s premier birding spots, is a sight to behold. Join birding experts VCE Director Emeritus Chris Rimmer and Data Manager Megan Massa on a birdwatching excursion that’s sure to produce dozens of sightings from warblers to waterfowl. The trip is open to up to 12 participants, new and experienced birders alike. 7:30 – 10:00 am Join the Waitlist »
Partner Event: Vermont Urban & Community Forestry Conference
May 29, 2025For this day of learning, networking, and celebration of Vermont’s community trees, 12 workshops will cover topics such as tree care, climate resilience, urban forest planning, and more! Desirée Narango from VCE will present Keystone Trees for Songbird and Pollinator Conservation. Desiree will speak about co-evolutionary relationships between trees, insects and birds and provide information about which native trees are the ‘power plants’ that support local food webs based on her research across New England and beyond. Desiree will also speak about steps you can take to conserve biodiversity at home and how your backyard observations can contribute to advancing our understanding of plant-animal interactions. Thanks to some generous sponsors, registration costs have been reduced to just $20, with lunch included! Continuing education credits (ISA & SAF) will be available for select workshops. | Thursday, May 29, 2025, 8:30am-3:45pm at Vermont State University – Randolph Campus Learn More and Register »
Partner Event: Pollinator Celebration Day
May 31, 2025The Vermont Pollinator Working Group presents a celebration of all-things pollinators for the learners of all ages! From managed honey bees to the 350 species of native bees in Vermont, learn from experts about their extraordinary diversity and importance. Discover how you can support pollinators in your community and backyard. Hear from keynote speakers and attend workshops (pre-registration required, intended for a young adult/adult audience). Meet organizations like VCE that are working together to tackle urgent threats to bees and other pollinators in the Northeast, visit your local native plant suppliers at the Pollinator Plaza and explore youth activities. Learn More and Register »
Partner Event: Rangeley Birding Festival
June 05, 2025From Boreal Chickadees in our vast forests to Loons on our magnificent lakes to the rare Bicknell’s Thrush in the high peaks above, the Rangeley Region is rich with birds. Add in both migrating and breeding warblers, and you have a unique opportunity to see and learn about birds that are difficult to find in other parts of Maine, all in one weekend: June 5-8. Get ready for four days of incredible birdwatching and unforgettable experiences. Explore some of the best boreal birding spots in the Northeast with expert biologists and seasoned birders as your guides, featuring a keynote from VCE's Jason Hill. Festival highlights include a special welcome reception at Saddleback, lift access up Saddleback Mountain for breathtaking views and birding opportunities, an inspiring keynote speaker dinner with conservation biologist Jason Hill, and a delightful brunch at The Nest, Saddleback’s high-elevation restaurant. Learn More and Buy Tickets »
VCE Workshop: VCE 2025 Community Science Teacher Workshop
July 07, 2025Join us from July 7th through the 10th for VCE’s fourth Community Science Teacher Education Workshop. This program is intended to engage science educators in inquiry-based exercises that incorporate both data collection and analysis. Throughout the four-day long program, participants will receive a primer on the Upper Valley’s ecology, gain confidence incorporating field methods into their curriculum, work with open access data, and discuss both planning and conducting community science studies. A $150 stipend and continuing education credits are available to participants. Participation is limited to 12 educators on a first come first served basis. Learn more and register here »
Interested in having a VCE conservation biologist speak at your event, or lead a field outing?
Please fill out our Speaker Request Form to start the process.
Example Presentations:
Presenter: Spencer Hardy
Title: Exploring Vermont’s Wild Bees: Natural History, Identification, and Conservation.
Presentation Summary: When most people think of bees, they imagine the famous Honey Bee (Apis melifera), yet that is just one of more than 300 species of bees found in the state. Since 2019, the Vermont Wild Bee Survey has been criss-crossing the state to document these important pollinators. We have found dozens of species not previously known from the state and are amassing a rich database that will be invaluable to conservation planners for years to come. Hear more about this project–including our most exciting findings, ideas on conserving vulnerable bees, and ways you can join our future monitoring efforts.
Presenter: Kevin Tolan
Title: Eastern Meadowlarks in Vermont: Ecology and Conservation of an Imperiled Grassland Bird
Presentation Summary: Eastern Meadowlarks in the Northeast are rapidly declining; based on the latest USGS Breeding Bird Survey results, they’re undergoing an estimated 8.7% annual decline in Vermont. With their recent designation of Threatened in New Hampshire, and imminent listing in Vermont, now is a golden opportunity for targeted survey efforts. The Vermont Center for Ecostudies is partnering up with New Hampshire Audubon to launch a bi-state “blitz” this spring to encourage birders and community scientists to target areas of grassland habitat with the goal of seeking out meadowlarks. Join VCE and our collaborators to learn about these imperiled songbirds and what you can do to help keep them on the Vermont landscape.
