Grassland bird conservation is a complex and nuanced issue, and the solutions are not always obvious or simple. Hyla Howe, Grassland Bird Biologist at Mass Audubon and coordinator for the Bobolink Project, will explain what the team has learned from the program’s first decade, the challenges that have surfaced, the opportunities that persist, and the changes that are underway to expand and improve the program. After almost a decade of slow but steady growth, the program has received federal funding to greatly expand the acreage enrolled in Vermont’s Champlain and Connecticut River Valleys, which brings immense opportunity but also raises critical questions.  How can we integrate grassland bird-friendly haying timelines with the needs of working farms? How do we maintain fields that have gone out of production so they can continue to support grassland species? How can we scale our model and offer more support to farmers by working with local volunteers? In a time when the future is uncertain for grassland-obligate species, it is necessary to listen deeply to the people who are managing these vital landscapes and implement solutions that protect the resilience of our agricultural lands.

Join us on Zoom for this great program!

As part of the Missisquoi Wildlife Fair sponsored by the Friends of Missisquoi Wildlife Refuge, participants are challenged to join a 5K event with a birding twist. Birders will join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society as they lead a 5K walk over refuge trails to determine which species are present or passing through the refuge. All birds found will be recorded in eBird. Participants will meet at 8:00 AM at the Stephen Young Marsh/Old Railroad Passage trailhead (one mile past the Visitor Center on Tabor Road). Binoculars will be available for use for those without. Click the link below to register:

The Pelot’s Natural Area provides the opportunity to observe a variety of avian species in different ecological habitats, including fields, a sugarbush, mixed hardwoods, and a cedar stand. In addition, the area borders secluded Pelot’s Bay, marshes, and a swamp as well as offering views of the open lake. Participants will cover approximately 2.5 miles along trails over varied terrain during this outing. To ensure a pleasurable birding experience, registration is limited to twenty participants. Registration will open on September 28. To register, please click on the link below:

The fall migration is on! Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we traverse the beautiful grounds of Shelburne Farms to observe migratory birds as they get ready to leave our region. In addition, we expect to see a number of resident species. This morning birdwatching trip will cover approximately two miles over fairly level ground. To ensure a pleasurable birding experience, registration is limited to twenty participants. To register, please click on the link below:

Join the Green Mountain Audubon Society on our first outing to the Charlotte Park and Wildlife Refuge This area consists of a large tract of early successional woodlands, meadows, and pastures that provide outstanding habitats for birds and other wildlife. The range of significant wildlife habitats within this area supports a diverse variety avian species, including Golden and Blue-winged warblers and their hybrids. Trails here are clearly marked with some inclines. To ensure a pleasurable birding experience, participation will be limited to twenty individuals. Registration for this event will begin on June 15.

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we explore Butternut Hill Natural Area near the southern end of North Hero. This area consists of a mix of wetlands, uplands, two small agricultural fields, and over 1,100 feet of undeveloped Lake Champlain shoreline. The two wetlands are both long, narrow branches of lakeside floodplain forest divided by a low, forested ridge with a beech forest containing impressively large trees and a small patch of red cedar woodland along the rocky bluff at the lake shore. These diverse habitats provide nesting and forage areas for a variety of bird species. The walk covers some slight inclines, wet areas and eventually ends at a small cove along the lake. To ensure a pleasurable birding experience, this outing is limited to twenty participants. Registration will open on June 1.

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society in collaboration with the Friends of Missisquoi as we celebrate the annual return of migratory bird species. This outing will explore the Black and Maquam Creek Trails through floodplain forest, an extraordinarily productive ecosystem that provides bountiful food and habitat for a variety of avian species. Come and enjoy the best of birding at the height of migration!

This popular spring outing presents a great opportunity to view returning woodland warblers before the emergence of the leaves of the forest trees. Traveling approximately two miles along the slightly inclined paved park road, participants will be serenaded by spring songs and observe flashes of birds in breeding plumage. There are rest room facilities near parking close to the top of the Waterbury Dam. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this trip is limited to 25 participants. At the start, birders may assembled into smaller groups. Registration for this outing will open on May 4.

