Since observing his “spark bird” in Mexico in 1955, Hank Kaestner has followed birds to more than 100 countries, accumulating a life list of 8,335 species. As a spice buyer for McCormick and Company, Hank traveled to exotic locales, buying vanilla in Madagascar, cinnamon in Indonesia, black pepper in India, and other spices at sites around the world.  Each of these venues allowed him to observe birds and to frequently meet up with his brother Peter, the world’s top birder. Since retirement, he continues to travel and bird with his brother. This program provides an opportunity to share in the wonders observed by Hank and Peter in their birding travels to Colombia, as the pandemic was just developing.

This FREE program will be held in the South Burlington Community Library on Thursday, April 30, starting at 6:30 PM. Please register using the button below:

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The forests of the Northeastern U.S. play an outsized role in the conservation of North America's breeding forest birds, many of which have experienced steep population declines over the past 50 years. These forests are also unique in being primarily privately owned, which introduces both challenges and opportunities when it comes to bird habitat management and conservation. Fen Levy-O'Malley (Audubon Vermont) presents a portion of their graduate research from Northern Maine, to explore how changes within the forest products industry have impacted birds, and to brew up a recipe for healthier, more resilient, and more bird-friendly commercial forests. Please register to join us for this online program.

Photo Credit: @peterselmayr (iNaturalist)

Colchester Pond is one of Chittenden County’s premier birding locations. The combination of the pond itself and the diversity of terrestrial habitats offers birders a chance to see early-returning spring migrants and resident birds. Due to the popularity of this site for recreation purposes, as well as the narrow walkways in some areas, we are starting this walk a bit earlier and limiting participants to 15 birders.

Registration for this outing will open on March 28.

Join members of the Green Mountain Bird Alliance as we pay an early-season visit to one of Vermont's premier birding sites. Delta Park offers birders an opportunity to observe waterfowl, early-returning birds, and resident species. Spring weather along the lake can be quite variable, as can the number and species of birds present. Take a chance, and we may spot some avian surprises!

This outing will be limited to 20 participants to ensure an enjoyable birding experience.

The Green Mountain Bird Alliance, formerly The Green Mountain Audubon Society, invites you to a special program featuring the unveiling of the organization’s new name and logo, as well as a not-to-be-missed presentation on “The State of Vermont's Birds” by UVM Professor Allan Strong, Director of the Wildlife and Fisheries Biology Program.

The event is Sunday, March 15th, from 6-8 p.m. in the Historic Town Hall in Shelburne, 5376 Shelburne Road, which is attached to the Pierson Library, in Shelburne. This event is free and open to the public, but RSVPs are required. Light refreshments will be served.

Light is one of the most important environmental cues birds use to time daily behaviors—when to forage, sing, migrate, or rest. But what happens when light changes suddenly, or when it’s altered by human activity? In our February online program, Dr. Brent Pease — professor of biodiversity conservation at Southern Illinois University — shares new research on how birds respond to both natural shifts in light during solar eclipses and the growing pressures of artificial light at night. Register below for this fascinating program!

Join us for our evening program with Andrew Bouton, Migratory Game Bird Project Leader for Vermont Fish & Wildlife for an evening of weird and wonderful waterfowl! Andrew will discuss the waterfowl of Vermont with a focus on identification, ongoing research, and region-wide conservation and management. This event is free but please be sure to register at the link below!

Photo: @lkjohnson1

Start February off right by enjoying the outdoors with birders from the Green Mountain Audubon Society. Record winter bird sightings as we make our way along the Burlington Waterfront from Perkins Pier north to the Coast Guard station. In the past, we have spotted everything from typical species to Peregrine Falcons to northern rarities. This is an event that was rescheduled from an earlier date. This outing will be limited to 20 participants to ensure an enjoyable birding experience.

Rosemary Mosco is an author, illustrator, and speaker whose work connects people with the natural world. Rosemary graduated from University of Vermont’s Field Naturalist Program and has gone on to write and draw for The New York Times, Audubon, Rewiring America, the PBS Kids show Elinor Wonders Why, Ranger Rick, and more. She is the creator of a regular comic strip for Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Living Bird magazine as well as her own award-winning nature comic Bird and Moon. Join us for our evening program with Rosemary to learn why art, humor, and conservation are natural allies and dive into her new humor book The Birding Dictionary.

