Outdoor Radio

Many people don't think about insects, like dragonflies, as migratory. Most of Vermont's 101 dragonfly species stay through the winter but the Wandering Glider leaves with the changing of the season. This species can be found on every continent, except Antartica. In England they are called "Wandering Globetrotters."

You can call them clams or mussels, the names are interchangable, but they should also be called endangered. Here in Vermont there are eighteen separate species of freshwater mussels and of those, ten are listed as threatened or endangered while several others are considered rare.

Which bird's song is a burst of tweets and twitters that sound like R2D2 from "Star Wars" movie fame? It is the bobolink and after wintering in Argentina, these small, songful birds have returned to nest in Vermont's high grasses.

Biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra head out to West Haven, Vermont at dusk to brave a cloud of mosquitoes in search of the song of the threatened whip-poor-will.

Outdoor Radio usually takes us to a mountain top,  pond or forest to get close to wildlife. But this month, biologists Sara Zahendra and Kent McFarland are on top of an office building in Montpelier. For the past several years, National Life employees have been able to watch turkey vultures out their windows. The birds are drawn to the rooftop for warmth and show off their huge wingspan soaring around the building. We learn how to identify turkey vultures from other big birds and how it is that they can eat roadkill and not get sick.

We are awed by the size, beauty and power of the bald eagle but Ben Franklin described it as a bird of "bad moral character. He doesn't get his living honestly and besides, he is a rank coward."

Sarah Zahendra and Kent McFarland from the Vermont Center for Ecostudies recently trekked through deep snow near Maidstone Lake in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom to find out more about Alces americanus, or moose, in our region.

Joining them on the journey was Jake Debow, a researcher working on an extensive cooperative project with Vermont Fish And Wildlife and the University of Vermont.

As cold as it might get in Vermont, it's warm here to the snowy owl. They spend their summers in the Arctic Tundra. These are large owls, with a wingspan of five feet and striking yellow eyes. Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra, of the Vermont Center For Ecostudies, went in search of a snowy owl at the Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area in Addison. We learn why it's a good year for spotting them in Vermont and what to do if you see one.

Find more info, video and photos at the links below:

Gulls are found on every continent on the planet. They're smart, resourceful, and graceful - but don't call them sea gulls! There are inland species, even some that live in the desert. Biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra of the Vermont Center For Ecostudies, are joined by birder, Bryan Pfeiffer at Grow Compost in Waterbury. Hundreds of gulls (and other birds) hang out amid this huge expanse of compost enjoying an endless feast.

See more photos and learn about gulls in Vermont at the links below:

Biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra traveled by snowmobile into the wilderness of the Northeast Kingdom in hopes of spotting a Canada lynx or lynx tracks.

This month on Outdoor Radio, biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra of the Vermont Center for Ecostudies head out into the woods to track the Fisher. Sometimes called the Fisher Cat, it's not a cat at all. Biologist Steve Faccio, who specializes in Fishers, joins McFarland and Zahendra to dispel some myths about Fishers and offer tips on how to track them.

In this episode of Outdoor Radio, biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra are way up in the Northeast Kingdom at Moose Bog in Ferdinand.

With a pointed snout, knobby protrusions, and a flat, leathery shell, the Spiny Softshell Turtle is certainly one of Vermont's odder-looking reptiles. It is also listed as threatened in our state. Steve Parren of the Vermont Fish And Wildlife Department joins Sara Zahendra and Kent McFarland to talk about the Spiny Softshell's biology, habitat and some of the threats faced by Vermont's only aquatic turtle.

The Vermont Center For Ecostudies reported a record year for Vermont's loons in 2017, and part of the success story happened on Lake Fairlee, where a pair of loons nested for the second consecutive year. Biologists Kent McFarland, Sara Zahendra and Eric Hanson headed out in canoes to take a look at the nesting sites.

This month on Outdoor Radio, we’ll venture out into a meadow of wild flowers that is literally singing with bumble bees. Biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra talk about the species we find in Vermont, the different ways they pollinate our flowers and crops, and the environmental factors that are threatening their population.

Hard hats in hand, Biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra head to the docks at Lake Champlain. They are taking a boat to Papasquash Island, owned by Audubon Vermont, to help count the new breeding population of common terns.

The arrival of the American Woodcock is one of the exciting signs of spring in Vermont.

Crows are the stuff of movies, mysteries and dark lore. They are also smart, gregarious birds with fascinating habits including a gathering called the winter roost when thousands of crows group together late in the day.

Biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra visited a deer reporting station in Barre during Youth Hunting Weekend. They talked with biologist John Buck of the Vermont Fish And Game Department about how the state manages the deer herd and the role that deer play in Vermont's ecosystem. 

Beavers are often thought to be a nuisance, but they also make positive contributions to the environment.