America's Wildest Places - Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge, Vermont
The Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1943 to provide habitat for migratory birds. It consists of 6,729 acres of habitats, mostly wetland habitats, which support a variety of migratory birds and other wildlife. The refuge was designated as an Important Bird Area in partnership with the Audubon Society. A mosaic of wetland habitats offers opportunities to see and manage more than 200 species of birds. Fall migration features 20,000-25,000 migrating ducks. Nesting bald eagles, osprey, and a great blue heron colony numbering more than 300 nests are present on the refuge.
WILDLIFE & HABITAT
Wood Duck - Visible from mid-March through early November. This species is often seen in virtually all wetland habitats on the refuge.
Great Blue Heron - Visible at the refuge from mid-March through mid December or until ice formation. A large great blue heron rookery is present on the refuge near the delta where the Missisquoi River intersects Missisquoi Bay. One of the best ways to enjoy seeing great blue herons and a variety of other wildlife including bald eagles and osprey on the refuge is by small watercraft (canoe, kayak, small motorboat).
Bobolink - Visible from mid-May through the end of August. A grassland bird species that is best observed along Tabor Rd along the westernmost side of the refuge. The colorful males provide a unique song and flight along the refuge grassland units of the refuge. These same grasslands provide opportunities to see northern harriers, eastern meadowlarks, and savanna sparrows.
Wetlands - The majority of Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge is comprised of a variety of freshwater wetland habitats. Vegetated composition within many marsh units is comprised of emergent species such as wild rice, smartweed, pickerel weed, arrowhead and giant burred. Pond shield and white/yellow lilies are also present in many marsh units.
Woodlands - Lakeside Floodplain Forest, Silver Maple-Sensitive Fern Riverine Floodplain Forest and Red Maple Green Ash Swamps are the dominant wooded communities on the refuge. All three communities tolerate seasonal inundation and have associated understories of winterberry holly, dogwoods and a variety of water tolerant fern species. The trees in all three communities can grow to heights in excess of 100 ft and have tree diameters in excess of 3 feet. The seasonally open Jeep Trail parallels the Missisquoi River under a canopy of these giant trees for nearly 2 miles.
Bog - The Maquam Bog is classified as a pitch pine woodland bog. This community is the only one of its kind in Vermont and one of only a few found throughout New England. The 900 acre bog features pitch pine, rare Virginia chain fern, blueberries, a variety of sphagnum moss species and is dominated by rhodora. Peat depths range from 2.5 ft to 8 ft deep. Fires and flooding are the two events that have shaped and maintained the vegetative communities in the bog. The bog is home to short eared owls, shrikes, moose and serves as a wintering area for whitetail deer.
TRAVEL & TOURISM
Five refuge trails encompassing 7.5 miles provide excellent opportunities for wildlife observation in many different upland and wetland habitats. Numerous board-walks on these trails allow quiet, elevated access through wildlife habitats to see migratory and resident species. The refuge delta, Missisquoi River, Dead Creek, provide a water rich alternative to observe wildlife on the refuge. Kayaks, canoes, and small motorized boats allow access to the refuge in areas where trails are not available.The best time of year to photograph is the spring and summer.
The warm shallow water of the Missisquoi Delta provides excellent fishing opportunities on and around the refuge. Big game, upland small game, and water/other migratory bird hunting are allowed on portions of the refuge.
Contact and Directions:
Missisquoi NWR
29 Tabor Rd.
Swanton, VT 05488
802-868-4781
Vermont RT. 78 to Tabor Rd. Turn onto Tabor proceed south 1/4 mile to refuge HQ.
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Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge | Wikipedia audio article
This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge
00:01:02 1 Habitat management
00:03:33 2 Fauna
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- Socrates
SUMMARY
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Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge located in the eastern shore of Lake Champlain in the U.S. state of Vermont. The refuge is in Franklin County in the northwest corner of the state near the International Boundary with Canada. It is the only National Wildlife Refuge located entirely in Vermont (Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge is partly in Vermont and three other states), and is administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
The refuge was established on February 4, 1943, under the authority of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act. The initial acquisition was 1,582 acres (6.4 km2) of land in the Missisquoi River delta, including Shad Island and Big Marsh Slough. Additional land was acquired over the next 60 years. The refuge's current size is 6,642 acres (27 km2). It is located in the towns of Swanton and Highgate.
Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge with David
Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge, established in 1943, is located on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain near the Canadian border in Franklin County, Vermont. This 6,729 acre refuge includes most of the Missisquoi River delta where it flows into Missisquoi Bay. The refuge consists of quiet waters and wetlands which attract large flocks of migratory birds. Upland areas of the refuge are a mix of open fields and a hardwood forest of American elm, white ash, white oak, silver and red maple. Both of these areas provide habitat for migratory songbirds, resident mammals and other wildlife.
Missisquoi refuge is one link in a chain of refuges for migratory birds that extends along the Atlantic Flyway between northern breeding grounds and southern wintering areas. The refuge provides important feeding, resting and breeding habitat for migratory birds, especially waterfowl, in the northern Lake Champlain section of the flyway.
Refuge lands also protect the Shad Island great blue heron rookery, the largest colony in Vermont. The refuge is open daily from dawn to dusk.
Maintaining a healthy diversity of habitats at Missisquoi refuge requires that a variety of habitat management practices be used.
