The Second Atlas of Breeding Birds of Vermont

Guest post by Kir Talmage, Outreach and IT Coordinator for the Birds of Vermont Museum. This article also appeared in the Vermont Great Outdoor Magazine.

atlas-cover-1800The Second Atlas of Breeding Birds of Vermont is out! As you likely know, an Atlas is

a : a bound collection of maps often including 
illustrations, informative tables, or textual 
matter
b : a bound collection of tables, charts, or plates
(Merriam-Webster)

This meager definition masks the huge intention and effort that goes into the creation and revision of an Atlas. This particular Atlas is the product of a state-wide breeding birds research project that has spanned ten years, brought together some 57,000 observations, and drew on 350 volunteers. It epitomizes a successful citizen science project. The data (observations) were pulled together by Vermont Center for Ecostudies into one beautiful reference book, which was published in April of this year. The completed Atlas—with maps, individual species accounts, discussions of Vermont’s habitat and land use changes, and analyses of the data—has already helped scientists and policy makers decide how best to work and plan for avian conservation. Continue reading “The Second Atlas of Breeding Birds of Vermont”

Early Birders’ Observations for June 16

The June 16th Early Birders Morning Walk walk left the Museum about 7 am. led by our amazing Shirley Johnson. A great group of friendly birders! They were out until almost 10, because it was such a lovely day. Here’s their list:

  • Mourning Dove
  • Barred Owl
  • Chimney Swift
  • Ruby-throated Hmmingbird
  • Yellow-bellied Sapasucker
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Northern Flicker
  • Eastern Wood Pewee
  • Least Flycatcher
  • Eastern Phoebe
  • Great-crested Flycatcher
  • Red-eyed Vireo
  • Blue Jay
  • American Crow
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • Brown Creeper
  • Winter Wren
  • American Robin
  • Veery
  • Hermit Thrush
  • Cedar Waxwing
  • Chestnut-sided Warbler
  • Blackburnian Warbler
  • Black-throated Green Warbler
  • Pine Warbler
  • Common Yellow-throat
  • Scarlet Tanager
  • Northern Cardinal
  • Rose-breasted Grosbeak
  • Indigo Bunting
  • Song Sparrow
  • White-throated Sparrow
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Common Grackle
  • Baltimore Oriole
  • American Goldfinch

 

Join us next time, for an early morning ramble! We’re out in the Birds of Vermont Museum‘s forest and meadows every Sunday from May 12 through June 30. Enjoy the start of the day with us, birds, and other woodland inhabitants. Walks are led by experienced birders familiar with Vermont birds—and we welcome additional possible leaders! Let us know if you’re interested in volunteering.

Finish the walk with bird-friendly coffee at the viewing window inside the Museum.

Bring binoculars and good walking shoes. Park at 900 Sherman Hollow Road, in the Museum parking lot.

Appropriate for: Adults and older children • Free, donations welcome.
Pre-registration is helpful but not required. Call 802 434-2167 or email museum@birdsofvermont.org

Early Birders’ Observations for June 9

The June 9th Early Birders Morning Walk walk left the Museum about 7 am. led by Shirley Johnson. I was out of town, but she left me a lovely long list to share with you. I’m quite envious!

  • Wood Duck
  • Wild Turkey
  • Mourning Dove
  • Ruby-throated Hummingbird
  • Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Great-crested Flycatcher
  • Eastern Phoebe
  • Blue-Headed Vireo
  • Red-eyed Vireo
  • Blue Jay
  • American Crow
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • Tufted Titmouse
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • House Wren
  • Winter Wren
  • Veery
  • American Robin
  • Gray Catbird
  • Cedar Waxwing
  • Chestnut-sided Warbler
  • Black-throated Blue Warbler
  • Black-throated Green Warbler
  • Pine Warbler
  • American Redstart
  • Common Yellowthroat
  • Ovenbird
  • Scarlet Tanager
  • Rose-breasted Grosbeak
  • Indigo Bunting
  • Song Sparrow
  • White-throated Sparrow
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Common Grackle
  • Brown-headed Cowbird

Her note adds: Really great views of Blue-headed and Red-eyed Vireos to compare. Great views of Indigo Bunting, Black-throated Blue Warbler, Veery, and Great-crested Flycatcher.

Join us next time, for an early morning ramble! We’re out in the Birds of Vermont Museum‘s forest and meadows every Sunday from May 12 through June 30. Enjoy the start of the day with us, birds, and other woodland inhabitants. Walks are led by experienced birders familiar with Vermont birds—and we welcome additional possible leaders! Come to several walks to hear the changes in who calls and when!

