Vermont State Parks E-newsletter

While Park Rangers are working hard to get ready for summer in Vermont, many birds are working hard to make homes for their babies. Migratory birds have been returning to Vermont in the last couple months, and they are singing their beautiful songs throughout the forests and fields. One group of migratory birds you can see and hear in many Vermont State Parks are the thrushes.

American Robin

Thrushes are medium sized birds that sing beautiful songs. One common thrush is the American Robin, easy to recognize because of their red bellies. Robins are building nests in trees (and maybe even in lean-tos) across Vermont right now. The female robin builds a nest from the inside out-starting with dead grass and twigs woven into a cup shape. She then reinforces the nest with soft mud and lines the inside with soft grass. You can see robins hunting for worms in grassy areas of many parks including D.A.R. and Lake St. Catherine State Parks.

Many thrushes sing unique songs because they can sing more than one note at a time. Perhaps you have been camping near the brook at Little River or Brighton State Parks and heard a song of notes spiraling downward. This song, sounding sort of like "veer-y, veer-y, veer-y" in downward notes is from the Veery, a thrush that lives near stream areas. This brown bird, about the size of a Robin, is not flashy to look at, but the song it produces is amazing to hear. Right now, the veery is building a cup nest of dead leaves, bark bits, and small roots at the base of a tree near running water.

Hermit Thrush

The most beloved thrush in Vermont is the Hermit thrush. Although it was heavily debated by the 1941 Vermont legislature, the Hermit thrush was designated as the Vermont State Bird effective June 1, 1941. The main debate centered on the migratory nature of the Hermit thrush. Legislators questioned whether a state should recognize a bird that spends summers in Vermont and winters in the southern United States.

Hermit thrushes are brown forest birds about the size of robins with brown spots on their bellies. Just like the veery, the hermit thrush can sing more than one note at a time. You can hear the ethereal hermit thrush song in the morning and the evening in most Vermont woodlands. The song starts with a long single note, and then spirals upward. Listen for it while you eat dinner or breakfast on your next trip to any Vermont State Park, including Maidstone, Molly Stark, and Woodford State Parks. Hermit thrush nests are similar to veery nests, made of small twigs and roots and set on the ground at the base of trees. All three of these thrushes have light blue eggs, although veery eggs are sometimes spotted. Watch carefully for these nests during your next walk in the woods.

Veery

Just like migratory birds, we all want to return to our summer migratory spot-Vermont State Parks. During your next visit, take a moment to stop and listen in the forest, and you will not be disappointed in the symphony you hear.

Little River, Big Song

Migratory songbirds abound

by Brian Aust, Park Interpreter, Little River State Park

Spring is advancing rapidly in Little River State Park, so be sure

Northern Parula

not to miss it! All the migratory songbirds are back and singing up a storm as their breeding season is underway. In the vicinity of the History Hike parking lot, birders can easily hear their sweet songs and with a bit of persistence, locate more than twenty species including wood thrush, American redstarts, ovenbirds, ruby-throated hummingbirds, scarlet tanagers, least flycatchers, blackburnian warblers, chestnut-sided warblers, black-throated blue warbler, & black-throated green warbler. More elusive species, such as northern parulas, northern waterthrushes, veeries, and at least one yellow-throated vireo lurk in the foliage along the Nature Trail.

Pink lady's slipper

The late spring ephemerals are waning fast as the summer wildflowers are already starting to bloom a few weeks early. While purple trilliums, trout lilies and wild oats have mostly gone by, foamflowers are in full bloom along the Nature Trail as well as the occasional star flower and, if you look carefully, pink ladyslippers. Canada mayflowers and blue bead lilies are popping up. It's a great time of year for a walk in the woods!

There's MORE!...

The Nature Center opens on May 30th with guided hikes, paddling trips, and interpretive programs from June to September about the diverse natural history of the park and the 19th-century ruins of Little River Settlement.

Visit and try one of our nature programs:

WONDERFUL WATER CRITTERS! What do stream dwellers tell us about water quality?

EVENING BIRDS BY EAR: Why birds sing & what they tell us about where they live

A TREEmendous Tree

DISCOVERY HIKE: Meet the TREEmendous forest in search of the lost Little River Settlement. Easy to Moderate; wear sturdy footwear.

MAKING TRACKS: Meet your furbearing friends of Little River. Plaster of Paris supplied.

AQUAVENTURE! Explore Waterbury Reservoir looking for herons, kingfishers, Oscar the osprey, maybe a bald eagle.

Please register at the Contact Station. Programs are weather dependent - the Nature Center will be open if cancelled by rain)

STAYING FOUND. Get oriented to using a compass with a map.

Read more about Little River State Park and view trail maps too!

Nature Interpreters Return!

An educational program with a Nature Interpreter

This summer you can supplement a trip to your favorite state park with fun guided programs such as evening canoe paddles, stream explorations, and nature art activities; because, there will be ten Park Interpreters and ten Vermont Youth Conservation Corps Park Educators offering entertaining programs in parks across Vermont. This program is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Stimulus), and is a cooperative partnership between the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation, the US Forest Service, and the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps. Ask about the program schedule when you check in on your next visit, or visit the Vermont State Parks Events web page where we will posting program info.