Some examples of the management practices used to benefit wildlife at Missisquoi refuge include; manipulating water levels in refuge impoundments to encourage the growth of waterfowl food and cover plants; placing nesting structures throughout the refuge to help wood ducks, common goldeneyes, hooded mergansers and black ducks increase their numbers; haying, mowing and controlled burning to keep open field from changing back to forest; controlling exotic pest plants such as purple loosestrife and common reed grass; and trapping raccoons to control predation on waterfowl and other ground-nesting birds, muskrats to help protect waterfowl impoundment dikes from damage by their burrowing nature, and beavers to reduce flooding, erosion on dikes and plugging of managed water control structures
Missisquoi Vermont U.S. Wildlife Refuge 2006 part 2 of 2
Missisquoi Vermont U.S. Wildlife Refuge 2006 part 2 of 2
Thousands of dead fish in Missisquoi Bay
Thousands of dead fish have washed up on the shores of a popular fishing spot at Missisquoi Bay in Saint-Armand/Philipsburg on Lake Champlain Saturday, August 18, 2012. Residents suspect the cause to be a heavy concentration of blue-green algae combined with low water levels and high temperatures. (Phil Carpenter/The Gazette)
Looking for Fish on the Missisquoi River
My daughter April loves to swim and loves science and nature. She went diving with my waterproof camera the other evening looking for some local panfish, and found some!
Dam fight bubbling up in Swanton
A battle is brewing in Swanton over plans for an old dam, and the future of the Missisquoi River fishery. Subscribe to WPTZ on YouTube now for more:
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Alburg Dunes State Park
A very pleasant day
Sheldon Springs Rapids, Missisquoi River, VT
Footage from 3 laps down Sheldon Springs rapids on the Missiquoi River in Vermont. The East Berkshire gauge was reading ~3200cfs and there was no scheduled release.
The run is fun; think slightly steeper Dryway with a wider riverbed so it has more options. Unfortunately it's very short. The first 2:15 or so are the rapids in order, the rest is just a couple other fun lines thrown in.
Swanton School Board | 4-17-19
Video from the public meeting of the Swanton, Vermont school board.
Vermont Public Television
Sacred Hunter's, Traditions Outdoor Mentoring takes a mentee duck hunting
Celebrating the Life of Dr. Russell S. Walters III
Dr. Russell S. Walters, III, of St. Albans, VT died peacefully of heart disease on August 10, 2017, at the St. Albans Health and Rehabilitation Center. He was 88. He was a scientist, woodworker, husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, and loving partner.
Russell was born December 19, 1928, in Clinton, IA, to Russell and Irma (Scribner) Walters. During the depression his family traveled the midwest in a small house trailer as itinerant workers, eventually settling in Michigan where his father worked in support of World War II. His early experiences taught him the value of education and hard work and these values guided him his entire life.
Russ graduated from Ludington, MI High School where he was a gifted athlete and earned the rank of Eagle Scout awarded by the Boy Scouts of America. During high school, Russ attended a lecture on forestry and decided to make it his life’s work. He earned his Bachelor of Forestry degree at Michigan State University, his Master’s degree in Silviculture at Oregon State University and his Doctorate in Forestry from the College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY. He spent his entire career as a Research Forester with the USDA Forest Service where he published dozens of books and papers furthering the field of forestry management. His co-authored book, Medicinal Plants of Appalachia, is still widely used today by herbalists and natural healers. While his research covered many topics, from Christmas trees to oaks, perhaps his most notable work was done in Vermont where his research enabled the use of tubing for the collection of maple sap, vastly improving a nd forever changing the production of maple syrup.
In the early 1950’s, Russ served in Europe as a corporal in the U.S. Army where he earned the Army of Occupation and National Defense Service medals. Over the years, Russ also served in several community organizations including The Elks Club, Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Friends of the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge, and as a volunteer firefighter. He is the former Grand Master of the Vermont Masonic Temple. He served on the Vestry of St. Luke's Episcopal Church in St. Albans. Perhaps the volunteer work that best describes his character is when he co-founded the “Toy Shoppe” in Warren, PA. Russ organized a group of retirees and trained them in woodworking so that every Christmas, handmade wooden toys were given to needy children. The group is still active today.
Russell was predeceased by his mother and father, Irma (Scribner) Walters and Russell S. Walters II of Jensen Beach FL; his first wife Anita Mary (Baker) Walters of South Burlington VT; wife Anita (Marquette) Walters of St. Albans, VT; son-in-law Michael Baxter, and grandson Robert Walters. He is survived by his daughter Jane Walters-Baxter of Ferrisburgh, VT and her children Shannon Baxter and great-grandchildren Serenity and Michael of Syracuse, NY; Ian Baxter of Portland, ME, and Ryan Baxter of Swanton, VT. He is also survived by his son, Thomas and wife Mary Shannon Walters of Richmond, VT, and their children Nathan and Luke Walters. In addition, Russ is survived by stepsons Robert Marquette and wife Patricia, their son Steven; and Glenn Marquette, all of St. Albans, VT. He also leaves grandchildren Casey and Adam Marquette, and Erica Washburn. Additionally, he leaves his special companion of many years, Priscilla Carpenter of St. Albans, VT.
A Celebration of Life for Dr. Russell S. Walters will be held at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, 38 Grand Ave, Swanton, VT on August 19, 2017 at 4:00 p.m., officiated by The Rev. J. Robert Spainhour, Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Swanton, and The Rev. James Ballard, Deacon, St. Luke's Episcopal Church, St. Albans. A reception will follow in the parish hall.
The family wishes to thank the staff of St. Albans Health and Rehabilitation Center for their care and compassion for Russell during his illness.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Friends of Northern Lake Champlain, PO Box 58, Swanton, VT 05488
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