Our Blog

Posted on

Christmas Bird Count: Huntington, Hinesburg and Starksboro, Vermont (preliminary)

We’re reposting several preliminary Christmas Bird Count results from neighboring towns. Email us at museum@birdsofvermont.org if you want us to post yours, too. Final results may become available on the VTBIRD mailing list and/or at Audubon’s 110th Christmas Bird Count pages. We’ll be happy to post final tallies when we receive them.

Huntington, Hinesburg and Starksboro, Vermont (preliminary)

Red-breasted Nuthatch, turning to look at photographer
Red-breasted Nuthatch, turning to look at photographer

from Erin Talmage (Museum Executive Director) and Alison Wagner, via e-mail. Our group was in parts of Huntington, Hinesburg and Starksboro, and we conducted our count on Saturday, January 2, 2010.

Species

Continue reading “Christmas Bird Count: Huntington, Hinesburg and Starksboro, Vermont (preliminary)”

Posted on

Christmas Bird Count: Lake Champlain/St. Albans (VTCS Count Circle), Vermont (preliminary)

Black-capped Chickadee
Black-capped Chickadee

We’re reposting several preliminary Christmas Bird Count results from neighboring towns. Email us at museum@birdsofvermont.org if you want us to post yours, too. Final results may become available on the VTBIRD mailing list and/or at Audubon’s 110th Christmas Bird Count pages. We’ll be happy to post final tallies when we receive them.

Lake Champlain/St. Albans, Vermont (preliminary)

from Ken Copenhaver, via e-mail
Here are preliminary results from the Lake Champlain/St. Albans CBC held on Dec. 20. Counts from several groups, including feeder-watchers, are not yet available. The VTCS count circle includes North Hero, Isle La Motte, and parts of Alburgh, Swanton, St. Albans, Georgia, Grand Isle, and Point Au Roche (NY).

Species

Continue reading “Christmas Bird Count: Lake Champlain/St. Albans (VTCS Count Circle), Vermont (preliminary)”

Posted on

Christmas Bird Count: Saxton’s River, Vermont (preliminary)

We’re reposting several preliminary Christmas Bird Count results from neighboring towns. Email us at museum@birdsofvermont.org if you want us to post yours, too. Final results may become available on the VTBIRD mailing list and/or at Audubon’s 110th Christmas Bird Count pages. We’ll be happy to post final tallies when we receive them.

Saxton’s River, Vermont (preliminary)

from Don Clark, via e-mail

Pine Siskin
Pine Siskin

A belated, tentative (pending full details) Saxton’s River CC held 12/19/09

Species Seen

Continue reading “Christmas Bird Count: Saxton’s River, Vermont (preliminary)”

Posted on

Christmas Bird Count: Bennington, Vermont (preliminary)

We’re reposting several preliminary Christmas Bird Count results from neighboring towns. Email us at museum@birdsofvermont.org if you want us to post yours, too. Final results may become available on the VTBIRD mailing list and/or at Audubon’s 110th Christmas Bird Count pages. We’ll be happy to post final tallies when we receive them.

Bennington, Vermont (preliminary)

from Kevin, via e-mail December 28, 2009
With only one or two possible counters left to give results[, we saw] 55 spp. yesterday, 12/27/09. Winter finches have yet to get down here but, a few “shoulda-been-gones” made up for them. Over all numbers down due to a wet morning.

Species

Continue reading “Christmas Bird Count: Bennington, Vermont (preliminary)”

Posted on

Christmas Bird Count: Middlebury, Vermont (preliminary)

We’re reposting several preliminary Christmas Bird Count results from neighboring towns. Email us at museum@birdsofvermont.org if you want us to post yours, too. Final results may become available on the VTBIRD mailing list and/or at Audubon’s 110th Christmas Bird Count pages. We’ll be happy to post final tallies when we receive them.

Middlebury, Vermont, preliminary summary

from Jim Andrews, via e-mail December 21, 2009
As a group, our species numbers were on the low end (58 so far), primarily as a result of the loss of our open water. A Savannah Sparrow was one of the best birds of the count.

Note from Erin:

Parts of Lake Champlain (shores of Shoreham and Bridport ) are part of the [Middlebury] circle. When the lake isn’t frozen we get many more species of ducks, gulls, etc. That is why Ferrisburgh and Burlington almost always have a higher species count because they get those species!

