Below The Surface

Are there fish in your beer?

2012-01-18T17:00:00.004-05:00

As a craft beer lover and avid home brewer I was thrilled when Linda Bowden, ECHO's Life-Long Learning coordinator, announced that she was planning the beer-themed event called "FeBREWary: The Science of Beer." As an aquatic biologist, I'm always seeking ways to link our local aquatic fauna to things that people really identify with and care about... like beer!

As it turns out, there is a quite a long history of using fish parts to clarify beer and other fermented beverages. Many fish would sink without some extra buoyancy provided by a structure called an air bladder. An air bladder is essentially a bag made of collagen into which fish can add or remove gas as they move up or down in depth. This allows fish to maintain neutral buoyancy- not sinking or floating, but hovering in one place. As with many anatomical features, air bladders can provide additional functions beyond buoyancy control.

For example, drum use the air bladder to produce and amplify a thumping sound (like a bass drum) during spawning season. Other fish, like long-nose gar and bowfin, can thrive in warmer waters that have low amounts of dissolved oxygen by gulping air and passing oxygen from surface air into their blood stream via their air bladders.

The air bladder is an essential structure for many fish, but it's the collagen from which it's made that matters to beer lovers. Consumers of the vast majority of beer styles look for clarity in the glass along with satisfying flavor. Most modern breweries use some form of clarification to achieve the bright clear appearance that consumers expect. Among several options for achieving clarity is isinglass, which is made from- you guessed it- fish air bladders. By extracting and processing fish air bladders, the collagen building blocks are dissolved into an acidic solution to make isinglass. When the isinglass is added to beer, millions of tiny charged collagen particles bind to oppositely charged particles of suspended yeast cells and other dissolved by-products of fermentation (hop oils, protein, etc.) that can make beer cloudy. Once added, the binding action of isinglass forms larger, more dense particles that sink to the bottom of the container and the beer "drops clear." In as little as two days, a batch of beer will go from hazy (photo on left) to clear (photo on right) and be ready to carbonate and drink.

How the use of fish parts in the brewing process got started is not well known. One of the most likely scenarios that I've come across is one in which ancient people used air bladders to carry liquids, including beer. Acidic beverages, like beer and wine, likely dissolved some collagen and created favorable conditions for clarification to occur. Perhaps some ancient ale drinker set down his or her bladder of beer for a day or two, only to discover a clearer drink later on.

Want to find out more about intersection of science and the enjoyment of good beer? Join us at ECHO on the evening of February 9th. Prost!

Construction Update: AV & Insulation - That's a Wrap!

2012-01-13T13:42:00.008-05:00

It may be getting colder outside, but ECHO's been heating up the Lakeside Pavilion construction scene with hardhat tours, new floors, eco-insulation, and the electrical installation for our new audiovisual (AV) system that resembles a concert hall pipe organ more than electrical conduit.

Coming soon, the new hi-tech interactive AV system in the Lakeside Pavilion will have one large screen flanked by two monitors on each side. ECHO staff is busy developing new touch-screen demonstrations that integrate technology such as a projection microscope to take a closer at snake skin and audience participation bird song games. And thanks to an National Science Foundation (NSF) grant, this fall ECHO will be adding 3D capability to explore our watershed in ways that have never been done before!

ECHO is also reaching new eco-friendly heights with the Lakeside Pavilion striving for LEED Platinum certification - the highest level achievable for a green building. Investing in high efficiency insulation is one of the most effective strategies for an earth-friendly building project that also saves money from the start. One of the insulation products that ECHO is using is "Supergreen" spray urethane foam. This spray foam does not affect the ozone layer, has a great insulation value (R-Value) per inch, creates a tight building envelope, and is very versatile - you can fill in all sort of nooks and crannies in walls, ceilings, basements, and roofs in commercial and residential buildings.

ECHO was the first LEED certified building in the State of Vermont, and though we are proud of this distinction, we continue to look for ways to make improvements as we grow and expand. And along the way, if we can share a thing or two about greener choices that can be made in construction, all the better.

Photos top: JAM construction team installing beam under AV conduit, (C) Julie Silverman
Photo lower left and right: Supergreen spray insulation in the ceiling and walls, (C) Julie Silverman

Snake Charmer

2012-01-04T16:25:00.000-05:00

During holiday breaks, myself and my coworkers in the Animal Care Department experience a very real reminder of just how much of our workload in covered by our volunteers. Many of them take holiday breaks from school and leave us for a few weeks, and we scramble to keep our animal collection healthy and happy. By the numbers, our volunteers contribute 70% of the total hours worked in Animal Care. This year, I got some extra help with one part of my job right as volunteer numbers were starting to dwindle.

