Jericho & Underhill Life Search - Game on! How Naturalistic Observations in the Green Mountain State of Vermont Can Enhance Your Life.

JULS: Jericho / Underhill Life Search

Naturalistic Observations in Jericho and Underhill, Vermont 

Participate in JULS for fun, for science, and for competition.

See how to participate further below.

 

Will we look only to the planets in the sky for life or shall we look underfoot and aloft our heads for life at hand? ~Bernie

In celebration of Earth Day (April 22)

If I were to ask you for one or a few compelling reasons to observe insects and other wildlife, how would you answer in a few sentences?

   Every time I see an animal large or small it feels like an act of grace.  We share this planet with so much amazing life.  I’ve heard animals called “whispers of thought through forests of time.”  I feel so lucky every time I cross paths with a wild animal or see their tracks.  All animals are related. We can trace the branches of our family tree back to early life in an ancient ocean.  For some reason, that rocks my world.  Foxes and bobcats are mega-charismatic and have many fans. And I delight in them. I first fell in love with insects and arachnids over a microscope.  There is so much beauty in their tiny world.  Creatures like silver spiders with iridescent green spots amazed me.  Beauty too small to see with our naked eye abounds in the world and the connections between all life run the world. 

- Alicia Daniel, Master Naturalist UVM

   Observing insects is like sliding down Alice in Wonderland's rabbit hole. I often say that if insects were the size of elephants we would all be going around with our jaws on the ground in awe at the spectacular wonders of the artistic design, as well as the behaviors and lifestyles of insects that today, partly because of their size relative to ours, we hardly notice at all.

A zoo without bars: It is easier to get to know and enjoy species we still have than those that are extinct or diminished to the degree we rarely can find them. 

- Bernie Paquette, Seeking life through my lifelong motto: Stop, Look, and Listen.

   There is a whole world that most of us ignore right at our feet, in the backyard, at the park, in the forest…everywhere. There’s love, war, and even some rock and roll. It’s all going on around us unnoticed by the little things that rule the earth. Insects. Take a close look. Just sit and watch all that life unfolding. I did that one day and I’ve never been able to stop. 

- Kent McFarland, Conservation Biologist, Photographer, Writer, and Naturalist, VT Ctr. for EcoStudies

   I particularly enjoy observing the little things in nature – insects, slime mold, little tiny fungi, and lichens.  I think it is so absolutely fascinating to see all the different ways that life has chosen to answer the same question, and that is how to sustain life.  If there is a way to live, life has tried it.  I’ve learned so much from looking closely and moving slowly through nature, not the least of which is humility.  It is a reminder of how much I don’t know, and not just me, but science as a whole, and I’ve always been totally taken with exploring those edges of human knowledge. 

- Shelby Perry, Naturalist, Ecologist, Engineer, N.E. Wilderness Trust

   One, it's fun!

Two, if we don't look, we have no way of knowing what we have and how to protect it. There aren't nearly enough "professional" biologists to keep track of everything, especially the small stuff - we rely on a broad community of enthusiasts to gather the raw data. 

- Spencer Hardy, Biologist, VT Ctr. for Ecostudies

               Why would I want to go outside and see some things in Nature?

---maybe I'll see something so beautiful---maybe something strange or scary--maybe I'll make a new discovery! You never know 'til you walk out your door and go see for yourself what's out there! 

- Susan Reit, aka Susan Growmore

   Let nature arouse your senses.  Take a look at that Monarch butterfly and be sure it's not a Viceroy.  Can you hear the male and female Cardinals singing?  How about tasting any part of a dandelion?  If you see a Ladybug, gently pick it up and admire its beauty.  Walk up to that pine tree and smell its "piney" aroma or if you see a stink bug, decide whether it smells like cilantro or a skunk.  Nature has it all:  things to see, smell, hear, taste, and touch.

- Shirley Z., Naturalist extraordinaire

   All around us, the planet's greatest mysteries and inspirations are on display for anyone who takes a moment to tune in. An unassuming hawk circling overhead just arrived all the way from Argentina. That frog hopping merrily through the grass somehow survived being entombed in ice all winter. There is a different type of specialized wasp that evolved to hunt down and lay eggs within each of Vermont's two thousand unique caterpillars. And for most of those wasps, there exists yet another parasite wasp that specializes in hunting it.