Come enjoy birding in a beautiful setting at the height of spring migration! The wide variety of habitats found at the Catamount Community Forest provides birders the opportunity to observe a diversity of species. The melodious songs of brightly colored warblers in their finest breeding plumage promise to make this an enjoyable morning for all! To ensure a pleasurable birding experience, participation will be limited to twenty participants. Registration for this outing will open on April 28.

In every season of the year, birders may stumble upon the unusual: a western flycatcher with misguided migration, an arctic owl wandering south, or a far-flung waterfowl from across an ocean. How do these birds end up in our little state, and what can they tell us about our changing world? Together we will look back on some of the most spectacular birds to visit Vermont, and ponder which avian treasures may come next. Join us for this presentation on rare birds of Vermont with Zac Cota.

Zac Cota is an expert birder, Birds of Vermont Museum board member, Vermont Bird Records Committee member, Vermont eBird Data Expert, and Teacher-Naturalist with North Branch Nature Center.

Photo: Crested Caracara in Woodstock, VT (credit: Cat Abbott)

On this outing, we return to Farrell Park a little bit earlier in an attempt to spot resident and returning species before the trees leaf out, obscuring the view. Birders may be surprised by what they find so close to a suburban community along an accessible paved pathway.

After meeting in the parking area just off Swift Street, we will travel along a well-used trail that meanders through deciduous a forest and along open fields, providing decent viewing opportunities. The pathway we will take is paved and relatively smooth with some gradual inclines. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this trip is limited to 20 participants. Registration for this outing will open on April 6.

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This is a wonderful opportunity to learn about the ecology and avian life in a remote Pacific ecosystem as well as the research being conducted there. Claire Reilly, a graduate of the University of Vermont, a former Audubon Vermont intern, and field technician who has assisted in bird-friendly maple sugar-making research, is engaged in research on the remote Palmyra atoll. Her work is mostly seabird-focused on an island group that tends to draw more marine biologists more than birders. She is involved in efforts to try to restore Palmyra's native rainforest and bring back seven extirpated species of seabird. This work involves a lot of bird surveying, invasive plant control, native plant monitoring, and seabird attraction efforts. In addition, Claire assists with some of the marine research, including snorkel surveys for coral bleaching, and the deployment of hydrophones for a team that's making a soundscape of the reef.

Shorebirds present on the atoll include bristle-thighed curlews, pacific golden plovers, wandering tattlers, red footed, brown, and masked boobies, brown and black noddies, white and sooty terns, and greater and lesser frigatebirds. Also observed offshore were wedge-tailed shearwater, tropical shearwater, and Bulwer's petrel. Join us on Zoom for this great program!

Join the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we venture out in search of late winter/early spring birds out on the Colchester Causeway. This excursion presents all sorts of possibilities, dependent upon the weather. Passerines and others may be visible on our way out to the lake, where the possibility exists of observing various waterfowl and a variety of other birds. The group will meet at the parking area off Mills Point Road and, from there, head out on the old rail bed. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this trip is limited to 20 participants.

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Hyla Howe is a graduate student at the University of Vermont's Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources working with Dr. Allan Strong. Hyla has spent the last three summers studying Bobolinks and other grassland birds in the Champlain Valley, Eastern High Peaks, and Tri-Lakes regions of the Adirondacks. Her interdisciplinary examination of Bobolink populations and farmer attitudes toward grassland bird conservation aims to inform more effective outreach and incentive programs. In the final semester of her M.S. degree, Hyla is excited to tell the story of the delicate and complex relationship between the farmers and birds that have become linked by changing regional land use patterns, and the ways that we can best support them.  Join us on Zoom for this great program!

Dr. O’Kane will be giving a talk, sponsored by GMAS, the Pierson Library, and The Flying Pig Bookstore, on Birding to Change the World: A Memoir at 6:30 p.m. on March 20, 2024 at the Pierson Library in Shelburne. Copies of her book will be available for purchase and signing at the event.

ONLINE PROGRAM

Liza Morse is a PhD candidate at the University of Vermont’s Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources. In collaboration with Ruth Bennett at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, Liza has been exploring the impact of coffee cultivation on bird diversity in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountain range in Colombia. Liza will discuss Smithsonian’s Bird Friendly Coffee program as well as her research into the impacts of sun- versus shade-grown coffee on bird functional diversity.  Originally from Western Massachusetts, Liza’s love of birds began as a kid when she participated in the Christmas Bird Count with a family friend. Her research focuses on bird ecology and conservation in working landscapes, from coffee plantations in Colombia to sugarbushes here in Vermont. Join us on Zoom for this great program!

