The Vermont Center For Ecostudies Inc

THE VERMONT CENTER FOR ECOSTUDIES ADVANCES THE CONSERVATION OF WILDLIFE ACROSS THE AMERICAS THROUGH RESEARCH, MONITORING AND CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT.

SUSTAIN THE HEALTH OF NORTHEASTERN ECOSYSTEMS- THE ECOREGION THAT STRETCHES FROM NEW YORK'S CATSKILL MOUNTAINS AND MASSACHUSETTS'S BERKSHIRES TO THE GASPE PENINSULA OF QUEBEC IS UNIQUELY AT RISK. HOME TO ALMOST 5.5 MILLION PEOPLE AND WITHIN A DAY'S DRIVE FROM 70 MILLION MORE, THE REGION'S HEART IS THE RUGGED AND ANCIENT APPALACHIAN MOUNTAIN RANGE, FLANKED BY AN ECOLOGICALLY RICH WEB OF TERRESTRIAL AND AQUATIC NATURAL COMMUNITIES. VCE'S WILDLIFE RESEARCH AND MONITORING WITHIN THE EXPANSIVE AREA CROSSES INTERNATIONAL, STATE, AND PROVINCIAL BOUNDARIES TO FOCUS ON THREE DISCRETE ECOSYSTEMS OF CONSERVATION CONCERN;MOUNTAINS, GRASSLANDS, AND FORESTS. OUR OVERARCHING GOAL FOR NORTHEASTERN ECOSYSTEMS IS TO GALVANIZE AND COORDINATE COLLABORATIVE,SCIENCE-BASED CONSERVATION ACTIONS TO PROTECT WILDLIFE AND THEIR ECOSYSTEMS.

PROTECT VITAL CARIBBEAN HABITATS- SOME 120 SPECIES OF NORTH AMERICAN BREEDING BIRDS MIGRATE ANNUALLY TO THE ISLANDS OF THE CARIBBEAN, WHICH HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS AMONG THE TOP "HOTSPOTS" FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION WORLDWIDE. YET, BURGEONING HUMAN POPULATIONS AND THEIR ATTENDANT DEMAND FOR NATURAL RESOURCES HAVE DEVASTATED MONTANE FORESTS - THE REGION'S MOST HIGHLY THREATENED TERRESTRIAL HABITAT. THESE FORESTS PROVIDE CRITICAL WINTER HABITAT FOR BICKNELL'S THRUSH, ONE OF NORTH AMERICA'S HIGHEST CONSERVATION PRIORITY MIGRANT BIRDS. EFFORTS AIMED AT LONG-TERM BICKNELL'S THRUSH CONSERVATION INCLUDE HABITAT AND BIRD POPULATION MODELING AND MONITORING, BUILDING LOCAL AWARENESS OF CONSERVATION ISSUES, AND CAPACITY BUILDING AND COLLABORATION WITH LOCAL CONSERVATION ORGANIZATIONS.

EDUCATION AND OUTREACH - EDUCATIONAL TALKS, PRESENTATIONS AND EVENTS TO THE COMMUNITY AND ENGAGEMENT WITH OUR COMMUNITY SCIENTISTS THAT VOLUNTEER ON OUR DIRECT AND CROWD SOURCED PROJECTS. OUTREACH ACTIVITIES INCLUDE INVITED TALKS, PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS, ENGAGEMENT OF VOLUNTEERS IN COMMUNITY SCIENCE PROJECTS, AND DISSEMINATION OF EDUCATIONAL CONTENT THROUGH PRINT, RADIO, AND DIGITAL MEDIA.

MAP BIODIVERSITY FOR CONSERVATION- WITH MANY ECOSYSTEMS UNDERGOING UNPRECEDENTED CHANGE AS A RESULT OF HUMAN ACTIVITY, OUR MAPPINGBIODIVERSITY FOR CONSERVATION PROGRAM PROVIDES KEY INFORMATION FOR CONSERVATION. MANY HABITATS HAVE EXPERIENCED SEVERE LOSS, DEGRADATION OR FRAGMENTATION, AND INTRODUCTION OF EXOTIC SPECIES HAS TRANSFORMED OTHERS, CAUSING DECLINES OR EXTINCTIONS OF NATIVE WILDLIFE. ANTHROPOGENIC CLIMATE CHANGE NOW THREATENS TO REDRAW THE GEOGRAPHIC MAP OF BIOTIC DIVERSITY. STUDIES OF THE DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS AND PLANTS AS A MEANS TO ADVANCE CONSERVATION, TERMED "CONSERVATION BIOGEOGRAPHY," USE THE CONCEPTUAL TOOLS AND METHODS OF BIOGEOGRAPHY TO ADDRESS REAL WORLD CONSERVATION PROBLEMS. RESULTS PROVIDE PREDICTIONS ABOUT THE FATE OF KEY SPECIES AND ECOSYSTEMS, NOW AND FAR INTO THE FUTURE.