   

   A bird connects us to the opposite end of the earth. A frog defies the laws of nature as we know them. A caterpillar reveals layers upon layers upon layers of hidden and interconnected lifeforms. The wild frontier of bottomless discovery exists-- It's just out the back door, and all you need to explore it is your attention.

- Sean Beckett, Program Director, North Branch Nature Center, Montpelier, VT

     Reflect on the last time you knew you were part of nature. Drop me a note to have your reflections added here. 

  For centuries we have fought back against Monarchs and Aristoricies to enrich the lives of every human. Will we now do the same to honor all life in the family of Earth? A good start would be to recognize and assure the rights of all species. ~Bernie

Rewards of Participation in Citizen Science - actively engaging nature.

   Observing insects and other forms of wildlife, especially on a local basis, offers many rewards, among them:

-- Enriching one's life by learning to see what many people don't even notice, much less appreciate, in the natural world all around them

-- Discovering the amazing superpowers even the tiniest creatures on this planet have developed to survive and thrive.

-- Learning what humans need to do so those powers can keep working for the benefit of their hosts and other forms of life dependent on them, including our own.

- Brad Elliott, Vice Chair Richmond Land Trust

      Contribute to a Crowdsource Project (VCE). From birds to butterflies and everything in between, your wildlife sightings can make a difference. Join our growing community of citizen naturalists from around the Green Mountain State in discovering and sharing observations of Vermont life.

What lives here? Where is it? What's common? What's at risk? What will be? As human activity profoundly alters the map of life on local and global scales, our response requires knowledge of plant and animal distributions across vast landscapes and over long periods of time. Your observations can be turned into research-grade, citizen science data that will help us discover, track and ultimately conserve our natural heritage.

I for one can't wait to start inverting again. The term "Inverting" means invertebrate watching as birding is to bird watching. I am an 'inverter' & bird watcher!     

*The VT Wildlife Action Plan of 2015 states more than 21,400 invertebrate species are believed to be in Vermont. 

In addition, many of our invertebrates have not yet been scientifically described. Life history, distribution, and abundance information are available for a small minority of Vermont’s invertebrates that would be considered conservation targets, such as freshwater mussels and some tiger beetles. Invertebrate datasets still pale in comparison to other taxonomic groups.    

How to participate in JULS: 

• When: April - September
• Where: Jericho and Underhill
• No photography skills are required.  The observation is the important part, not the quality of the photo.
• Tune in to the tiny creatures around you and “always look on the small side of life.” 
• As of March Jericho was in 10th place, with Montpelier and Calis first and second place.

Instructions:

• 1. Photograph (using your phone or camera or another device) any non-human or non-domesticated life form in Jericho, or Underhill VT. 
• 2. Create an account on iNaturalist. Load observations onto iNaturalist. 
•  (See how-to guides under resources further below.)
• 3.  How to load an observation onto iNaturalist 
• On iNaturalist, select the green UPLOAD.
• Drag and drop the photo.
• Click on the Species name box. The computer software will make a guess at the ID. If you are not sure of the ID go with the highest taxonomical ID or type in animal or plant. 
• Click on the location box. Type in the location in the "Search for Location box. (optional: Select "pin" on the bottom right of the screen if you will use that location again for other posts). 
• If the observation is captivated or cultivated, select *Captivated/Cultivated.
• Under projects select (or type in) Vermont Atlas of Life.
• 4. Optional: Once you have your account set up you may want to visit your account settings, then select content and display, then page down to view your licensing choices. You can select "learn what these licenses mean" to help you decide which to choose. The key is that some of the licenses are more accommodating for scientists than others. 
• *What does captive / cultivated mean? Checking captive/cultivated means that the observation is of an organism that exists in the time and the place it was observed because humans intended it to be then and there. Likewise, wild/naturalized organisms exist in particular times and places because they intended to do so.
• iNaturalist Help and assistance, Q&As

BUTTERFLIES: VCE (Vermont Center for Ecostudies) will be studying butterflies in this area in 2023 and would welcome butterfly observation postings on iNaturalist to aid in the research. 

Meet and get to know your pollinator and other insect backyard neighbors. I have walked 100 miles in our 1.3-acre backyard, and still, surprises await me every day. Explore species of life in your yard, wonders await you.

