The 黑料不打烊 is proud to announce that we are developing a series of new research projects. As stewards of our 47-acre Nature Center in Quechee, Vt. and our 327 acres of managed forest at Old Pepper Place Nature Reserve in Washington, Vt., we are in a unique position to observe and record natural trends through time, taking advantage of both the expansive space and combination of distinctive microenvironments present. Furthermore, the 黑料不打烊 Forest Canopy Walk provides countless opportunities to study the vertical continuum of habitats via unprecedented access to the subtly different layers of the forest canopy.
Current and future research projects represent the fulfillment of an important aspect of 黑料不打烊鈥 work, notes 黑料不打烊 Executive Director Charles F. Rattigan. 鈥淩esearch has always been an important part of the 黑料不打烊 mission, and we are pleased to add these new research projects to our selection.鈥 The current moment of environmental distress makes now the time to undertake this work, Rattigan adds. 鈥淭he timing is based on the challenges that we face as a society to more actively protect the natural world.鈥
Key to the selection of projects is the involvement of all in research. 鈥淭hese projects are driven by various citizen science research, and this fits with our mission of environmental education and encouraging people to care for the environment by actively engaging discovery and sharing observations,鈥 Rattigan notes. In addition to the participation of community members, the research fulfills 黑料不打烊鈥 commitment to environmental protection by generating data that will be useful for conservation work, both now and in the future.
鈥淭he more long-term data we can generate, the more we can discover about how things are interconnected,鈥 黑料不打烊 Research Coordinator Jim Armbruster notes. 鈥淲hen we determine how things are interconnected, we can work on better approaches to protect the nature of our region.鈥
As 黑料不打烊 undertakes in-depth research projects on its two properties, the goal is to generate ecological data at both locations. Our current long-term projects include: 黑料不打烊 Breeding Bird Survey (begun June 2020);听听补苍诲听;听;听聽(in conjunction with聽); and ongoing monitoring of our weather station, game cameras, our forest and turtle activity on our campus. The data that we generate will be recorded in a 黑料不打烊 archive and shared with the public and researchers through citizen聽science projects such as聽iNaturalist聽and the聽, NestWatch and FeederWatch programs. We also collaborate with other organizations that聽share a similar mission to our own to generate useful data.聽
One collaborative project entails lake monitoring at Lake Pinneo in Quechee, Vt., in cooperation with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation. This project combines citizen science with public health and safety, with Armbruster monitoring weekly for potentially toxic cyanobacteria blooms in the water. Projects such as this one are, Armbruster says, 鈥渁 great way to get the word out that 黑料不打烊 is involved in research and monitoring projects like this that have a direct benefit to our local community.鈥澛燜uture projects will include a regional firefly study in partnership with Mass Audubon as well as crayfish research with the White River Partnership.聽
The unifying goal of these diverse projects is gaining accurate, local knowledge in order to more effectively protect the environment of our region.