Tag: birdwatching

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Through the Window: April birds and more

This was a seriously happenin’ month! Birds, mammals, amphibians. And yes, they were all seen through the windows of the museum. As always, these are roughly in the order we saw them.

Mourning Dove with nest, egg
Mourning Dove with nest, egg; carved by Robert N. Spear, Jr.
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Red-winged blackbird (female, April 3)
  • Mourning Dove
  • Ruffed Grouse (April 1)
  • American Goldfinch
  • Tufted Titmouse
  • Northern Cardinal
  • Evening Grosbeak (April 3)
  • Eastern Phoebe (FOY, April 3)
  • Sapsucker (April 3, FOY)
  • Song Sparrow (April 6, FOY)
  • Chipping Sparrow (FOY, April 7)
  • Kestrel (April 6)
  • Northern Flicker (April 6)
  • Common Grackle
  • Brown-headed Cowbird (FOY, April 10)
  • White-throated Sparrow (FOY, April 13)
  • American Robin (April 29)

For amphibians, we noted a wood frog on April 1 and a spotted salamander April 11. Wood frog eggs were noted in our little pond (the one near the viewing window) on April 3 and April 6).

We observed chipmunk, red squirrel, gray squirrel, a woodchuck (a.k.a. groundhog, on April 3) and, in a lucky moment, a bobcat on April 16.

The birds were recorded in our eBird record as well.

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March Through the Window

We’ve seen these through the window in March, sometimes while passing by, and sometimes while directly observing for Feeder Watch. The ones we didn’t see last month are in bold.

  • American Crow
  • Wild Turkeys (20 on 3/16; 2 displaying Toms)
  • Blue Jays
  • Chickadees, Black-capped
  • Purple Finch
  • Evening Grosbeak
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Mourning Dove
  • Red-breasted Nuthatch
  • White-Breasted Nuthatch
  • Tufted Titmouse
  • Fox Sparrow 3/26
  • Common Grackle 3/28
  • Red-winged Blackbird 3/20
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Song Sparrow 3/23
  • Ruffed Grouse 3/25
  • Northern Cardinal 3/28
  • Red Squirrel
  • Gray Squirrel
  • Eastern Chipmunk
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Signs of Spring

People have been noting on Twitter and on the radio various signs of spring. We like to look for changing bird plumage, ourselves.

The bright yellow shoulder feathers on the goldfinch are a sign of spring
Gold Signs of Spring

Sometimes there are just hints to start…

 

In our exhibits, the nesting birds are carved and painted in their breeding plumage; the wetland diorama birds are not. Come by and compare what you’ve seen to the carvings, and learn what to look for! We’re open by appointment until April 30th, then open for regular hours.

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February at the Feeders

Noted through our viewing window in February (more or less in the order we saw them; the ones we didn’t see last month are in bold):

    Downy Woodpecker
    Downy Woodpecker

  • Blue Jays
  • Mourning Doves
  • Hairy Woodpeckers
  • Downy Woodpeckers
  • Black-capped Chickadees
  • Ruffed Grouse
  • Northern Cardinal
  • Wild Turkeys
  • Red-Breasted Nuthatches
  • Common Raven
  • White-breasted Nuthatches
  • Tufted Titmice
  • American Crow
  • Red Squirrels
  • Gray Squirrels
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January Feeder Birds

Hairy Woodpecker via our FeederCam
Hairy Woodpecker via our FeederCam

At lunch, we like to eat while gazing out of the Viewing Window at the museum.  We keep an unofficial list of birds (mostly) seen at that time, jotting them down on a nearby whiteboard.  Here’s who we saw in January:

  • Downy Woodpeckers
  • Hairy Woodpeckers
  • Black-capped Chickadees
  • Blue Jays
  • White-breasted Nuthatches
  • Red-Breasted Nuthatches
  • Northern Cardinal
  • Mourning Doves
  • Wild Turkeys
  • Tufted Titmice
  • Red Squirrels
  • Gray Squirrels

You can see some of what we see with our FeederCam, too. We also participate in in Project FeederWatch, a more formal way to  collect and record bird data.

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The 2010 Great Backyard Bird Count, February 12-15

Camel's Hump: view from the Birds of Vermont Museum's backyard
Camel's Hump: view from the Birds of Vermont Museum's backyard

Interested in yet another good reason to go birding? How about the Great Backyard Bird Count? It’s another Citizen Science project we do here, and it’s always open to more participants.

We’ll be open on February 13, Saturday, from 9-4. Come by to learn more about it, to count birds, or just visit.

Here’s a brief introduction from the Cornell Lab or Ornithology’s e-newsletter:

The next Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) takes place Friday, February 12 through Monday, February 15, 2010. The National Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology are calling on everyone to “Count for Fun, Count for the Future!” During last year’s count, participants turned in more than 93,600 checklists online, creating the continent’s largest instantaneous snapshot of bird populations ever recorded. …[T]he success of the count depends on people tallying birds from as many locations as possible across the continent.

Spread the word …through our volunteer ambassador program. Volunteer ambassadors do a variety of things, including hanging up GBBC fliers, giving presentations in their community, and even talking to their local media. For more ideas on how to promote the GBBC, fill out the online ambassador sign-up form and specify the kinds of activities you’d like to do.

More info from the National Audubon Society: http://www.audubon.org/gbbc/
or from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/

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About Project FeederWatch

The Christmas Bird Count isn’t the only citizen science activity that the Museum does. We do Project Feeder Watch, too. It makes for a very pleasant lunchtime: good food and a viewing window (today we saw our first Wild Turkey and Tufted Titmouse of the month). Many of you with feeders at home or work can participate. You can sign up at any time. Here’s an overview from a recent Cornell Lab of Ornithology‘s e-newsletter:

Project FeederWatch

The 2009-10 season of Project FeederWatch begins November 14, though you can sign up at any time. FeederWatchers keep track of their birds through the winter and report their tallies each week. This helps scientists track changes in winter bird populations from year to year.

To learn more and to sign up, visit the Project FeederWatch website. New participants receive a kit with a handbook, a bird-identification poster, calendar, and instruction booklet. There is a $15 fee ($12 for Lab members) to help cover the costs of materials and participant support. If you live in Canada, please visit our partner, Bird Studies Canada, or call (888) 448-2473.

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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”

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Outing: Winter Birds of the Lake Champlain Basin

Join us on  Saturday, February 7, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.,  when Jim Andrews will lead our Feburary Birding Outing.

Jim is a herpetologist and long-time Champlain Valley birder, and his outings are great fun. Last year we saw Great Black-backed Gulls, Eagles, Goldeneyes, Scaups, and flocks of Horned Larks and Snow Buntings, just to name a few species. We drove around the Lake Champlain Basin and stopped many times to set up our spotting scopes for better views of our winter birds.

We’ll meet at the Vergennes Green, and then will car pool from there. We are limiting the size of the group to three or four cars, so please call to reserve your spot (and feel free to stuff your cars with friends!).

To reserve your spot or get more information, call the Museum at 802-434-2167. Leave a message if no one is available to pick up. You can also e-mail us at museum@birdsofvermont.org

This event is appropriate for adults and older children.

Fee: Members $20; non-members $25.  

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