Postponed to March 2 due to forecast calling for frigid temperatures.

Join the members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society for some winter birding, as we explore the fields and forests of the Winooski River floodplain at the Ethan Allen Homestead. Starting out from the parking area near the museum, we will head out on surrounding trails in search of a variety of avian species. Depending upon the weather, we may be walking on bare ground or snow-covered trails in cold or mild temperatures. Our outing will cover less than two miles over mostly flat terrain. Participants should dress for whatever conditions the day brings. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this trip is limited to 20 participants.

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ONLINE PROGRAM

Trish O’Kane is an accidental ornithologist. In her nearly two decades writing about justice as an investigative journalist, she'd never paid attention to nature. But then Hurricane Katrina destroyed her New Orleans home, sending her into an emotional tailspin. Enter a scrappy cast of feathered characters—first a cardinal, urban parrots, and sparrows, then a catbird, owls, a bittern, and a woodcock—that cheered her up and showed her a new path. Join us on Zoom for this great program!

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Bird Tales has become one of the Friends of Missisquoi NWR’s most popular events. Join us and find out why!

This year’s collection of avian stories will be coming from members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society. These avid birders will certainly have stories to entertain the audience.

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Emily Filiberti, graduate student at the University of Maine, has spent the past three years using VHF-coded telemetry to track and monitor a species facing acute population decline, the Golden-winged Warbler. Join us as Emily walks us through the process of tagging and tracking these charismatic and elusive birds, how the Motus network is playing a role in understanding migratory pathways, and how her work will ultimately help to inform future management decisions for the imperiled species. 

Originally from Fairfax, Vermont, Emily discovered her love for birds at a young age while exploring the state with her mother, an avid local birder. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of New England, she took on several bird-focused internships, including working with Bobolinks at Shelburne Farms, tracking American Redstarts in western Jamaica, and observing Lance-tailed Manakin courtship performances on an island in Panama. She is now finishing up her Master's of Science program in the Wildlife, Fisheries, and Conservation Biology department at the University of Maine.

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We all know that nature provides us with peace, quiet, contemplation and delight. Nature can also startle and surprise us. Join Maeve Kim and her partner Bernie Paquette for an evening of breath-taking photos and astonishing stories.

Bernie is a citizen scientist who promotes curiosity, observation, and reflection of all life forms in nature. He has created and developed the JFiN (Jericho Families in Nature) organization, the Community Backyard Bug Safari program, and the JULS (Jericho/ Underhill Life Search) program - all to introduce more folks to nature and entice them to take a closer look at all life forms, insects in particular. He posts photos of insects onto iNaturalist (20,000 at last count) and writes/publishes Jericho Conservation Newsletters, Nature Journals, and nature-themed short stories. His Nature-Inspired Single-Panel Comics are published weekly on his Bugeyed Bernie blog.

Maeve has conducted many programs and classes about birds for GMAS, Audubon Vermont, the Friends of Missisquoi, OLLI-UVM, CVUAccess and other organizations. Tonight she’ll share great finds from Vermont and farther afield. Bernie will introduce you all
to inverting with a closer look at creatures on the fresh-and-alive section of the menu for birds.

Get an early start on your 2024 bird list with members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we explore the Burlington waterfront in search of those hardy feathered fauna that spend the winter in Vermont. Starting at Perkins Pier, we will make our way up to the Coast Guard building and back. One never knows what surprises the new day and the new year will bring!

To register follow this link:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/new-years-day-birding-on-the-burlington-waterfront-tickets-725399307857?aff=oddtdtcreator

Join other Vermont Birders in the annual count of observed bird species in the Burlington area!

Consider participating in the 2023 Winter Bird Count, a long-standing program of the National Audubon Society, with over 100 years of citizen science involvement. This event is part of an early-winter bird census, where volunteers across Vermont, the US, Canada and many countries in the Western Hemisphere, within a 24 hour period to count birds. Whether contributing as a feeder watcher or as part of a team observing birds in a designated sector, all are welcome.

