- Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) - Pileated woodpeckers aren't picky about where they live! They are found in coniferous, deciduous, and mixed forests. Although they are more common in old growth forests, they can also thrive in younger forests that contain one or two trees large enough for breeding. With such vauge guidelines, it wouldn't be surprising if there were any pileated woodpeckers on our site! (Photo: forums.att.com)
- Fisher (Martes pennati) - Contrary to the name, Fishers do not eat fish. They will willingly eat most anything they can find and catch. This includes birds, insects, amphibians, rodents, reptiles, fruits, nots, and the occasional porcupine. Fishers can be found most anywhere prey is abundant, which is most often in uneven aged c
oniferous stands. Not only do the conifers house lots of potential prey, they prevent snow from accumulating under the trees, which would severly limit the Fisher's movement in winter. Fishers nest in snags and fallen trees, both of which were somewhat common on our plot. However, our forest cover was far to spread out to provide the cover the Fisher needs in winter. (Photo: ecologyadventure2.edublogs.org)
- Red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus) - Red-backed s
alamanders are one of the three 'delicate' salamanders found in Vermont. They are also entirely terrestrial, unlike many other species of salamanders. Red-backs have reddish backs with darker sides, and flecked grey and white bellies. They are found in damp areas under leaf litter and coarse woody debris. Our plot, with its abundant seeps and vernal pools is certainly moist enough for the salamanders - and may even be too wet in some areas. (Photo: salamandersinniagara.comoj.com)
- Porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) - Porcupines are most known for the quills that cover their body. They are medium sized and brown or black in color. The animal has very poor eyesight, and mostly relies on its hearing and quills to avoid confrontation. The quills are barbed, making them impossible to remove and therefore their best defense mechanism against stronger animals. Porcupines are herbivores and frequent deciduous forests in search of food. Their biggest predator is a fisher, who is agile enough to stay away from their quills. Porcupines will build nests in dens, hollow logs, or downed trees. Populations of porcupines are very common in Vermont and also extremely stable. Our site could very well be prime porcupine habitat. (Photo: nhptv.org)
- Eastern Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) - Wild Turkeys prefer a habitat of hardwood and mixed forests. They are very widespread in deciduous forests. Turkeys have extremely good eyesight, making it hard for predators to sneak up on them. They communicate with vocalization. Wild turkeys need a lot of protein, and mostly eat insects, seeds, nuts, berries, plants, moss, and buds off of trees. The Champlain Valley is an excellent Wild Turkey habitat because it includes hardwood stands, open fields, tall grass, and shrubs. Our site is mixed northern hardwood, although we lack any more open areas. However, the shagbark hickories make our site prime feeding grounds for these large birds. (Photo: vtfishandwildlife.com)
- White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) - Deers are completely vegetarian, eating mostly leaves, twigs, and nuts. Their favorite trees are maple, ash and birch. They also like to eat fruit and nuts. White-tailed deer occupy many different habitats. They prefer t
he forest edge, with large fields. In winter, deer move to what are called 'deer yards,' dense coniferous stands with more protection from the wind and snow. Deer are found in all of Vermont. Although our plot has some of the tree species prefered by deer, it lacks the wide open areas necessary for grazing, as well as their preferred winter habitat. (Photo: vtfishandwildlife.com)
- European Earthworm (Lumbricus rubellus) - Earthworms are common in our plot at Niquette Bay State Park. Since worms go into diapause (dormancy) when the pH is around 6.4, they prefer slightly acidic soils, which was what our soils tested as. Earthworms are an important food for many different animals, including many that inhabit our site such as birds, snakes, salamanders and invertebrates. Although many people think of earthworms as a good thing for the soils in an ecosystem, they are invasive and can have negative effects where they are found.
- Barred Owl (Strix varia) - The Barred Owl is an important predat
or in Vermont. Feeding on small rodents, these birds often wait in a perch and drop on their prey when they pass beneath them. It prefers dense mature forests for habitat, and nests in large tree cavities or other large nests made by other species. On our plot, we have the large mature forests, but we lack very many trees with cavities large enough to house a Barred Owl. This limits the possibility of having these birds in the first place. (Photo: wikipedia.org)
- Emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis)- The emerald ash borer
is an invasive species, native to Asia, that has been responsible for the destruction of millions of ash trees (Fraxinus sp.). Trees greater than 2 inches in diameter can become infested, both in forested and landscaped areas. While many trees affected by borers are stressed or diseased, they will also infect healthy trees. At our site, we have some ashes, but they are mainly seedlings - smaller than trees the borer would normally infect. Infected trees exhibit top-down dieback, and 2-4 inch vertical splits in the bark in response to larval feeding. We did not see evidence of ash borers on our site. The emerald ash borer may not be present in our site yet, we are somewhat succeptible to the insect.
(Photo: USDA Forest Service, retrieved from www.emeraldashborer.info)
- Brown Snake (Storeria dekayi)-Brown snakes are highly adaptable reptiles that can
survive in a large range of habitat. They like wetland swampy areas and hide under leaf litter and logs. Our site seems to have favorable features, such as the seeps and vernal pools that are found across the hectare. Also, the large amount of downed wood would provide good cover for the snake. (Photo by Denise Demoid)
- Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea)
This colorful neotropical migrant breeds in mature deciduous and mixed deciduous/coniferous woodlands. The canopy of our site is characterized with deciduous trees such as hickories, maples, beeches, and some oaks. There is also the occasional hemlock and white pine creating part of the canopy. This mix suggests that our site is very well suited breeding habitat for scarlet tanagers.(Photo: http://justofftheonelaneroad.blogspot.com/2011_04_01_archive.html)- Chestnut-sided Warbler (Dendroica pensylvanica)
The chestnut-sided warblers visit north america during the breeding season, and when winter arrives they migrate to south america where its warm and sunny.
They like forested or shrubby habitats and need a highly specialized habitat for breeding, confined to early-successional deciduous forests ranging from wet to dry sites. Our hectare, while having both wet and dry areas, as well as a lot of understory growth, is not early successional forest, limiting it as habitat for the little traveler.(Photo source: http://www.ownbyphotography.com/traveldiaryp60.html) 
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