Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
We love sharing
birds with you.
Through the Window: February 2026
Through the Window: January 2026
We had a relatively cold stretch of weather this January, which can lead to extra activity at the feeders. Perhaps that explains the one unusual sighting?
January Bird List
March Bird Monitoring Walk
All birders — current, experienced, newbie and would-be — welcome!
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! 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.
Free, suggested donation $10 – $15
Max: 12 people
Register with the button below
OR register at https://sevendaystickets.com/organizations/birds-of-vermont-museumor call 802 434-2167.
Outdoors
Photo: Bohemian Waxwing in Museum’s crab apple tree, by Erin Talmage. Copyright 2016 and used by permission.
Museum Open for Great Backyard Bird Count
Visit us February 14th, 2026, to see what birds we’re counting for the Great Backyard Bird Count!
- Learn to ID birds — what do we look or listen for?
- Go birding with a friend — twice the fun!
- Find out more about and record observations for this great community science project.
We’re open from 10-4 on Saturday for the GBBC
Members admission: Free!
About the GBBC:
Friday – Monday, February 13-16, 2026 • 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
Friday – Monday, February 13-16, 2026 • All Over the World
Whether you are with a friend or on 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 13-16, 2026.
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:
- If you are a beginning bird admirer and new to the count, try using the Merlin Bird ID app.
- If you have participated in the count before, try the eBird Mobile app or enter your bird list on the eBird website (desktop/laptop).
- If you are participating as a group, see instructions for Group Counting.
For more info visit https://www.birdcount.org/
Through the Window: December 2025
December had moments of excitement with two unusual birds (unusual in that we rarely see them from the viewing window). This image is a hint… Read on!
December Bird List
Through the Window: November 2025
The late fall November routine is all about ending the “summer” open season and preparing for the winter “behind the scenes” season. We often try to take lunch at the viewing window or share a moment with visitors there.
November Birds
Winter Birding in Vermont
Join Museum Director Erin Talmage to learn about Winter Birding in Vermont.
Vermont in winter is cold, muddy, slushy, icy, snowy. But there are still birds! Which ones? How come? What do they eat? How do they shelter from the weather? And how can you get involved?
We will explore permanent residents, birds that migrate to and through, and irrupters! You’ll learn how to be involved in conservation just by watching birds—and more.
OLLI (the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute) is sponsoring this seminar. Visit their website for for more information: https://learn.uvm.edu/osher-lifelong-learning/olli-on-campus-courses/
Class begins at 1:30 at St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church
72 Church St, Shelburne, VT 05482.
Read more about winter birds in this blog post: https://birdsofvermont.org/2013/01/16/winter-birds/
Through the Window: October 2025
October is always surprising, what with migration trailing off, interesting swings in weather, and the Big Sit.
October Bird Lists
Through the Window: September 2025
Warm and dry pretty much the whole month. Pleasant for sitting around, and can make some nice updrafts. Did you go hawk watching?
Every now and then this year, a warbler comes to the feeder—not to eat, apparently, just to check things out from that perch. And (presumably less often) we notice!