This year seems to be solidly average for monarch butterflies at VINS. Tagging continues through the month, but there are not huge numbers like those we saw during the summer of 2019. The amount of tagged butterflies is still more than were collected during all of last season, when at least for our nature center, we had lower numbers of monarchs.

It is still too early to tell what the overwintering populations will look like this year but early reports show that it could be a good year. Monarch populations overall are declining and they are currently experiencing some good years and some bad years. Loss of milkweed is becoming an apparent factor in the shrinking population. To that end VINS is attempting to help restore milkweed plants on our campus.

By collecting seeds from existing plants and starting them indoors we hope to get a jump on next spring. By selectively choosing where to plant and actively assisting their growth we hope to slowly increase the number of plants that can be hosts for caterpillars next summer.

We hope to provide the best possible habitat for monarchs through the creation of host plants, flowering plants, water sources, and shelter. These types of small changes are necessary across monarchs’ range and can ultimately help protect this important species.

—Jim Armbruster, Research Coordinator

The post Tagging Monarch Butterflies appeared first on Nature Blog.

by Jim Armbruster – Research Coordinator

Monday

Each week starts off with walking the trails and checking on the camera traps around campus. There are currently four game cameras at VINS positioned strategically along wildlife trails in the hopes of inventorying the diverse species on the property. They are off the main hiking trails in areas of quality animal habitat. There are also two cameras at Old Pepper Place that are checked monthly. So far the cameras have revealed several interesting species including some that are not routinely seen on campus. So far the highlights have included, three deer fawns, bobcat, fisher, bear, coyotes, gray foxes, mink, a family of raccoons, skunk, and a flying squirrel.

Monday is also a day for setting up malaise, insect, traps at points throughout campus. This project is the second part of our breeding bird survey that was completed this June. Traps are placed at the 18 spots where counts were conducted. The idea is to see what insect species are available for birds that are nesting in each area. The bugs will then be identified down to order.

Tuesday

Tuesday is beach day…to launch a kayak to survey for cyanobacteria. This year VINS is monitoring at Lake Pinneo in Quechee and North Hartland Dam in Hartland as part of Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation’s cyanobacteria citizen science program. Each week we look for signs of a bloom along the beach by paddling or walking the shoreline. A secchi disk is also used to measure turbidity at the deepest part of the lake. This is an important project as cyanobacteria is known to have negative health effects on swimmers and beach goers. So far there have been no blooms at our sites, but there has been activity throughout the state.

Vermont Cyanobacteria Tracker

Wednesday

Each morning also starts off with the emptying of our rain gauge. Rainfall is measured from the previous day and recorded to the Community Collaborative Rain Hail and Snow Network, CoCoRAHS, citizen science project. After Tropical storm Isaias the night before we received 1.79 inches of rain. We also monitor conditions with a weather station here on campus. Our station continuously transmits data to weather underground where anyone can see conditions on our campus.

VINS Weather Station

Today is also the kick off for a renewed collaboration between VINS and the White River Partnership in Royalton. Our organizations partnered previously to create a guide to the crayfish species of Vermont. We are now launching a crayfish inventory for the entire state of Vermont on iNaturalist. Any observation posted is automatically entered into this inventory and allows us to determine the dispersion of species throughout Vermont. This project is important as there is an invasive species of crayfish, the Rusty Crayfish, that is taking over watersheds. An inventory can help track their spread and show us where native species are still thriving.

White River Partnership
Crayfish Project Intro Video
Crayfish Index on iNaturalist

Thursday

Thursday is nest watch day. Every season we monitor activity in several nest boxes scattered around our meadow. We also monitor other nests we find through project nest watch. Data is recorded as nests are built, eggs are laid, eggs hatch, and young fledge. A report will be posted at the end of nesting season.

While in the meadow we not only keep our eyes peeled for dive bombing swallows but also dragonflies. We are continuing our partnership with Black River Action Team and their dragonfly detective project to inventory species of dragonflies in Windsor and Windham counties of Vermont. Just like the crayfish index, observations submitted to iNaturalist are automatically added to the Dragonfly Detective project and help us to track what species might occur here.

