Milly is super excited to get out on the sanctuary to see how spring is springing. Owen and Milly have seen dozens of spotted salamanders in our vernal pool. They have also seen wood ducks, mallards, and wood frogs too!
As the vernal pool thaw, Milly is gearing up to start searching for spotted salamanders and wood frogs. Look for Milly at the Vernal Pool tomorrow.
Although it remains mysterious to science how nature calms and restores our brain, it never ceases to amaze me how a brief respite walking through a garden to watch seedlings emerge after a long winter or sauntering through a woodland and hearing the songbirds sing for the first time in many months revitalizes the spirit.
Besides, when I am alone I can become invisible. I can sit
on the top of a dune as motionless as an uprise of weeds,
until the foxes run by unconcerned. I can hear the almost
unhearable sound of the roses singing.
― Mary Oliver, How I go to the Woods
The woods and meadows at the Museum of American Bird Art are alive with sounds, sights, and spirit of spring – renewal and rebirth.
The wood frogs and spotted salamanders have come and gone from the vernal pools, leaving tens of thousands of eggs that will soon hatch. The young tadpoles and salamander larvae that emerge are tenacious. In their struggle to survival and transform, their tiny bodies expend so much energy that the pond is constantly full of tiny ripples that are visible only when you slow down, look closely, and remain still. Oh, what joy these splendid little puddles in the woods bring after a long winter.
While the vernal pool awakes, it’s bounty will nurture the nearby woods and the Barred Owl eagerly watches and waits…
Our vernal pools have been bursting with life this spring. Spotted salamanders and wood frogs have migrated into our vernal pools in the last week or two.
Wood frog in our main vernal pool calling and looking for mates.
Last week, I placed a trail camera on the edge of the vernal pool trying to record spotted salamanders visiting the pool during big night, which is the night – usually after or during a rainfall – that most salamanders migrate to the vernal pool to mate and lay eggs. I didn’t capture any video of the spotted salamanders, but I was able to photograph spotted salamanders in the pool the following morning.
The trail camera did pick up some really really exciting activity, a pair wood ducks on April 2 and April 3 using the vernal pool and checking out the wood duck. Enjoy the videos. I really love the one from 4:50 am on April 3 because of all the beautiful bird songs, fog, and serene sense of solitude that dawn always brings in the spring.
Wood Ducks on April 3, 2018
Wood Ducks on April 2, 2018
To learn or sign up for our spring homeschool classes, click here.
In an environment infused with science, nature, and art, our homeschool classes are exciting and filled with laughter and fun. Each class is thoughtfully designed to foster confidence, awareness, and curiosity for the natural world, science, and art. Homeschool classes are designed by Sean Kent, a dedicated field biologist, curious naturalist, accomplished photographer, and passionate science educator with has been teaching science for 15 years. Furthermore, he has conducted ecological research in Massachusetts, Arizona, and Belize on native bees, the monarch butterfly, interactions between plants and animals and much more. This spring we are offering classes in field biology, nature journaling, and photography, including a build your own camera digital photography course.
This spring we will be offering
To learn or sign up for our spring homeschool classes, click here.
Check out these pictures of homeschool students actively involved with conducting research and setting up our experimental native plant meadow.
Check out a few photos of homeschool students closely observing wildlife
Check out a few pictures of homeschool students sketching and observing nature closely in the field
Check out a few of the animals and plants that have been observed over the past year in our wildlife sanctuary
To learn or sign up for our spring homeschool classes, click here.