Near the end of December one of my dedicated volunteers, Tyson White, took a bold step and did one of the two public demonstrations that our department gives each day.

Tyson, a senior at Champlain Valley Union High School, chose to work for us as part of Grad Challenge, a public service learning requirement at his school. In addition to learning all the in's and out's of our Sunday afternoon Animal Care duties, Tyson developed a bond with Winston, the Eastern ratsnake that lives in our Animal Care room. He first learned how to comfortably handle the snake and watched my version of "Meet the black ratsnake" demo. For his presentation, Tyson added some information about breeding time for the snakes and brought this information to a small crowd gathered to meet Winston. He did a great job, speaking comfortably with a four and a half foot snake in his hands. I enjoyed myself as Tyson's supervisor, mentor, and audience member.

Next week, ECHO celebrates our volunteers who keep us running. Stop by and help us thank them for all they do!

Seasons of Change

2011-12-28T10:56:00.004-05:00

Believer, skeptic or bystander, few would deny that "climate change" is a hot topic. From extreme weather patterns to the recent flooding of Lake Champlain the effects of global warming and climate change in general is hard to ignore. On January 21, ECHO will explore the impacts of climate change with the opening of the new exhibit Seasons of Change.

Members of ECHO will enjoy exclusive benefits including early admission and continental breakfast between 9 and 10 a.m., 20% off shop sales throughout the day, and the ability to bring guests (equal to your current membership) free-of-charge to enjoy all that ECHO has to offer. Throughout the day educators will encourage visitors to get wild about weather through demonstrations and hands-on encounters such as: The incredible journey of a raindrop, learn how to build your own weather station, discover why we have seasons, and observe a cloud formation right at ECHO! At 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., special guest Amy Seidl, UVM Professor and author of Finding Higher Ground and Early Spring, will present a program entitled When Lilacs Bloom. We've all noticed the weather changing - from earlier springs to record-setting storms - but how are these changes affecting the landscape around us? Dr. Seidl will help us see how flowering lilacs, migratory songbirds, autumn colors, and other seasonal events are signals from a warming world.

If you aren’t currently a member, join ECHO today to take advantage of this very special program. As an added bonus, if you join before January 31st, ECHO will match your gift by giving an equal membership to a low-income neighbor through our You Give, We Give program.

That's Brilliant! ECHO After Dark

2011-12-20T16:47:00.010-05:00

You would have thought with an event showcasing inventions as we did on December 8 with That's Brilliant! at ECHO, you'd see nothing but white shirts with pen protectors and glasses. Instead we had floors full of animated people who looked like you and I who were actively engaged in conversation with our guests by demonstrating or letting you try really cool inventions that could be used to help ski or sled down the mountain, assist children with disabilities play video games, or create a new way to hang earrings. Our surveys showed that our guests were overwhelmingly pleased with this latest ECHO After Dark event where we showcased some of the many Vermont inventions that people have dreamed up. Folks didn’t want to stop chatting with the inventors! The theme tied in well with the end of the year where many people are either interested in what has happened in the inventions world over the past year or they were in the mood for shopping for unique gifts from brilliant inventors. Over 160 people enjoying Vermont cheeses and crackers, drinking beer or wine or crossing their fingers hoping to win raffle prizes from many of the inventors.

Vermonters as inventors is nothing new. For instance, did you know that the first American Patent was filed by a Vermonter? In July 31, 1790 Samuel Hopkins of Pittsford was issued a patent for an improvement “in the making of Pot ash and Pearl ash by a new Apparatus and Process.” The patent was signed by President George Washington, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson and Attorney General Edmund Randolph. For our educational piece we listed ten of the top Vermont inventions (like this one) and asked folks to list, in graffiti-style with chalk, which invention they could not live without. Answers ranged from their computer to electricity, providing an interesting participatory project.

If you are interested in the tabling inventors and their email addresses, here they are. Scroll to the bottom of the page for information about two of our next ECHO After Dark events.

InventVermont: A non-profit organization with the mission to promote innovation, invention and creativity through educational programs and by providing a mechanism for sharing information among its members and associates.

Vermont Manufacturing Extension Center: A non-profit organization match making inventors with manufacturers, with a proven system that increases innovation speed 6X and decreases innovation risk 30 - 80%.

Hampton Direct: A consumer products company with a proven track record of getting your idea to market and launching the industry's most successful "As Seen On TV" products.

Vermont FabLab: The UVM FabLab facility brings together high-power computer aided design (CAD) tools and the means (hands-on access) by which to realize physical implementations.

