where natural history meets art
We had quite a bit of fun online and in the woods this month. Still, it’s always pleasant to sit and watch birds at the window, over staff lunch or morning coffee with some fellow birders. And April is always kinda wowza!
We had rather a good number of visitors (by appointment) as we worked away on the behind-the-scenes things we do (preparing for opening in spring, if all goes well). One of our month’s highlights wasn’t birds at all, but lady beetles! You can read more about them here: https://birdsofvermont.org/2021/03/12/lady-beetles-in-vermont-j-pupko/
But back to birds… quite the exciting mix!
Aside from about a gazillion redpolls (I’m sure that’s a technical measure), not too much unusual for winter birds at the Museum this month. Our list is below!
One thing we love about January is the potential for surprises. Irruptions, mutli-species flocks, or interesting marks in the snow can all happen. Which bird might we get to see this month? Will we be lucky enough to see it from the window? Will there be many? Which ones would we expect and not see after all? Each possibility is a delight.
We hope your final month of 2020 was as easy and comfortable as possible, with good birding, friends near and far, and rich in love.
Decembers are often quite quiet at the Museum and this month’s bird list certainly shows it. Which ones come to your feeders?
Well, we’d hoped to be open on weekends on November, but due to more coronavirus cases, we went straight to “by appointment” only. A bit disappointing for us and (we hope) you! Still, we kept refilling the museum feeders and watched birds when we took a break from prepping the next newsletter and other behind-the-scenes things.
Which of these birds have been to your feeders?
Continue reading “Through the Window: November 2020”
Congratulations to all the runners and walkers who took part in our first annual Race Around Birds! All participants who provided a postal address were sent a Museum bumper sticker. And of course we had some awards to give out:
The Arctic Tern Award : J. Dion for the fastest “10k” (the double-route is actually over 11km!). She ran two loops in 1:50.
The Peregrine Falcon Award : S. Silverstein for the fastest 5k (it’s more like 5.8km). He ran it in 0:34.
The Roadrunner Award : M. Barnes (who was also the youngest runner) for being the second fastest at 0:44.
Double Clutch Recognition, for all runners who raced more than once but on separate days: L. Edling, V. Talmage, and S. Silverstein. A special congratulations to L. Edling for cutting her race time by a whopping 5 minutes on her second go.
The Hermit Thrush Award, for the fastest walking time, had a three-way tie between K. Hudson, G. Hudson, and A. Gergely, all at 1:25.
The Caching Championship, for seeing the most number of bird species while on the trail, goes to J. Morris and P. Spielman.
Our Golden Rake Award is to be shared by R. Sloan and V. Talmage for trail marking, prepping, and clearing trails. Thank you so much!
Ready to do it again? We have scheduled next year’s Race Around Birds for November 6th, 2021. Stay tuned for more info!
Cheers to all!
p.s. We’ve received some feedback but would welcome more. We want to make the trail run as enjoyable as possible—although we can’t make it easier. M. Barnes says, “It’s harder than Harwood!” All you Vermont high school cross-country runners probably know just what this means…and you’re invited to run ours next year.
Who went running in the Race Around Birds? Did you see any birds while you did? It’s a hard race they say*, and pretty tricky to bird at the same time! So we offered a walking option, and two of the walkers observed a Hermit Thrush, and three walkers spotted a Ruffed Grouse.
Take another walk this month: it’s stick season now and although activity is low, visibility through the forest is good. Or stay cozy at our viewing window…you might see some of the ones we did last month.
September’s glorious for surprising visitors to the feeders. Or near—but not at—the feeders, as the Nashville Warbler. It’s been dry, so having water source(s) near your feeders is essential.
August seems to have vanished rather quickly! Rather like the bird seed does sometimes….