Once again, as they have every year since 1983, volunteers across Maine set their alarm clocks early, gulped down some coffee, and were out on lakes by 7 a.m. to record observations about Common Loons in the Annual Loon Count. For half an hour, more than a thousand volunteers were paddling kayaks, …
Media Release
Maine Audubon and partners receive grant for loon restoration
In 2003, 98,000 gallons of oil spilled in Buzzards Bay from a tank barge called Bouchard B-120. An estimated 531 Common Loons, overwintering in Buzzards Bay (off the coasts of MA and RI), died from direct or indirect impacts from this spill. Now, a natural resources damage settlement from this …
Maine Audubon Annual Loon Count Set for July 17
A loon glides across a still lake, the white dots on its black wings appearing to sparkle in the reflection off the water. But suddenly it gives out a quavering laugh. This “tremolo” usually means the loon feels alarmed or threatened. What has bothered this loon? It might be another loon intruding …
Migration tracking tools come to Maine Audubon
Maine Audubon is joining a massive international effort to track animal movements through automated radio telemetry, a project called the Motus Wildlife Tracking Network. It's already teaching us new things about how birds and other animals are moving through Maine. Motus, from the Latin for …
Maine Audubon Invites Plein Air Painters to Apply for Brush with Nature
Maine Audubon is pleased to announce a very special event for this fall. In place of our annual Nature of Craft Show, we are inviting plein air painters to be inspired by nature at our sanctuaries and create art outdoors to engage visitors in the artistic process. Juried artists will paint at the …
Help Wildlife with Better Stream Smart Crossings
What helps wildlife and protects public safety at the same time? Stream Smart crossings, of course! Stream Smart crossings are culverts and bridges that allow streams to flow naturally as if the road wasn't even there. Not only does this allow fish and wildlife to move freely and safely through the …
Maine Audubon Remembers George Smith
In one of the many tributes to George Smith, who recently passed away after a four-year battle with ALS, George noted that one of his most prized accomplishments was establishing the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund (MOHF), a specially-designed program that awards grants for wildlife and habitat …
Op-Ed: Legislature should take steps to keep solar development green
Note: This is the text of an op-ed column published in the February 4, 2021, Portland Press Herald. By Ellen Griswold, Policy and Research Director, Maine Farmland Trust, and Eliza Donoghue, Director of Advocacy & Staff Attorney, Maine Audubon Tux Turkel's January 4 article …
Volunteers Get Creative During 2020 Annual Loon Count
In a year when it seemed like just about everything could go wrong, a few things did go right. Thanks to 48 regional coordinators and 1,347 volunteers, Maine Audubon's Annual Loon Count was one of them. They overcame many hurdles in order to complete the annual snapshot census of Maine's loon …