On a beautiful fall day with 70 degree temperatures, Maine Audubon educators took our conservation program, Stream Explorers, to Sanford Middle School. The week before our visit, we went into the classroom and practiced using the nets and identifying macroinvertebrates. By sampling the stream and identifying the macroinvertebrates, the students would be able to tell […]
News & Notes
Native plant update: it’s time for dormancy and seed dispersal
September 1: Welcome to fall! October 1: Welcome to fall! November 1:Welcome to fall!�� November 14 . . . 15 . . . Ok, now. It finally feels like fall in Maine! As the climate changes, our growing season changes with it. Historically, gardeners would bid goodnight to their plants by early October. More recently, […]
Becoming a bird-safe school
Something’s happening during recess these days at Yarmouth Elementary School. Instead of the shouts and sounds of a soccer game, there’s quiet. Groups of kids are standing, looking, listening. Yes, they’re birding! According to Nicole Colfer, the school’s STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) teacher, the kids have become more present in nature thanks […]
Appreciating Portland’s Big Trees
On a beautiful, sunny Friday afternoon in late October, staff members from Maine Audubon, Portland Parks, U.S. Forest Service, Maine TREE Foundation, and The Nature Conservancy gathered in Portland to visit some of Maine’s biggest trees right here in “Forest City.” While all of us on the tour consider ourselves professional and passionate conservators of […]
Workshops, camps, programs: More good news for November
Sharing good news from across the organization! Stream Smart Workshops� After multiple COVID cancellations and switching to Zoom for our Introductory Stream Smart workshops, we were finally able to hold two, in-person, two-day Stream Smart Field Trainings this fall! Held in Falmouth (pictured above) and in Farmington, we engaged with engineers and foresters, as well […]
Commonly Misidentified Species: Cold Weather Sparrows
It’s not always easy to identify Maine’s most beloved birds. Maine Audubon biologists and naturalists commonly field identification questions along the lines of “is it this, or is it that?” Many species look similar from a distance, but there are some great telltale signs, both visual markers and behaviors, that can help identify species. This […]
Who’s that turtle in the tank?
Earlier this fall, on September 7, some observant visitors notified our staff at Gilsland Farm that there was a baby Snapping Turtle in the parking lot. Echoing the events of three Septembers prior, we began searching the parking lot and surrounding area for tiny crawling turtles. Female Snapping Turtles secretively dig nests and lay eggs […]
Installing Bird Safe Windows at Gilsland Farm
Maine Audubon and our partners are continuing to spread the word about bird safe architecture through our BirdSafe Maine program. An essential part of that work involves displaying different bird safe window treatments, especially on the many windows of our Gilsland Farm headquarters in Falmouth, to show builders and homeowners what their options are. In […]
Old Orchard Beach Chamber of Commerce Names Maine Audubon Nonprofit Organization of the Year
The work of Maine Audubon�s Coastal Birds Crew was in the spotlight last month as the Old Orchard Beach Chamber of Commerce named Maine Audubon the Nonprofit Organization of the Year at a ceremony on October 12. Coastal Birds Project Director Laura Minich Zitske and Biologist Laura Williams accepted the award on behalf of Maine […]