Finish the walk with bird-friendly coffee at the viewing window inside the Museum.

Bring binoculars and good walking shoes. Park at 900 Sherman Hollow Road, in the Museum parking lot.

Appropriate for: Adults and older children • Free, donations welcome.
Pre-registration is helpful but not required. Call 802 434-2167 or email museum@birdsofvermont.org

Early Birders’ Observations for June 2

Our Executive Director, Erin Talmage, led the Early Birders Morning Walk walk on Sunday June 2. Why, yes, we are a wee bit behind in posting these lists. Just a bit.

We had both new and experienced birders along this morning, a beautiful sunny day rising after a rainy night, so lots of dew and a smattering of fog. Our notes suggest we didn’t all see and hear exactly the same birds, but here’s what we were pretty sure about.

  • Great-crested Flycatcher
  • Wild Turkey
  • Veery
  • Black-capped Chicakdee
  • Chestnut-sided Warbler
  • Blue-headed Vireo
  • Red-Eyed Vireo
  • Ovenbird
  • Black-throated Green Warbler
  • American Robin
  • American Goldfinch
  • Winter Wren
  • Common Yellowthroat
  • Cedar Waxwing
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Blue Jay
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
  • Scarlet Tanager
  • Northern Cardinal
  • Eastern Phoebe
  • American Crow
  • Mourning Dove
  • Duck spp (some discussion arose as to whether it was a Wood Duck or Mallard. Both were known to frequent the spot; our youngest birder—age 4—was sure it was Wood Duck and related some field marks, but older birders were less confident, and most had only caught a glimpse as it flew away.)
  • Common Grackle
  • Nest of Baltimore Oriole

Join us next time, for an early morning ramble! We’re out in the Birds of Vermont Museum‘s forest and meadows every Sunday from May 12 through June 30. Enjoy the start of the day with us, birds, and other woodland inhabitants. Walks are led by experienced birders familiar with Vermont birds—and we welcome additional possible leaders! Come to several walks to hear the changes in who calls and when!

Finish the walk with bird-friendly coffee at the viewing window inside the Museum.

Bring binoculars and good walking shoes. Park at 900 Sherman Hollow Road, in the Museum parking lot.

Appropriate for: Adults and older children • Free, donations welcome.
Pre-registration is helpful but not required. Call 802 434-2167 or email museum@birdsofvermont.org

Early Birders’ Observations for May 26

Shirley led our Early Birder Morning Walk walk on Sunday May 26. One of  our volunteers also posted the list on eBird and emailed it to us. Have you used eBird yet? You can list and generate reports of what you’ve seen there, and the data contributes to a long-running, large citizen science project. Our emailed report looks something like this:

Birds of Vermont Museum, Chittenden, US-VT
 May 26, 2013 7:15 AM - 8:15 AM
 Protocol: Traveling
 1.0 kilometer(s)
 Comments:     Early morning walk led by Shirley Johnson. Cold and rainy!
 23 species (+1 other taxa)
 
 Wild Turkey  1
 Mourning Dove  2
 Ruby-throated Hummingbird  2
 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker  1
 Downy Woodpecker  2
 Hairy Woodpecker  1
 Empidonax sp.  1
 Eastern Phoebe  2
 Red-eyed Vireo  1
 Blue Jay  5
 American Crow  1
 Black-capped Chickadee  1
 American Robin  1
 Ovenbird  2
 Common Yellowthroat  1
 Song Sparrow  1
 Scarlet Tanager  1
 Rose-breasted Grosbeak  2
 Red-winged Blackbird  3
 Common Grackle  2
 Brown-headed Cowbird  1
 Baltimore Oriole  2
 American Goldfinch  2
 Evening Grosbeak  2
 
 View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S14245937 
 This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)

Birders were out from 7:15 through 8:15 a.m., as it was very chilly and damp.  Another birder’s list records both Least and Great-crested Flycatchesr (instead of Empidonax spp.), which may have been a combination of luck, songs heard, or different birding experience.

Join us next time, for an early morning ramble in the Birds of Vermont Museum‘s forest and meadows every Sunday from May 12 through June 30. Enjoy the start of the day with us, birds, and other woodland inhabitants. Walks are led by experienced birders familiar with Vermont birds—and we welcome additional possible leaders! Come to several walks to hear the changes in who calls and when!

Finish the walk with bird-friendly coffee at the viewing window inside the Museum.

Bring binoculars and good walking shoes. Park at 900 Sherman Hollow Road, in the Museum parking lot.