Black River Action Team
Dragonfly Index

Friday

With the nice stretch of sunny hot days, Friday is the perfect day for catching monarchs. During the summer we monitor their health by using tape to remove scales from captured butterflies’ abdomens as part of the monarch health citizen science project. These samples may contain parasites that are present on monarchs throughout the country. These samples are sent to a lab in Georgia at the end of each season for analysis. With fall right around the corner, we are also gearing up for tagging the migratory butterflies that are born at the end of the summer. This will be our fourth year tagging for Monarch Watch and we will have a tagging event for the public in September.

Monarch Health Project Blog
Monarch Tagging Blog

The changing of seasons also means changing of research projects. We are in the process of starting several new exciting long term projects here on campus and at Mt. Ascutney in Windsor.

This year will be the first official hawk count season at the state park as part of the annual migration counting through Hawk Migration Association of North America. VINS staff and volunteers will be conducting counts most days from September 1^st through October 18^th.

Hawk Migration Association of North America
Hawk Watch Data from Ascutney

We are also starting a long term phenology study on our canopy walk. Trees on the walk will be observed for color changes in the fall, bud development, and leaf out in the spring.

We are also looking to begin banding of migratory birds that pass through our campus. Using the canopy walk as a platform for mist nets we will be able to easily access a part of the forest that is usually hard to get to. With a net on the ground as well we can see what species are using the canopy during different periods.

Stay tuned for updates from these exciting projects!

The post A Week of Citizen Science appeared first on Nature Blog.

As monarchs slowly return to Vermont, reports of observations are starting to come in throughout the state. With sightings all around it was only a matter of time before they returned to our campus meadow. The last two years we have been keeping track of their summer return. In the summer of 2019 the first sighting of a lone butterfly was on 6/8. This year the first two were spotted today, the 15^th of July! Several eggs were also observed on milkweeds throughout campus. After a great summer last year for monarchs, the overwintering populations were actually down slightly from the previous year. We are waiting to see what this summer will bring for monarch populations on campus.
Another aspect of our monarch monitoring involves a health check up for the butterflies for Project Monarch Health through the University of Georgia. “It is a citizen science project in which volunteers sample wild monarch butterflies to help track the spread of a protozoan parasite across North America.” –Monarch Health. This involves sampling for Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE) a parasite that infects monarch and other species of butterflies. OE is a single celled protozoan that can be found on the butterflies. When not living in a host, it survives as spores that can be collected from the butterflies’ abdomen using a clear sticker. Once the sample is collected, the butterfly is marked and released. The collected samples are then sent to the lab at the University of Georgia. Last year we sampled 60 butterflies and recently received the results. Of the samples we sent in, four had heavy OE spore loads. This means that over 100 spores were found when looking at the sample under a microscope.

So what does that mean for our monarchs? OE can cause a monarch chrysalis to fail and not produce a butterfly. Because of this, the spores have the potential to negatively impact the populations of monarchs but do not seem to have an effect on the adults. “Infected adults emerge covered with spores. Once butterflies are infected, they do not recover. By the time adults emerge with parasite spores, all physical damage by the OE parasites has been done – the parasites do not grow or reproduce on the adults.” –Monarch Health. The eastern migratory population of monarchs has the lowest rate of infection with about 8% found with spores. This project is just one more way to help protect the monarch butterfly and is another long term data set that we can generate here on our campus.

To learn more about Monarch Health click here!

The post Monarch Health, A Citizen Science Project appeared first on Nature Blog.

Female Monarch butterfly

Visitors help release a tagged butterfly

Now comes the hard part–waiting for recovery reports to filter in. The findings from the wintering grounds will not be posted until next summer. With 200 butterflies our odds of a recovery improve, but with millions of Monarchs that end up in Mexico we may not hear anything back. All we can do is hope for a good migration for all the butterflies heading south!

Environmental Educator Jim Armbruster demonstrating proper Monarch handling technique.

