About Citizen Science

Citizen Science is a partnership between scientists and the broader community. It allows the every-day person to participate in fun and exciting research projects, and to experience the natural world in a new way. It allows the scientist to enlist a small, or in some cases, a large army of volunteers to help collect data that wouldn't be possible without the help of the community. North Branch Nature Center engages in a number of Citizen Science projects, on a local, regional, and national scale. See below for details about how to get involved in Citizen Science through NBNC.

Citizen Science Through the Seasons

Winter

• Christmas Bird Count
• Great Backyard Bird Count
• Vermont eBird

Spring

• Amphibian Monitoring Program
• Peregrine Monitoring
• Chervil Rangers
• Bumble Bee Nest Survey
• Vermont eBird

Summer

• Peregrine Monitoring
• Chervil Rangers
• NABA Butterfly Count
• Bumble Bee Nest Survey
• Montpelier BioBlitz
• Vermont eBird

Fall

• Monarch Tagging
• Bumble Bee Nest Survey
• Vermont eBird

Christmas Bird Count (CBC)

The CBC is a nation-wide citizen science project of the Audubon Society which has just completed its 108th year of operation. Director Chip Darmstadt now compiles the Plainfield CBC, in which North Branch staff and members have participated for many years. The CBC takes place between December 14 and January 5 every year.

Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC)

The GBBC is another nation-wide project, and is a joint project of the Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. This event takes place over an extended weekend in February. NBNC has participated in this event with a teen birding trip.

Amphibian Monitoring Program (AMP)

The AMP is a project of the North Branch Nature Center which seeks to monitor amphibians as they cross roads on their annual spring migration. Data is pooled with a like-minded organization, Save the Salamanders, and is also submitted to our state herpetologist for analysis.

Peregrine Monitoring

The Peregrine Falcon has made an amazing rebound over the past few dacades, after being all but whiped out from the east coast. This program, coordinated by the National Wildlife Federation and the Vermont Department Fish and Wildlife, seeks to monitor Vermont's Peregrine Falcon population. NBNC will be monitoring a site at Marshfield Cliffs, and are happy to bring groups along.

Chervil Rangers

Wild Chervil is a fairly recent, and unwelcomed, arrival to the state of Vermont. By joining the Chervil Rangers, a project of the North Branch Nature Center, you can help control this invasive species, and prevent it from displacing native species. Please download a sign up sheet to learn more about becoming an NBNC Chervil Ranger!

Bumble Bee Nest Survey

There is currently no database for bumble bee nest site preferences in North America , and this information would be valuable for conservation efforts. Athena Anderson, a doctoral student at the University of Georgia, has designed a simple survey that anyone can fill out should they find a bumble bee nest. Should you stumble upon a Bumble Bee nest, please help this research effort by completing an online survey.

NABA Butterfly Count

This annual butterfly count, an on-going, nationwide project of the North American Butterfly Association (NABA), is an event in which participants census all the butteflies they can find within a given search area. Members of the public of any experience level are invited to join NBNC staff at this event.

Montpelier BioBlitz

The Montpelier BioBlitz took place on July 11 & 12, 2008 and nearly 200 scientists descended on Montpelier for a 24-hour inventory of all living things. Please visit the BioBlitz website for more information and results.

Monarch Tagging

Monarch Watch, a project of the Kansas Biological Survey, University of Kansas, tags Monarch butterflies as they migrate to Mexico to overwinter. For several years we have been tagging butterflies at the Nature Cener, and last fall, invited the public to join in this effort.

Vermont eBird

Vermont eBird is a statewide portal of an international database that collects bird observations from scientists and lay people alike. Launched in 2002 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society, eBird provides rich data sources for basic information on bird abundance and distribution at a variety of spatial and temporal scales. By compiling the collective observations of thousands of people, eBird provides scientists with valuable data to study and birders everywhere with both a listing tool and the power to view the observations of other eBirders around the state.

Great Backyard Bird Count (youth program)
Sunday, February 15, time TBD       
Fee: free
Our time and location is flexible and will be decided based on the desires of all who wish to attend.  The point of the day will be to gather observations to submit to this nation-wide citizen science project. Please email Larry if you wish to participate and let him know your prefered time/location.

Amphibian Monitoring Program Training Session
See dates below
Fee: Free
For the sixth year, NBNC will host trainings around Vermont to educate communities about a little-known mass migration that takes place each spring in which thousands of amphibians flock from their wintering sites in forest uplands to vernal pools and other wetlands to breed. It’s spring fever for amphibians! But these creatures need help getting across roads that lead to high mortality. Come to one of our trainings and learn how you can be part of this volunteer effort. No registration necessary.
    Wednesday, March 10, 6:30pm - South Hero     Community Library, South Hero, VT
    Tuesday, March 30, 6:30pm - North Branch Nature     Center, Montpelier, VT
    Wednesday, March 31, 6:30pm - General Wait House,     4061 Main St., Waitsfield, VT

Vermont Vernal Pool Mapping Project Training Workshop
Thursday April 29, 5pm-8pm,
Fee: Free
The Vermont Center for Ecostudies and Arrowwood Environmental, in partnership with NBNC, will host this training session for people interested in volunteering with the statewide Vernal Pool Mapping Project.  VCE biologist Steve Faccio and Arrowwood ecologist Michael Lew-Smith will start the evening off with a brief  introduction to vernal pools: What they are, how to recognize them, why they're important, and why we need to map them.  They will also discuss the mapping project and how volunteers can get involved.  The group will then venture outdoors to visit an active vernal pool during the height of the amphibian breeding season, and review field protocols for the Vernal Pool Mapping Project.