BONUS POINTS: It is said that not much more than half the organisms on earth have yet been described. There are roughly sixty-five hundred species of mammals, nine thousand species of amphibians, and eleven thousand species of birds. There are between two and ten million INSECT species, many as yet unknown to science. What will you discover?

                                                     Read more below

What’s more natural than being a naturalist? Competition. 

What is more challenging than bird watching but just as rewarding? 

Insect-watching or Inverting! 

Competitive?

Check out the VT City or Town Nature Challenge leaderboard to see where your Vermont city or town ranks for a number of species, observations, and observers. 

As of early spring, Jericho was 10th in species with 2,008,  Montpelier had 3,665 and Calais had 3,102 species. 

Species Chart as of 4/26/2023

Jericho: 2014 species, 788 observers, 24,970 observations

🐝Bee an inverter observer!

“We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”― Martin Luther King Jr., Why We Can't Wait

Cup our hands as if we held in them the fate of all the other creatures we share this earth with - because we do.  - Mike Kiernan, Bee the Change pollinator.

References 

Children and teenagers can carry out valuable wildlife research – here’s how

Guide to using iNaturalist

Video Tutorial

YouTube: How to use iNaturalist

‘Bees are sentient’: inside the stunning brains of nature’s hardest workers (The Guardian)

Contact Bernie with questions.

Town by town Count of observations, species, and observers. Jericho is in 11th place (of all VT Cities and Towns) for the number of species (1,985 species) as of March 8, 2023. Montpelier is in first place with 3,704 species).

Observations at Jericho locations.

68 Bee species Bernie observed on a 1.3-acre yard in Jericho. By Month, and associated flower(s) interactions for each species.

621 Insect species were observed on a 1.3-acre yard in Jericho. Includes the number of observations of each of the 621 species. 

Chittenden County Bee-to-Flower interactions. (sorted by flower species)

Chittenden County Bee-to-Flower interactions. (sorted by bee species)

How iNatuarlist works   

"Observations on iNaturalist record species in space and time. To help confirm the identity of the species posted, images or sound files are uploaded, and species recognition software provides identification suggestions. However, whether a name is provided by the observer or not, a verification process is in place that crowdsources identifications from other iNaturalist users. Observations become ‘research grade’ when they are at the genus level or finer, are confirmed by two or more users (which includes an initial identification suggested by the observer), two-thirds or more of the identifiers are in agreement, there are no active flags, and no contradicting data quality assessments. As of 17 March 2020, there were 20 273 874 research-grade observations (iNaturalist 2020). Research grade observations are then aggregated on other databases such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) (iNaturalist 2020)." Taken from https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full/10.1139/cjb-2021-0160

More Compelling Reasons to Discover Life Species in Jericho, and Underhill, Vermont

Ten more compelling reasons to Observe Nature 

1. Fair Sharing: By studying the particular social world of insects and their technology, we can learn how to live in greater biological harmony with the planet. 

2. Species new to Vermont were posted to iNaturalist last year. You might be the first to record a new species for Vermont this year.

3. Nearby: Life that is a footstep away is as important as that which we search for in the skies, certainly more likely to be found.

4. Health: Scientific studies have repeatedly shown being outdoors in nature improves our health.

5. Fun Competition. Compete with your friends, and help your town compete with other towns in Vermont (number of species, number of observations). It is fun - individually or as a family activity, educational, and can be a competitive sport.

6. Understanding habitat needs: Our shared 'kin' has few places to go. We have left little space for life other than human life. The better we know what we have the better we can identify and provide the habitat they need.

7. Invasive Species Management: Detecting and mapping invasive species helps in monitoring and managing these species. 

8. Conservation: An understanding of what species are in Jericho and Underhill, Vermont is critical, both for biologists and for the general public. Biological diversity is being lost as species go extinct, and it is only by understanding species that we can shape the social, political, and financial forces that affect conservation efforts. Participants can contribute data to the iNaturalist database which helps organizations like the Vermont Center for Ecostudies and other scientists learn more about the status of wildlife.

9. Wildlife: Species observations can raise awareness about issues that affect our natural environment/wildlife and the many species of LIFE in our own backyards. Biodiversity is required for a healthy ecosystem.

10. Top reason to observe insects and other wildlife species: they often amaze us when we look close enough and long enough to learn what they look like, how they behave, and how they live day to day. 

Public Engagement for People & Nature

Bernie