Chip and Sam Darmstadt, well-known Vermont birders and co-owners of FlyAway Birding, will share stories and photos of their adventures and discuss the types of birding trips available, how participants should best prepare, what they might see, the challenges they might face, and other relevant information for birders interested in traveling to observe avian species. This is a great opportunity to learn more about how to make the most of traveling for birding, while getting a taste of what may await you.

This is a FREE IN-PERSON presentation held at the South Burlington Public Library Auditorium.

Join fellow birders and members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we conduct this annual Winter Bird Count that has provided valuable data for over a hundred years. On this day, birders will explore sectors throughout a 15-mile diameter circle centered in Burlington, identifying and counting birds that are observed. If you would like to participate, but avoid the chill in the air, you could count from a position of indoor comfort. The assistance of feeder watchers is welcomed and provides additional data in this effort. For more information, contact burlingtonwbc@gmail.com

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we conduct a monthly monitoring walk at the Green Mountain Audubon Center in Huntington. These monthly walks have been conducted for decades over a defined path and provide a long-term picture of the birds present at the Center throughout the year. No registration is necessary.

November weather can be quite unpredictable, but each year, a diversity of waterfowl species can be found along the shores of Lake Champlain. The Colchester Causeway can provide birders with an opportunity to get closer views of many duck species, as well as many other winter birds. On this outing, birders will traverse the rail trail through a wooded area sheltered from the wind and out on the open lake. Birders with scopes are encouraged to bring them along.

Registration for this walk will open on Saturday, November 1. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this outing will be limited to 15 participants.

Join us for our first online program of the 2025-2026 season with Leslie Spencer, a PhD candidate studying native pollinator communities with UVM’s Food Systems graduate program. Her work spans scales – from understanding climate impacts on bees at the national scale to mobilizing pollinator education efforts on the ground in Vermont. In this program, she will share her research about wild pollinator conservation and will discuss steps Vermonters can take to become pollinator protectors in their communities.

Photo: Leslie Spencer

Fall presents a real challenge to birders as many species have migrated southward, leaving winter residents, migrants from the far north who stay here for the winter, and an occasional straggler. St. Michael’s College Natural Area provides habitat and food resources that many of these species rely on. Join us on an outing as we explore this special area and the avian species that can be found there.

To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this outing is limited to 15 participants.

With members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society, explore the roads and trails traversing the Saxon Hill Forest and adjacent areas in search of various avian species. This birding hotspot, part of which is an old red pine plantation, has been identified as one of the Vermont breeding sites of Vesper Sparrows and has hosted a myriad of other birds. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience for all, this outing has been limited to 20 participants.

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society at the Missisquoi Wildlife Fair for a morning bird walk on the National Wildlife Refuge’s Black/Maquam Creek Trail. This trail traverses a productive floodplain forest, which provides food and habitat for many bird species. This time of the year offers the possibility of catching some early migrants on their way south. In addition to this walk, many activities are planned for this weekend. For more information about other WMBD events at the refuge on this day, go to: https://friendsofmissisquoi.org/#event|missisquoi-wildlife-fair|984

To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this walk is limited to 20 participants.

The fall migration is on! Join the Green Mountain Audubon Society as we traverse the beautiful grounds of Shelburne Farms to observe migratory birds as they prepare to leave our region. In addition, we expect to see many resident species. This birdwatching excursion will cover approximately two miles over fairly level ground. To ensure a pleasurable birding experience, registration is limited to twenty participants.

To ensure a pleasurable birding experience, registration is limited to twenty participants.

The Green Mountain Audubon Society returns to beautiful Cold Hollow Sculpture Park to observe birds before many depart our region for warmer climes. Participants will explore the trails in search of different species while also having the opportunity to appreciate the spectacular work of world-renowned artist David Stromeyer.

For more information about the park, see https://www.coldhollowsculpturepark.com.

