News & Nature Journal › Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center

Living With Wildlife

Meadow voles, though likely the most abundant mammal around, are not well-known. Many people have never seen one. They thrive in grassy places where they maintain runways and reproduce prodigiously. Also called meadow mice, meadow voles can be a bit larger than true mice. They have smaller eyes and ears […]

Woodchucks, Groundhogs, Whistlepigs

Living With Wildlife

When woodchucks live nearby, you may need to solve two kinds of problems: they will often raid gardens, and their burrow systems can be large enough to threaten old stone foundations. Here are some suggestions from the Humane Societyof the United States for encouraging woodchucks to relocate, keeping in mind that female […]

Living With Wildlife

Squirrels are industrious, acrobatic tree farmers. They can be noisy, gnawing tenants if they move into our homes and they annoy the heck out of some feeders of birds. In the latter case, you may save yourself a great deal of frustration by becoming a squirrel watcher. Watch this video […]

Living With Wildlife

These docile little stinkers love nothing more than digging up grubs and other insects. They might be responsible for little digging divots in your lawn. If these annoy you, push the grass back over with your toe. If they frequent your yard and you have a foolhardy dog, give a […]

Living With Wildlife

Raccoons have an astonishingly acute sense of touch that is enhanced when their paws are wet; when they are “washing” their food, they can feel it better. Enjoy this short AnimalLogic video to learn more about the challenges involved in outsmarting raccoons. Conflicts with raccoons take a several forms: raiding […]

Living With Wildlife

There are two types of mice that move into our houses: house mice are a non-native species and they are more likely to be found in densely settled areas. Two species of native mice also move readily into houses. Deer mice and white footed mice are in the same genus […]

Living With Wildlife

Two fox species live in our region, the red fox and the gray fox. Although there is wide variation in the color of red foxes, the two species can be reliably distinguished by the color of their legs and the tips of their tails, even Red foxes always have black […]

Living With Wildlife

The Elusive Deer-proof Garden? It doesn’t exist, according to Marne A. Titchenell, as interviewed by Margaret Roach for the NYT Garden section on May 5, 2021. Don’t despair, though, there are still plenty of things you can do to minimize damage. This chapter from the Humane Society of the United States publication, Wild Neighbors: The Humane […]

Living With Wildlife

These remarkable keystone animals create habitat for many other species. Because they do so by cutting trees and making ponds, their activities are not always compatible with human land uses. Fortunately, solutions for nearly all beaver problems are available. We are fortunate to have a great resource in our region; […]

Living With Wildlife

We all love seeing bears, but bears that become accustomed to finding food near people can become nuisance animals, and sometimes end up being shot. Bears that become accustomed to foraging near houses will teach their cub the same habits, and they will lose the ability to survive as wild […]

Living With Wildlife

Big Brown Bats (and the very endangered Little Brown Bats) sometimes form large maternity colonies in attics and outbuildings. Because of White-nose Syndrome, these bats need all of the help they can get. The Vermont Department of Fish & Wildlife has resources available to help you learn more about our bats, including […]

Living with Wildlife

As there are more and more people, with our buildings, infrastructure, and claims on resources, there are fewer places for wildlife to exist in peace, and more opportunities for conflict. We encourage you to look for ways to minimize your impact on wildlife, enhance the habitat around your home, and […]

Pollinator Resources

Who are our pollinators and why are they important? Many different animals pollinate plants, such as birds, bats, butterflies, moths, flies, beetles and BEES! Bees are responsible for pollinating most of the worlds flowering plants and animal-pollinated foods. Scientists estimate as many as 90% of flowering plants rely on insects […]

Find a Salamander Crossing

Click here to see a large map. Zoom in for details. Click on a salamander to learn more about the site. We recommend limiting driving on crossing nights, so choose a site near you, or be prepared to arrive early and to drive slowly on your way home. The sites with […]

In Memory of Deb Smith

On the morning of October 9, 2009, BEEC lost one of its greatest teachers, and this world one of its most vibrant, generous women. Through her work at BEEC Deb brought joy to many; she touched the lives and spirits of countless area youth and teachers. Deb began working for […]

2025 Summer Camp Themes

Creep, Crawl, and Leap: Blending imagination and discovery, we will discover and become creatures that creep, crawl and leap, including arthropods, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, centaurs, unicorns and more. Flit, Flutter, and Fly: Blending imagination and discovery, we will discover and become creatures that flit, flutter and fly, including insects, birds, […]

Story of the Land

Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center (BEEC) is located within the homelands of the Abenaki people, who have lived here for thousands of years. We express gratitude for the example of their ongoing reciprocal relationships with the Land. The story of this land can be traced back 350 million years to a […]

Nettles the Porcupette

Wildlife Rehabilitation

This newborn porcupette (yup, that’s what they’re called) was grabbed by a dog. Mama did not come for her, so Nettles is in our care. Mid-May is porcupine birthing time. Their gestation is seven months. What you see above is what they look like when they’re born. Porcupines have just […]

Lucky the Possum

Wildlife Rehabilitation

Lucky, a senior opossum, around 2.5 to 3 years old, came into Ruth’s care late this summer, severely underweight and with an already healing broken leg. After the leg was fully healed, she was still underweight so Ruth planned to overwinter her and release her in the spring. On November […]

Opossum Winter Guests

Wildlife Rehabilitation

It’s the slow season. In mid-January, the three little opossums that arrived in October are enjoying a winter of ease and luxury. Who says opossums are homely?

Salamandar Crossing Forecast: Sat. April 26

Salamandar Forecast

Saturday, April 26: rain in the morning and late afternoon could get the late amphibians moving. How many amphibians still need to cross? That is an unknown. There has been some rain in the wee hours so it is possible that most amphibians have made it to the pools and that […]