BioBlitz project charts wildlife at Merck Forest

BY MICHAEL MAWSON Manchester Journal

RUPERT — Naturalists and citizen scientists alike explored Merck Forest & Farmland Center (MFFC) over the weekend.

A biodiversity project called BioBlitz, which lasted all of Saturday and Sunday, brought nature lovers to the forest to chart what lives in and on the 3,200 acre property.

Tim Duclos, the conservation manager at MFFC, has made the process of tracking wildlife on the property as simple as using an app on a smartphone.

“You can come with the inaturalist app on your phone, and then while you use the app on the property, I’ve got it set up so it automatically adds your observations to the project,” Duclos said.

Inaturalist is a social network for naturalists and citizen scientists. It is both a website and an app, and allows people to share and chart their observations of what they find in the wild. According to their website, inaturalist.org, they have over three million users.

The findings at MFFC range from common species such as a green frog, to animals that are threatened in the state, like the Jefferson salamander.

Nathaniel Sharp, a data technician at the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, was one participant of the BioBlitz. Sharp, a West Fairlee resident, also participated in last years BioBlitz at MFFC.

Sharp is MFFC’s top identifier on inaturalist, charting 226 identifications on the property. Sharp caught and released a number of different dragonfly species, including a shadow darner and a variable darner, during Saturday’s portion of the BioBlitz.

Using a net to capture the creatures, Sharp carefully grabbed them, photographed them to identify exactly what species they were, and then released them back into the wild.

Sharp explained when photographing a dragonfly, it is important to capture both the side and the back of the creature in order to show each species unique characteristics so it can be properly identified.

The data scientist was hap- py to be at MFFC charting wildlife.

“It’s fantastic, this is a gorgeous place to be,” Sharp said.

Sharp also identified a hornet fly, a creature disguised as a hornet to scare away potential predators. The fly looks almost identical to a hornet, minus the stinger.

Along with the BioBlitz, MFFC is collecting information through inaturalist year-round. To date, the site has tracked 2,319 observations and 726 unique species from 419 different identifiers.

Madison Alderman of Rutland was alongside Sharp during the BioBlitz.

Alderman, who graduated from Castleton University with a degree in biology, said she has been interested in nature as long as she can remember.

“I have always been into nature, we had woods in our backyard,” Alderman said. “So I’ve always been out in the woods, I’ve always cared about animals.”

Those who may not have a smartphone are also welcome to participate in the BioBlitz. Duclos said participants can take photos and notes of your observations and upload them later on inaturalist.org.

This was MFFC’s second annual BioBlitz. Last year, the event was held on July 27. Holding the event during different times of the year allows participants to be introduced to different species. MFFC also held a BioBlitz in 2011.

Sharp wants people to know that although identifying wildlife can seem overwhelming to some, with the right tools in place anybody can do it.

“With inaturalist, you can take photos and post them and you have a whole community of naturalists that are able to look at those photos and help you out with the identification,” Sharp said.

FROM PAGE 1 use of the land more than a year ago: a new town hall facility.

The top ranked recommendations for municipal were community center or playground/greenspace; for housing, participants suggested a planned sustainable community or single unit housing; for recreation, the results were hiking or biking trails or leaving it as a natural area; and under the energy category, the top choices were smallscale solar or large-scale solar.

But there was one item at the top of most of the board’s list and that’s is the item that topped the wish list when the board first took up the potential

FROM PAGE 1 the bill has finally reached a compromise. The Senate version of the bill was first introduced in January 2019, when the current biennium started.

“It’s not perfect. There’s a lot of compromise, a lot of give and take on both sides to get to a place where we could reach agreement,” Sears said.

But Sears warned that even if the bill passes and becomes law, it’s just a start to a long process.

“I think it could be a really good location to put in a new building rather than fiddling with the old one that isn’t working so well,” said board chairwoman Megan Thorn.

Board member Henry Chandler agreed and said he sees a new town office being the core of what could become a town center type location.

The master plan included a map showing the potential uses for the land.