Posted on

Christmas Bird Count: Randolph, Vermont (preliminary)

We’re reposting several preliminary Christmas Bird Count results from neighboring towns. Email us at museum@birdsofvermont.org if you want us to post yours, too. Final results may become available on the VTBIRD mailing list and/or at Audubon’s 110th Christmas Bird Count pages.

Randolph, Vermont

The third Randolph CBC was conducted on Dec. 19, tallying 34 species/2094 individuals. Temperature at sunrise was -12[°F], only warming to -7 by 10:30 AM on Braintree Hill, eventually rising to a balmy +17. Numbers would have likely been lower this year without the addition of several new feeder watchers. The single new species for the count was a Carolina Wren which showed up at my feeder 3 days before the count, and is still present. (Luckily I [the poster] have the bird on video, negating the need for me to ask myself for a rare bird documentation form).
Continue reading “Christmas Bird Count: Randolph, Vermont (preliminary)”

Posted on

Christmas Bird Count: Ferrisburgh, Vermont (preliminary)

We’ll be reposting several preliminary Christmas Bird Count results from our neighboring towns. Email us at museum@birdsofvermont.org if you want us to post yours, too. Final results may become available on the VTBIRD mailing list and/or at Audubon’s 110th Christmas Bird Count pages.

Ferrisburgh, Preliminary Results

posted to VTBIRD on December 23, 2009
The 50th Ferrisburgh Christmas Bird Count took place on Sat. Dec. 19th. About 45 people participated in field or at feeders, yielding a preliminary total of 71 species (listed below), plus a count period Osprey.

Highlights included:

VEERY
 REDHEAD
 LONG-EARED OWL

Data are still subject to verification and may change, and [the poster hasn’t] yet had a chance to add up numbers.

SPECIES LIST:

Continue reading “Christmas Bird Count: Ferrisburgh, Vermont (preliminary)”

Posted on

Art Contest 2009 Results

Some of our terrific entries on display in the Museum
Some of our terrific entries on display in the Museum

We’ve created a FaceBook Album to show the winning entries from our 2009 Art Contest. Many thanks to all artists, and to their parents and teachers who supported and encouraged them.

Our 2009 wining artists are:

Age 0-5:  Clayton M, Natalia G, and Kate J
Ages 6-8: Syd F, Brandon B, Joanna W, Connor O, Daniel C, Jessica B, Jonah J, Josh D, Logan W, Olivia C, Olivia V, Owen Z
Ages 9-13: Clarisse H, Georgia W, Ashley M, Austin B, and Hannah M
Ages 14-18: Madeline D, Bridget F, Leighsha J, Chiara E, Emmy T

And some special categories:

3-Dimensional: Austin V, Esme C, Hannah M and Jason H
Foil Art: Haley T, Olivia R, Kristina T, Dania A, Jordan A and Justine M

We had a few additional artists deserving mention:

Morgan B for the “Best Bird Part” (a beak); Cadence B for “Best Indigo Bunting”, Kelly W for “Funniest Penguin” and Yasmine N for the “Hummingbird Award”.

More great entries in our 2009 Art Contest
More great entries in our 2009 Art Contest
Posted on

Big Sit! 2009

On Sunday,  October 11, the Museum participated in yet another Big Sit! We recorded a record 31 species! Thanks to Jim for coordinating the event, and all the volunteers who joined in.

the “official”  TIME SHEET for the 2009 “BIG SIT” (Notables inBOLD): Continue reading “Big Sit! 2009”

Posted on

Not the eagle you might have expected

Bob and about 40 friends and members of the Museum celebrated his upcoming 90th birthday with a boat cruise on Lake Champlain. It was wonderful, and many said to me afterwards that this would be a fun thing to do annually.

Our carload arrived really early and we were involved with a rescue operation. Someone saw an eagle land in the water and flap around unable to fly away. The skipper and 4 of us went out looking for this bird, and we searched and searched. We had a net and 4 blankets for the rescue. All we found was a large juvenile gull sitting on a huge dead fish floating on the surface, and he flew off when we came near and then returned as we left. So much for eagles in distress! We had a good laugh.

—from a letter by Ingrid Riga, Curator,  to a sponsor of several of the carving exhibits

Privacy Policy