The post 2019 Monarch Tagging Season Wrap-Up! appeared first on Nature Blog.

 According to Monarch Watch, this year’s numbers seem promising for a successful migration. Several roosts of butterflies have been observed on their path to Mexico with some roosts estimated to contain 1000 or more monarchs. During the migration of 2017/2018 there were 124 million monarchs estimated on the wintering grounds taking up 2.48 hectares of forests (24,800 square meters). But monarchs are not all doing well. Although these numbers seem huge, this is actually down 14.8% from last season. 20 years ago, monarchs covered 18 hectares and were estimated at 1 billion individuals. This year’s prediction is for monarchs to cover 5 hectares, with 6 hectares being considered the target for monarch recovery.

There is still a lot that scientists don’t know about monarch migration. It is unclear what factors may lead to a big year of migration and what specific habitats are crucial to this species. Luckily, many of the citizen science projects that we at VINS participate in can be done in your own backyard. This means that we can all take part in helping to better understand and protect the magnificent winged creatures that are the Monarch butterflies.

Monarchs are still emerging, even in the October chill.

Monarch Watch
Project Monarch Health

The post Stellar Monarch Tagging Season at VINS appeared first on Nature Blog.

A male Monarch butterfly on our datasheet.

Have you ever watched a monarch butterfly struggling to fly on a breezy day and thought to yourself, “I wonder how they get where they want to go?” It might surprise you to know that in fact these butterflies can control their flights and can travel up to 3,000 miles.

That’s right, the butterfly you see dancing on the wind in your yard might someday migrate south and purposefully end up in Mexico. But it depends on when and where they hatched. Eastern monarch butterflies that emerge from their chrysalis in early summer live for two to five weeks. Their main goal in that time is to reproduce and create the next generation. Butterflies that emerge in late summer and early fall live eight or nine months and have another important task. They will need to complete a difficult journey south to reach their overwintering grounds in places like Mexico.  How monarchs make this incredible journey and how successive generations can navigate to the same locations each year is still not known to scientists. 

Tagging the monarch is a delicate process.

This year at VINS we are taking part in the magnificent monarch migration. During the end of August and the first weeks of September we are participating in a citizen science project to catch and tag monarch butterflies before they leave on their winter vacation. The hope is that butterflies tagged on our campus will be recovered at the end of their trip in Mexico. 

Each butterfly gets a sticker with a unique identification number, placed on its wing so as not to impact flight. If the butterfly is recovered at any point on its migration the number can be reported to the study. This information can then be used by scientists to figure out how monarchs can accomplish this amazing feat. Tracking butterflies is vitally important to learn about migration patterns and to determine what sites along the route are critical for the survival of the species.

The tag will stay with the monarch through its migration.

In this first year of tagging we have already placed stickers on 25 monarchs with the hope of adding more before the season ends. We are looking to certify our meadow habitat as a Monarch Way-station, designating it as critical habitat for monarchs. We hope to expand the project in coming years to include more help from the public and more butterflies tagged. 

So if you happen to see VINS educators leaping around our meadow with nets, know that we are not just having fun chasing butterflies during work hours, but are helping to protect the incredible species that is the monarch butterfly. And yes it is also very fun to chase butterflies. 

For more info on how you can help the monarchs contact Jim Armbruster at jarmbruster@vinsweb.org or check out monarchwatch.org.

The post Migrating Monarchs Tagged at VINS appeared first on Nature Blog.

Think native flowers aren’t as colorful and pretty as exotics? Think again. Here are just 5 (and it was hard to choose!) of the most beautiful native Vermont flowers to grace your garden with this spring:

White Turtlehead (Chelone glabra)

The post The Beauty of Native Wildflowers appeared first on Nature Blog.

Red-humped Oakworm Moth by Kyle Jones.

Isabella Tiger Moth by Erika Mitchell.

Hickory Tussock Moth by Susan Elliott

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail by Grae O’Toole.

Monarch by Judy Welna

The post What’s That Caterpillar? appeared first on Nature Blog.