Today is World Fish Migration Day, a “one day global-local event to create awareness on the importance of open rivers and migratory fish.” Fish passage and riparian habitat connectivity are important, long-standing issues for Maine Audubon. Our Stream Smart program focuses on helping towns and cities install new culverts at stream crossings which allow fish […]
Gilsland Farm
Spring Migration Is Underway!
It’s happening! As the days get longer and temperatures rise, we are happy to see migrant birds returning to or passing through Maine. In this blog post I’ll present a quick run-through, grouped by alliterate families in taxonomic order, of some of the birds we are seeing lately. Swans through Swifts April sees the largest […]
Citizen Science: Signs of the Seasons
Have you ever wanted to join a citizen science project, but weren’t sure where to start? For the last three years, Maine Audubon has partnered with Signs of the Seasons�a great program that will teach you how to observe the changing seasons in your neighborhood, record what you see, and submit the data to help […]
Spotlight on Maine Audubon Educators
Have you ever considered being a teacher of the natural world? We recently asked several of our educators to tell us a little about themselves and what they enjoy about the programs at Maine Audubon. Jeanie When I’m not working at Maine Audubon, I substitute teach, volunteer at Portland Adult Education, and spend time outdoors. […]
A Company of Girls’ Citizen Artist/Scientist Project at Gilsland Farm
This past fall, A Company of Girls embarked on a year-long Citizen Scientist Art project at the Maine Audubon wildlife sanctuary at Gilsland Farm in Falmouth, Maine. We are so excited and grateful to be collaborating with Maine Audubon on this initiative, which aims to give these urban girls an opportunity to create art and […]
Meet Our Atlantic Salmon “Fish Friends” at Gilsland Farm!
Maine currently has the last remaining wild population of Atlantic Salmon in the U.S. Once native to almost every river north of the Hudson River in New York, remnant wild populations are now found in only 11 rivers, all in Maine. As diadromous fish, Atlantic Salmon spend the first three years or so of their […]
A walk with the Maine Young Birders Club
Last November,�Maine Audubon staff joined the Maine Young Birders Club for a nature walk at Gilsland Farm. This became the basis for the feature story in our Spring 2018 issue of Habitat magazine (which you can receive each quarter by becoming a member!). Photographs by Ariana van den Akker.
The Filming of the Shrew (VIDEO)
Staff photographer Ari van den Akker just captured this video of a Northern Short-tailed Shrew�tunneling under the thistle feeder outside the Discovery Room at Gilsland Farm. She reports: These shrews are one of very few mammals that are venomous — an adaptation that allows them to kill prey larger than themselves. They also use echolocation […]
“Bug Mania” with King Middle School at Gilsland Farm
On Friday, January 12, King Middle School students converged at Maine Audubon’s Gilsland Farm to present the results of their recent insect-focused learning expedition, “Bug Mania.” At the start of their presentation, the students delivered remarks describing the work they’ve been doing to learn more about insects and their important environmental functions. Take a look […]