Microprocessor Designs, Inc: A design and development company that has provided the hardware, firmware and software for a wide variety of clients and innovative projects such as the Segway Human Transporter, the iWalk BiOM Prosthetic Foot, and a prosthetic finger tip sensor node for DARPA.

I-Mark Tools: You don’t have to be an engineer to be an inventor, come see Kathy Dever’s innovative and patented self-marking tape measure, “Simply measure, push and mark”.

Make it Science: An "electrifying" experience with musical and acoustic science teaching aides, a must see for educators looking for ways to teach difficult science concepts through hands-on activities.

Geometric Bike: Would you like to run 30 MPH with no impact? If so, check out Steve Norman’s geometric bike. It’s so smooth; it’s like a StairMaster that goes…

QuantaSpec, LLC: Light detection of explosives, biological substances, and developing infrared spectroscopy as a new method for medical diagnosis of infections and breast cancer.

Starr Surf Skis: Just as Burton brought surfing to the mountains, fellow Vermonter Jason Starr has brought skiing to the surf. The new skis that are allowing skiers to take their skills to the ocean. It’s not just water skiing, it’s steep water skiing!

Creative Microsystems: From plasma-sphere light sculptures to lab-on-a-chip and other micro-scale inventions, come see some of the innovative solutions Bill Parker and his team have developed for the aerospace, telecommunications, biotechnology, and the medical device industries.

Alpine Wings: Detachable parafoil used in place of ski poles to reduce the weight on the legs, assist with steering or braking, improve stability, and generally adding to the fun and merriment of traveling down a mountain.

Hammerhead Sleds: Take the sport of sledding from the backyard to the biggest hills with patented steering systems, front polycarbonate and rear HDPE skis, state-of-the art materials, and precision engineering.

Safety Caps, Inc: The world’s only oversized, ventilated electrical outlet safety plug designed to eliminate suffocation while providing superior electrical shock protection and reducing drafts in your home.

Geometoy, Inc: Geometric toys including Reptangles. Reptangles are turtles that can snap together in a wide variety of geometric transformations -- flips, turns, slides, and more.

Lynx Fasteners: Silent thin-film fasteners with over six times the strength of Velcro® and 1/3 the thickness, water-proof zippers and other thin and silent clothing fasteners.

MicroStrain, Inc: SensorCloud™ manages big data from the internet of things - global networks of smart sensors embedded in machines, structures, and our environment.

Bronchobat: A breath controlled video game to help kids with cystic fibrosis stick to their treatment regimen and improve their breathing performance through challenging and entertaining exercise.

Diva Dangler: Just in time for holiday shopping, come check out the Diva Dangler, an amazing earring organizer perfect for all who have a tangled mess in their jewelry box.

For photos from THAT'S BRILLIANT! please go to our facebook album. I'd love to hear your thoughts about our ECHO After Dark events. Please share your comments with me below or email me directly.

Upcoming ECHO After Dark programs:

Thursday, January 12, 2012, 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Café Scientifique: Topic 23: The Next Frontier: Higher Education in Space!
Join us in conversation with Carl Brandon, Professor, Science and Aeronautical Engineering Technology, Vermont Technical College. With a grant from the Vermont Space Grant Consortium, a part of the NASA Space Grant program, a group of students from four Vermont colleges and universities, are making significant contributions to the development of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) workforce by developing a CubeSat, a new space technology. Come to ECHO's After Dark Cafe Scientifique program to join in the dialogue about this major cooperative endeavor! Suggested donation $5. Event for 21+ with cash bar and themed drinks opens at 6.30 p.m., discussion begins at 7 p.m.; free light hors d’oeuvres sponsored by VT Sigma Xi, Scientific Research Society.

Thursday, February 9, 2012
We are now accepting reservations for our ECHO After Dark event: FeBREWary. The Science of Beer. will be two events that evening. From 6-7 p.m. for members only there is a beer and cheese pairing with 5 beers and 5 cheeses for $40 led by judicators of beer/cheese tastings. This event is limited to 26 people. Your admission to this event also gets you into the second event from 7-9 p.m. entitled FeBREWary, the Science of beer. If you wish to attend this second event only you can pay $15 for members, $20 for non-members, which includes 5 beer tastings and a signature tasting glass plus a full evening program. To make reservations, please call 1-802-864-1848 x 7. For more information please go to ECHO After Dark.