For more information on who to contact to learn about a count near you and how you can participate, follow this link: https://gis.audubon.org/christmasbirdcount/?_gl=1*1h1npm0*_ga*MTM3NDA5Nzg4NS4xNjg5ODcyOTY5*_ga_X2XNL2MWTT*MTcwMDU5NjI3MC4zMzEuMS4xNzAwNTk5NzM3LjMyLjAuMA..

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"While the falling leaves may signal the departure of many summer songsters, the first snow falls usher in an exciting and often underappreciated time in the birding year. Together we will explore a diversity of hardy birds, prepare for winter bird counts, and learn just what it takes to survive our long, cold winter."

Zac Cota is an expert birder, Birds of Vermont Museum board member, Vermont Bird Records Committee member, Vermont eBird Data Expert, and Teacher-Naturalist with North Branch Nature Center.

Explore the diversity of habitats and the resident avian species at the St. Michael’s College Natural Area with members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society. This 2.5 mile walk over varied and often wet terrain will provide participants the opportunity to traverse the Winooski River floodplain’s fields and forests. The trail eventually leads to more elevated mixed species forest and old field environments. At this site, human activities have provided fodder for a large population of feeding crows, ravens, and many other species. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this trip is limited to 20 participants. Registration opens on November 11, 2023

To register for this event follow the link below:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/early-winter-birding-at-the-st-michaels-college-natural-area-tickets-718925163517?aff=oddtdtcreator

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society in our monthly monitoring walk at the Green Mountain Audubon Center in Huntington. This early morning walk will offer an early winter opportunity to view primarily winter resident species with possibly a late migrant tor two. Come be part of a decades-long effort of monthly monitoring. Our path will take us just short of 2 miles over uneven and somewhat hilly terrain. The availability of access to restrooms cannot be guaranteed.

The South Hero Marsh Trail follows an old railroad bed through wetland forest adjacent to both an extensive marsh and open fields. This edge habitat provides food and cover for a diversity of bird species, both resident and migrating. Join the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we visit this site in the hope of getting good looks at a number of avian species. Due to the narrowness of the trail at points, this is being limited to 15 participants. Registration for this event opens October 21, 2023.

To register for this event follow the link below:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/birding-in-the-islands-south-hero-marsh-trail-tickets-729664103977?aff=oddtdtcreator

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society in our monthly monitoring walk at the Green Mountain Audubon Center in Huntington. This early morning walk will offer an mid-fall opportunity to view a diversity of both resident and migratory avian species and, hopefully, some beautiful foliage. Come be part of a decades-long effort of monthly monitoring. Our path will take us just short of 2 miles over uneven and somewhat hilly terrain. The availability of access to restrooms cannot be guaranteed. Tickets available starting October 14.

To register for this outing, please follow the link below:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bird-monitoring-at-the-green-mountain-audubon-center-in-huntington-tickets-718597072187?aff=oddtdtcreator

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we traverse the beautiful grounds of Shelburne Farms to observe resident and migrating avian species. The diverse habitat at the site includes fields, shrubs, forests, and wetlands, as well as the lake, providing both food and shelter to a variety of birds. Birders will meet at the Coach Barn, near the lake front to look for waterfowl and other birds on the water. From there, we will traverse fields and forest in search of various avian species.

Registration for this event will open on October 7, 2023.

To register for this event follow the link below:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fall-birding-at-shelburne-farms-tickets-718645456907?aff=oddtdtcreator

Join Larry Orvis and Ali Wagner on a 3 mile (round trip) walk in the foothills of the Green Mountains in the southernmost portion of Camels Hump State Forest.  They will lead us through a variety of habitats while explaining the management strategies and  the creatures that benefit from these practices. Anticipate a 4 hour walk (depending on bird activity), easy walking up forest service road with a few short steep sections. Please note that, due to the nature of this event, registration is limited to 12 participants. Registration for this event will open on Saturday September 21.

Participants are advised to bring bug repellent and water. Parking/carpooling, if possible, is encouraged as space is limited on site. Specific directions will be forwarded to all registrants via email.

To register for this event follow the link below:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-morrison-place-birds-and-stewardship-of-a-vermont-landscape-tickets-718620121127?aff=oddtdtcreator