Author Archives: Rosemary

About Rosemary

Who: Naturalist and salamander enthusiast from Canada. Likes: Learning new ferns. Favorite part of the job: Hanging out with other people who like nature!

Your Backyard Birds Count

© Susumu Kishihara

© Susumu Kishihara

Want to become a part of something big for birds? Join the Great Backyard Bird Count on February 13-16!

Mass Audubon has a long history of partnering with friends and members to collect backyard bird sightings. Massachusetts residents have been sending us their observations for over 40 years, and this vital information helps us understand and protect birds in our state.

This year we’re embarking on an alternative to our independent backyard bird count, Focus on Feeders. Instead, we’re joining forces with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Great Backyard Bird Count, one of the largest citizen science projects in the world.

Joining in is easy. During this annual four-day event, count birds on one or more days and report your sightings online at birdcount.org. Everyone’s welcome, from beginners to experts. It’s a lot of fun, and it helps all of us protect birds and ultimately our shared environment.

Of course, we still love hearing about (and seeing photos of) your sightings anytime of the year. Share them on our Facebook page or  report specific species using one of our reporting tools.

Take 5: Splendid Swarms

When animals gather in large groups, they form fascinating patterns. This fact hasn’t escaped our Photo Contest participants. Here are five of our favorite images of wildlife en masse.

Tree and Bank Swallows, 2014 Photo Contest Entry © Anna Jarosinski

Tree and bank swallows, 2014 Photo Contest entry © Anna Jarosinski

Stacked Image of Firefly Trails, 2014 Photo Contest Entry © Jonathan McElvery

Stacked Image of Firefly Trails, 2014 Photo Contest Entry © Jonathan McElvery

Snow Buntings, 2014 Photo Contest Entry © Anne Greene

Snow bunting flock, 2014 Photo Contest entry © Anne Greene

Group of 500 Gray Seals, 2013 Photo Contest Entry © Nancy Bloom

Group of 500 Gray Seals, 2013 Photo Contest Entry © Nancy Bloom

Herring Run, 2013 Photo Contest Entry © Hardie Truesdale

Herring run, 2013 Photo Contest entry © Hardie Truesdale