Appropriate for: Adults and older children • Free, donations welcome.
Pre-registration is helpful but not required. Call 802 434-2167 or email museum@birdsofvermont.org

Through the Window: May 2013 gets exciting

Nesting time! And the list grows on. Bold ones are those we didn’t see last month!

  • Northern Cardinal
  • American Goldfinch
  • White-throated Sparrow
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • Mourning Dove
  • Common Grackle
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • Eastern Phoebe
  • Blue Jay
  • Brown-headed Cowbird
  • Evening Grosbeak
  • Song Sparrow
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • American Robin
  • Purple Finch
  • Northern Goshawk
  • Wild Turkey (One male, 3 females on 5/15)
  • Rose-breasted Grosbeak
  • White-crowned Sparrow (5/6/13, 5/18/13)
  • Winter Wren (heard)
  • Ruby-throated Hummingbird (5/8/13)
  • Red-breasted Nuthatch (5/12/13)
  • American Crow
  • Great-Crested Flycatcher (5/15/13)
  • Gray Catbird (5/17/13)
  • Cooper’s Hawk (5/20/13)
  • Baltimore Oriole
  • Tufted Titmouse

If you want to get involved with NestWatch, let us know how we can help you!

The “Through the Window” series is an informal record of observations made by staff, volunteers, and visitors. Anyone at the Museum may add to this list. Observations are usually through our viewing window: a large window with a film to make it more difficult for birds to see the watchers. We have chairs and binoculars to try there, a white board, and many identification guides. Outdoors, several feeders are attached on a single, bear-resistant pole. A small pond, flowers and water plants, shrubs and trees add cover and other food choices. You can sometimes see what we see via our webcam.

Early Birders’ Observations for May 19

Shirley took us out on another Early Birder Morning Walk on Sunday May 19.  Wow, were there some wonderful birds or what!

  • Mallard Duck
  • Wild Turkey
  • Mourning Dove
  • Ruby-throated Hummingbird
  • Northern Flicker
  • Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
  • Down Woodpecker
  • Hair Woodpecker
  • Great-crested Flycatcher
  • Least Flycatcher
  • Eastern Phoebe
  • Blue Jay
  • American Crow
  • Tufted Timouse
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • Brown Creeper
  • Winter Wren
  • Veery
  • American Robin
  • Blue-headed Vireo
  • Red-eyed Vireo
  • Nashville Warbler
  • Northern Parula
  • Black-and-White Warbler
  • Black-throated Blue Warbler
  • Blackburnian Warbler
  • Yellow-rumped Warbler
  • Black-throated Green Warbler

Birders were out from 7:15 through 9:30 a.m., and traversed about 1.5km. Both new-at-it and experienced birders came along, and there was some strong coffee and delicious muffins (from our local Backdoor Bakery) at the end of the walk.  (Coincidentally, the Burlington Bird-a-thon was also out walking here today, so they too saw and heard amazing birds and enjoyed some post-exploration treats. One of the groups saw a porcupine, too.)

Join us next time, for an early morning ramble in the Birds of Vermont Museum‘s forest and meadows every Sunday from May 12 through June 30. Enjoy the start of the day with us, birds, and other woodland inhabitants. Walks are led by experienced birders familiar with Vermont birds—and we welcome additional possible leaders! Come to several walks to hear the changes in who calls and when!

Finish the walk with bird-friendly coffee at the viewing window inside the Museum.

Bring binoculars and good walking shoes. Park at 900 Sherman Hollow Road, in the Museum parking lot.

Appropriate for: Adults and older children • Free, donations welcome.
Pre-registration is helpful but not required. Call 802 434-2167 or email museum@birdsofvermont.org

Early Birders: Observations on May 12

Join us Sundays at 7 a.m., May 12 - June 30
Join us Sundays at 7 a.m., May 12 – June 30

We’ve restarted our Early Birder Morning Walks, and Shirley Johnson (Board President and Expert Birder) led the first one. She was kind enough to provide us a list of what the walkers observed on Sunday May 12. How many of these do you recognize by sight or sound? Come on the next walk and practice!

  • Wood Duck
  • Great Blue Heron
  • Mourning Dove
  • Ruby-throated Hummingbird
  • Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Great-crested Flycatcher
  • Blue-headed Vireo
  • Blue Jay
  • American Crow
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • Brown Creeper
  • Red-breasted Nuthatch
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • Winter Wren
  • Veery
  • Hermit Thrush
  • Northern Parula
  • Blackburnian Warbler
  • Pine Warbler
  • Black and White Warbler
  • Common Yellowthroat
  • Louisiana Waterthrush
  • Ovenbird
  • Rose-breasted Grosbeak
  • Song Sparrow
  • Red-winged Blackbird

Join us next time, for an early morning ramble in the Birds of Vermont Museum’s forest and meadows every Sunday from May 12 through June 30. Enjoy the start of the day with us, birds, and other woodland inhabitants. Walks are led by experienced birders familiar with Vermont birds. Come to several walks to hear the changes in who calls and when!

