April Bird Monitoring Walk

Photo: Fox Sparrow photographed by Erin Talmage, © 2019 and used by permission.

All birders —current, experienced, newbie and would-be— welcome! Most fun for adults, older children.

Please bring your own binoculars and dress for the weather. We recommend bringing tick repellent and a water bottle. Face masks required inside the museum.

Max: 10 people
Free, suggested donation $5 – $10 (pay what you can)




Outdoors

We go out the last Saturday of every month.. Walks start at 7:30 am April – August; 8am September – March

Photo: Fox Sparrow photographed by Erin Talmage, ©copyright  2019 and used by permission.

Full Moon Snowshoe Walk

A young person glances at the photographerwhile appearing to hold the full moon between their thumb and index finger. The moon is rising above curved hills in the background. The sky is dark blue and the person and hills are almost silhouetted.

Come with us as night falls over the Museum’s evening trails. Bring your snowshoes (several local libraries allow you to check out a pair for free!) and a flashlight. We will look, listen, and perhaps talk about surviving winter, early spring, nocturnal creatures, stars…

Dress to be outdoors and meet at the Museum’s entrance. If weather permits, we will have a fire and hot cocoa outside at the end of our walk.

Walk led by Erin Talmage, Museum Director and Wildlife Biologist. FYI, sunset is 5:47 pm in Hinesburg.

Recommended: red plastic to cover the lens of your flashlight.

Suggested donation: $10 – $30 (pay what you can) • You may make your donation online or reserve your place for free and donate at the door.

Max: 10 people • Register here or call (802) 434-2167 to confirm your spot.


Museum Open for Great Backyard Bird Count

black-capped chickadee eyes black oil birdseed in the platform feeder in fall-winter

Visit us February 18th, 2023,  to see what birds we’re counting for the Great Backyard Bird Count!

  • Learn to ID birds — what do we look / listen for?
  • Go birding with a friend — twice the fun
  • Find out more about –and record observations for–this great citizen science project!

We’re open from 10-3 on Saturday for the GBBC
Members admission: Free! 

About the GBBC:

Friday – Monday,  February 17-20, 2023 • All Over the World

From the Great Backyard Bird Count website:

Launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, the Great Backyard Bird Count was the first online citizen-science project to collect data on wild birds and to display results in near real-time.

Since then, more than 100,000 people of all ages and walks of life have joined the four-day count each February to create an annual snapshot of the distribution and abundance of birds.

For more info visit Great Backyard Bird Count website

The Great Backyard Bird Count

Dark-eyed Junco (a small gray and white songbird) on a bare twig. Text in the image reads "How many birds can you find? 26th Annual Great Backyard Bird Count February 17-20, 2023 birdcount.org Dark-eyed Junco photo courtesy of the Macauley Library"

Friday – Monday, February 17-20, 2023 • All Over the World

With a friend or one your own, watching one bird or counting hundreds, join a worldwide community-science and conservation project! All you have to do is observe for 15 minutes and submit your observation(s). Here are few details from https://www.birdcount.org/participate/ :

Step 1 – Decide where you will watch birds. [Suggestion: at the Museum on Saturday!]

Step 2 – Watch birds for 15 minutes or more, at least once over the four days, February 17-20, 2023.

Step 3 – Count all the birds you see or hear within your planned time/location and use the best tool for sharing your bird sightings:

For more info: https://www.birdcount.org/

Through the Window: December 2022

Lifelike wood carving of a Black-capped chickadee, perched on the side of a rough-barked stump. Carved by Bob Spear.
Black-capped Chickadee, carved and painted by Bob Spear.

It’s the end of 2022, and a pretty good year it’s been. We hope the same is true for you.

Thank you for following us, supporting us, and being part of the museum community.

Enjoy the brief list of this month’s birds, consider donating to our annual appeal, and keep on birding!

Happy New Year!

December Bird List

Continue reading “Through the Window: December 2022”

March Bird Monitoring Walk

Bohemian Waxwing in Museum's crab apple tree, by Erin Talmage. Copyright 2016 and used by permission.

Join our monthly monitoring walk to record birds at the Museum’s trails, forest, and meadow. Learn something new, share what you know, or both!

All birders —current, experienced, newbie and would-be— welcome! Most fun for adults, older children.

Please bring your own binoculars and dress for the weather. We recommend bringing tick repellent and a water bottle. Face masks required inside the museum.

Max: 10 people
Free, suggested donation $5 – $15


Outdoors

If the walk fills, we’ll have a waitlist; when there’s enough interest, we often can schedule more walks. Please call or email us to make arrangements.

(Walks start at 7:30 am April – August; 8am September – March)

Photo: Bohemian Waxwing in Museum’s crab apple tree, by Erin Talmage. Copyright 2016 and used by permission.

February Bird Monitoring Walk

Northern Cardinal female. ©2011 Laura Waterhouse

Join our monthly monitoring walk to record birds at the Museum’s trails, forest, and meadow. Learn something new, share what you know, or both!

All birders —current, experienced, newbie and would-be— welcome! Most fun for adults, older children.

Please bring your own binoculars and dress for the weather. We recommend bringing tick repellent and a water bottle. Face masks required inside the museum.

Max: 10 people
Free, suggested donation $5 – $15




Outdoors

If the walk fills, we’ll have a waitlist; when there’s enough interest, we often can schedule more walks. Please call or email us to make arrangements.

(Photo: Female Northern Cardinal. Used by permission of the photographer.)

January Bird Monitoring Walk

Black-capped Chickadee and Dark-eyed Junco in winter. The Chickadee is perched on a half-fallen dried goldenrod stem on the left; the Junco is underneath he stem on the right. There are some forsythia stems in the background and snow covers the ground. Digiscoped iPhone photo by K. Talmage and used by permission.

Join our monthly monitoring walk to record birds at the Museum’s trails, fores,t and meadow. Learn something new, share what you know, or both!

All birders —current, experienced, newbie and would-be— welcome! Most fun for adults, older children.

Please bring your own binoculars and dress for the weather. We recommend bringing tick repellent and a water bottle. Face masks required inside the museum.

Max: 10 people
Free, suggested donation $5 – $15



Register online with the button above or call 802 434-2167.
Outdoors

If the walk fills, we’ll have a waitlist; when there’s enough interest, we often can schedule more walks. Please call or email us to make arrangements.

Photo of Black-capped Chickadee and Junco in winter. Photographed at the Museum by Museum staff.

Through the Window: November 2022

Downy Woodpecker and Blue Jay on a rectangular suet feeder. Photo appears to be a digiscoped image through a binocular lens.
Digiscoping a Downy Woodpecker and Blue Jay sharing a suet feeder. Photo by E. Talmage, and used with permission.

Welcome to the first month of our by-appointment season! It’s sometimes extra quiet around here as we work to catch up on reports, projects, and prepare for our annual appeal. 

And Feederwatch began! We have some volunteers who are wonderfully dedicated to helping the Museum participate in this community science program, so thank you Michele, Megan and Debbie!

November Bird List

Continue reading “Through the Window: November 2022”