It was purely speculative but based on the survey results showed a community center and municipal offices building, new fire department facility, playground, athletic fields and community gardens with plenty of room for parking, green space and many acres remaining for potential housing and recreational trails.

One of the key stumbling blocks has been the insistence of Scott and some lawmakers upon a roadside saliva test as part of road safety enforcement. The House version of S.54 provided for a saliva test — but upon condition of police obtaining a warrant.

“Our current town offices are not adequate,” Chandler said. “It’s not big enough, not private enough. We need a larger building. This is a great opportunity because this is a property that is fairly well centered. I think we can get a larger building that suits our needs. It can become something like a core tenant for the other buildings up there that can really benefit Dorset.”

Chandler said the town offices is the biggest need.

“I think the first step is the town offices,” Chan-

D-Windham, said there are provisions in the compromise that are “clearly things that I would rather not be doing. But there. If we don’t, if we don’t get it started, there will be nothing to change. If we get it started, there is a potential for making changes in the next year.” dler said. “A really good town office that will serve us for the next 50 to 100 years. Let’s put our best foot forward.”

Chandler said he would be happy to work on pushing that vision forward as the town continues the work to determine what the town would want to pursue, which would require funding studies and input from the public.

Thorn tasked Chandler with that duty, working with Gaiotti, to bring forward ideas for the next meeting to start that process.

Board members were, overall, very happy with the work of the committee in getting the process to this point.

“It was a really good

Copyright � 2020 Manchester Journal. 09/18/2020

September 18, 2020 7:27 pm (GMT -4:00)

While a BioBlitz can run 24 hours or more, participants are not expected to use this whole period. What we find will be limited by the time of day and time of year

“No state has gone into this process that didn’t take at least a year and a half,” he said. “I expect Vermont will be the same but it does set us on that road.”

Since 2018, marijuana has been decriminalized for personal possession and use in Vermont, with limits of up to one ounce or two mature plants. But there remains no way to legally purchase

On Sept. 4, the state Senate conferees offered a compromise on saliva testing: They dropped their opposition to it in return for the House removing a provision that would make seat belt use a primary reason for a motor vehicle stop. It was one of several significant stumbling blocks cleared away in that session.

“Seat belts was a very important provision for the House. But part of working in a conference committee is working with members as you try to negotiate a compromise,” said state Rep John Gannon, D-Wilmington, who headed the House side of the panel. “That was a critical concession that

On the other hand, White is glad the bill will give some priorities to small growers, and will seek a means of restitution for impacts on communities that may have been more impacted by past drug laws, notably communities of color and low-income communities. And she is pleased that the medical marijuana program will be placed under the new cannabis board rather than the Department of Public Safety.

Gannon said he is thankful for Sears’ patience, as this was his first conference committee experience. He is also thankful that Southern Vermont lawmakers could come together on a regional process,” said board member Jim Salsgiver. “A lot of really good people put their thinking caps on. It highlights a number of opportunities.”

Board member Liz Ruffa said the committee provided opportunities for community engagement and the survey provided rich information despite planned events being canceled by COVID-19.

Thorn said the committee’s work has put the town in position to move forward.

“I think the committee did a great job,” Thorn said. “We now have a better idea of what’s possible and

Contact setts shops advertise in his local newspaper, and on Interstate 91 billboards just over the state line. Sears said he understands a legal marijuana shop in Williamstown, Mass., sees 20 percent of its business from just over the border.

It’s Gannon’s hope the bill will be a benefit to the state.

“As the House has been doing work on this bill, we have been very cautious to male sure important consumer protections are built in to this legislation,” he

“I have been on many conference committees in my career, and this was not easy,” Sears said. “This is a compromise that puts us on a path to a tax-and-regulate system. And I think it’s important to say it’s a start, not a finish.”

The conference committee also includes White and Joe Benning, R-Caledonia, as well as Reps. Janet Ancel, D-Calais, and Robert LaClair, R-Barre Town.

FROM PAGE 1