Join a small group of birders for an early morning excursion at one of Chittenden County’s premier birding hotspots. Scheduled for an early weekday morning to avoid crowds, we will explore the variety of habitats this site offers in search of a diverse range of species. This outing will be limited to only TEN participants and is set for a Thursday with a Friday rain date.

Join members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society for an extraordinary outing that combines an appreciation of both art and nature as we explore the environs of Cold Hollow Sculpture Park. Participants will have the opportunity to explore the trails while observing birds in breeding plumage and viewing the spectacular work of world-renowned artist David Stromeyer.

The park is located at 428 Boston Post Road in Enosburg Falls, Vermont.

For more information about the park, see www.coldhollowsculpturepark.com.

To ensure an enjoyable experience, this outing is limited to twenty participants. Registration for this event will open on July 5, 2025.

Join Pat and Tom on a collaborative outing between the Green Mountain Audubon Society and the Birds of Vermont Museum as we search the meadows, forests, and aquatic environments near the museum in search of vocalizing birds in beautiful breeding plumage. After the walk, we can enjoy coffee, tea, and treats while observing birds attracted to the museum’s feeders. To ensure an enjoyable birding experience for all, this outing is limited to twenty participants.

Come enjoy the return of numerous migrating birds in a stunningly beautiful setting! 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 May 17.

Celebrate World Migratory Bird Day with the Green Mountain Audubon Society and Friends of the Missisquoi NWR as we explore the floodplain forests of the refuge. The trails along Black and Maquam Creek provide food and habitat for many warblers, flycatchers, aquatic birds, and other fauna. In addition to this walk, many activities are planned for this weekend. For more information about other WMBD events at the refuge on May 16, 17, and 18, go to:: https://friendsofmissisquoi.org/calendar/

To ensure an enjoyable birding experience, this outing is limited to 20 participants. Registration for this event will open on May 10, 2025

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.

Join us as we search for early migrating warblers and other species at the Pelots Natural Area. With southern winds and the warmer microclimate of the Champlain Valley, we hope to get a chance to see some of these “early bird” warblers on their way to nesting sites. This locale 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 April 27.

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Join us and speaker Kevin Tolan — staff biologist at Vermont Center for Ecostudies and graduate student at the University of Vermont — as we discover the origin of our North American grasslands, the pressing threats they experience, the local conservation opportunities that have arisen, and the uncertain future they face.

While natural phenomena have long shaped landscape composition, anthropogenic influences are increasingly dictating what lives where. Grassland ecosystems have taken the brunt of human agriculture and development, with the Great Plains losing millions of acres annually. Amid accelerating climate change and global extinctions, opportunities exist in the Northeast to provide long-term habitat for grassland birds - the most rapidly declining group of birds on the continent. Join us and speaker Kevin Tolan — staff biologist at Vermont Center for Ecostudies and graduate student at the University of Vermont — as we discover the origin of our North American grasslands, the pressing threats they experience, the local conservation opportunities that have arisen, and the uncertain future they face.

Photo: Susan Elliott

Come explore the Winooski River floodplain forest with members of the Green Mountain Audubon Society at this hidden gem of a natural area. Thick, woody, and herbaceous vegetation provides excellent habitat and forage for a wide variety of species. In addition, Woodside includes a wetland and trails that wind along the banks of the river. Due to the nature of the trails here, we will offer two separate start times (8:00 and 8:30 AM) for small groups of birders of 10 individuals each. There is limited parking at the trailhead, but additional parking can be found further up the hill.

Unfortunately, we have reached capacity for this event. We hope that you will join us on a future outing.

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 has served as a Teacher-Naturalist with North Branch Nature Center.

This outing includes three non-walking outings in one in which our group will spend time at three locations along the lake - the Shelburne Bay boat launch, Shelburne Town Beach, and the Charlotte Town Beach. At each location, we will be observing waterfowl and other avian species using both binoculars and spotting scopes. Members will be present with spotting scopes through which participants may get great looks at birds out on the water. Those with their own scopes are encouraged to bring them. We will meet at the first location at the boat launch at 8:00 and proceed to the next after about 45 minutes. To provide for a pleasurable birding experience, registration is limited to 15 participants. Registration for this event will open on March 7, 2025