Finish the walk with bird-friendly coffee at the viewing window inside the Museum.

Bring binoculars and good walking shoes. Park at 900 Sherman Hollow Road, in the Museum parking lot.

Appropriate for: Adults and older children • Free, donations welcome.
Pre-registration is helpful but not required. Call 802 434-2167 or email museum@birdsofvermont.org

Through the Window: April 2013 explosion (of species seen)

“Spring has sprung, tra-la-la-la-la / Spring has sprung!” — the Swing Peepers

Look at these lists! Spring is amazing. All of these in the first list were seen April 1st (and generally also later in the month). Bold ones are those we didn’t see last month!

  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Red-breasted Nuthatch
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Common Grackle
  • Blue Jay
  • Fox Sparrow (four on 4/9, 4/20)
  • Tufted Titmouse
  • American Crow
  • Northern Cardinal
  • White-breasted Nuthatch

Then we saw…

  • Common Redpoll (4/6,  4/24)
  • American Robin
  • Tree Sparrow
  • Mourning Dove
  • Cooper’s Hawk (4/3, 4/15)
  • Song Sparrow
  • Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (First of Year 4/9)
  • Northern Goshawk (4/13)
  • Evening Grosbeak (the female with the healed-but-dropping wing, and returnees)
  • Brown-headed Cowbird (4/18 and later)
  • White-throated Sparrow
  • American Goldfinch
  • Wild Turkey
  • Eastern Phoebe
  • Northern Flicker (4/23)

In the Little Pond (we have this as bird bath/water source, among other reasons):

Mammals included the mink, a cottontail rabbit, red and gray squirrels, and the eastern chipmunk.

At the Big Pond (across the road and up through the meadow, then into the forest):

  • A pair of mallard ducks (4/15)
  • Wood ducks (~4/20)

If you want to get involved with NestWatch, let us know how we can help you!

The “Through the Window” series is an informal record of observations made by staff, volunteers, and visitors. Anyone at the Museum may add to this list. Observations are usually through our viewing window: a large window with a film to make it more difficult for birds to see the watchers. We have chairs and binoculars to try there, a white board, and many identification guides. Outdoors, several feeders are attached on a single, bear-resistant pole. A small pond, flowers and water plants, shrubs and trees add cover and other food choices. You can sometimes see what we see via our webcam.

Through the Window: March 2013 migrants and an unexpected mammal

It’s spring! Really! What do you mean, it’s snowing again? Of course it is! It does that in spring!

Anyway, back before the spring equinox we watched some birds. And then we did it again after, too. Of course. It’s wonderful what you see when you just sti still and look.

  • Black-capped Chickadees
  • Hairy Woodpeckers (males chasing each other 3/3)
  • Downy Woodpeckers
  • American Crow
  • Blue Jay
  • Mourning Dove
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • Red-breasted Nuthatch
  • Common Redpoll (flock of about 15 on 3/26)
  • Common Grackle (3/15)
  • Red-winged Blackbird (3/18 and later)
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Wild Turkey (3/24)
  • Tufted Titmouse
  • Northern Goshawk (3/30)

The female Evening Grosbeak was also seen, across the road in the tress, on March 30.

Of course we had some red and gray squirrels. We noticed an Eastern Chipmunk crossing the road on March 26.

To our great surprise (and some delight) we saw a weasel on March 30 and 31. It’s hard to tell the long-tailed and short-tailed weasels apart sometimes, but we think we saw a short-tailed weasel (ermine). It was still in its full winter coat: white with a black tip to its tails. It seemed to be stalking the squirrels, and its presence would go a long way towards explaining why fewer mice were in the bird seed closet traps this winter!

We’re looking forward to NestWatch coming up soon (exactly when depends on where you are; they have a spiffy new website too)

The “Through the Window” series is an informal record of observations made by staff, volunteers, and visitors. Anyone at the Museum may add to this list. Observations are usually through our viewing window: a large window with a film to make it more difficult for birds to see the watchers. We have chairs and binoculars to try there, a white board, and many identification guides. Outdoors, several feeders are attached on a single, bear-resistant pole. A small pond, flowers and water plants, shrubs and trees add cover and other food choices. You can sometimes see what we see via our webcam.