Approximately 90% of Maine is covered in forestland, making it the most heavily forested state in the nation. Millions of these acres are included in a complex grid of small and large working forest conservation easements. Maine Audubon undertook a detailed assessment of the terms of these easements and conducted an analysis of how well […]
Forestry for Maine Birds
It’s Maine Maple Time!
It’s that sweet time of year again: Maine Maple Sunday weekend is coming right up on March 22-23. During that weekend you have a chance to visit maple producers to learn more about how maple syrup and other maple treats are made. You’ll also have a chance to learn more about how these sugarbushes are […]
New Statewide Shoreland Harvesting Standards Set to Take Effect Soon
Shoreland areas – those places adjacent to wetlands, streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes – are incredibly important for fish, wildlife, and water quality. We know that around 85% of vertebrate wildlife in Maine use shoreland areas some time during the year for hiding, nesting, denning, feeding, and traveling, and that a dense cover of herbs, […]
Marking Maine Arbor Week 2024
Maine Audubon is once again joining other lovers and conservators of Maine’s forests and flora to honor Maine Arbor Week, celebrated this year from May 19 to 25. It serves to remind us of the ecological, cultural, and economic importance of flora, particularly our hundreds of native tree species. In 1978, the Maine legislature designated […]
Maine farms join Bird-Friendly Maple program
For many people in Maine, March means one thing: maple syrup. Throughout the state, sugarmakers are now busy boiling maple sap into syrup. You might not see the connection to wildlife, but those very same forests that make Maine one of the top three maple producing states also support some of the highest diversity of […]
Maple Thanksgiving is a Sweet Treat for Portland Kindergarteners
Maple sugaring takes patience–a lesson kindergarten students in Portland Public Schools now know firsthand. Students across the district spent late winter learning about maple trees and maple sugaring, studying maple trees on their school grounds, and in many cases, tapping those trees, as a part of a Wabanaki Studies unit for kindergarten called Maple Thanksgiving. […]
Bird Conservation comes to Maine’s Maple Sugarbushes
March is arguably the sweetest month of the year. All throughout Maine, sugarmakers are busy boiling maple sap into syrup. The same forests that make Maine one of the top three maple producing states also support some of the highest diversity of nesting birds in the country. In an effort to bring together Maine’s maple […]
Passamaquoddy Maple Sweetness Comes to Maine Audubon
This Sunday is Maine Maple Sunday. Around the state, Mainers will be venturing out to sugar shacks to see how maple syrup is produced — and to enjoy some maple treats at the end of a long winter! For centuries, the Passamaquoddy people have harvested sap from the Mahgan (sugar maple) tree. In 2014, the […]