Top right photo: John Cohn, Vermont FabLab
Left photo: guest riding Segway
Bottom left photo: Tom Mezzner, WPTZ NewsChannel Five, modeling Alpine Wings by inventor Lorenzo Blum

Volunteer & Intern Appreciation Week Jan. 9 - 15

2011-12-19T11:54:00.001-05:00

As the Volunteer & Intern Coordinator at ECHO, I have the good fortune to work with some wonderful people who help us carry out our mission on a daily basis. ECHO has approximately 150 volunteers & interns who provide over 8,500 volunteer hours per year and we are all extremely proud of their efforts and humbled by their dedication and hard work.

Who are these people? They are folks just like you, local residents, retired teachers, students from local colleges and universities ~a great mix of personalities and talent.

While we diligently recognize our volunteers and interns on a regular basis with a heartfelt thanks, coffee, or goodies like food or gifts, we all know that nothing beats a party! So, twice a year we throw a big bash for our volunteers and interns to celebrate their efforts and honor their service.

This time we are doing something a bit different. Starting January 9th to January 15th 2012, ECHO will host a week-long event to celebrate our volunteers and interns. We will have signs, decorations, food and gifts to give our hardworking crew, as well as door prizes, and a midweek luncheon with ECHO staff.

We are looking forward to congratulating these individuals who give so much time, experience and energy to ECHO and we'd like to involve our visitors too! During Volunteer and Intern Appreciation Week we encourage our local visitors and members to come in and say hello and thanks to our volunteers and interns. Each day an ECHO member will help us select the volunteer or intern who will win the door prize of the day!

We look forward to seeing you during Appreciation Week (January 9-15, 2012) when we commemorate the dedicated group of volunteers and interns who are at the heart of all we do, and for whose efforts we will be forever grateful.

Do you want to become an ECHO volunteer? You are welcome to find out more through our website or contact me directly at my email address.

Photos: Top Right-Volunteers at 2010 Appreciation Night
Bottom Left-Long-time volunteer, Alida Dinklage, spends time with visitors at the Champlain Sea Tank

What is that smell?

2011-12-02T12:03:00.026-05:00

As a newcomer to ECHO I wanted to relay a recent experience I had with our traveling exhibit. My first trip into Grossology was last month, on a 'getting to know your new habitat' expedition. Although the giant burping man was the first thing to grab my attention, somewhere beyond him lay an odoriferous

wonder that was so gross I had to investigate further. I've had enough biology to recognize giant bacteria when I see it and my eye caught a few examples at a colorful station against the wall. On this table I found 4 super-sized petre dishes containing equally super-sized bacterium models. Bellow these visual wonders are corresponding 'smell stations' which contain smells that originate from bacterial creatures living all over our bodies. An adventurous person like myself just can't help sticking their nose over one of these stations and taking a deep whiff. Pee-ewe! What could have made that smell? Through some exploration at this station I learned that what I had just smelled was created by a bacterium called Brevibacterium epidermidis, which apparently lives on ourfeet. I have to admit that although I'm familiar with my own smelly feet after a long hike I haven't ever experienced the magnified version of this. It was unforgettable and as odd as it may sound, something I recommend as a new and unique experience.

Certainly I'm not the only adventurous visitor to science centers out there. If you count yourself or your children among those who wonder "What does that smell like" or "What makes us burp" I strongly encourage you to come down to ECHO for your own adventure through Grossology. If you come to ECHO on Saturday, December 10th we have some special programming about the Reality of Cooties, which, as a younger brother, I have always wondered about. As a former EMT in Brooklyn, NY I'm also psyched to explore the FACT Ambulance that day. And, if you're interested in boosting your health through the cold and flu season VNA is offering flu shots from 11am - 1pm for only $30.

You only have a few weeks left - Grossology leaves on Jan 8th. But don't worry, ECHO is open through the holiday season (except Dec 24th and 25th). Our next exhibit, Seasons of Change, opens on Jan 21st. As a recent transplant to New England I’m looking forward to learning about how the changing climate might affect the ecosystems and culture here around the lake.

New "Encounters" Down the Road for Tracy

2011-11-29T13:53:00.014-05:00

Since 2007 ECHO has been investing in our local elementary schools to ensure that teachers and students will find relevance in their science curriculum by experiencing science through the lens of the Lake Champlain Basin. ECHO’s Inquiry Science in the Schools program, has built strong collaborations with Saint Michael’s College, Champlain College and UVM’s Education Departments allowing over sixty pre-service teachers an opportunity to test their wings teaching science inquiry lessons in real elementary classrooms.Nearly seventy teachers from around Vermont have taken part in the ECHO Science Professional Development Workshop Series where content immersion in everything from Geology to Reproduction has been made available to teachers – all modeled through inquiry process skills.In the last two years, under a federal grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), ECHO has gone deeper still with exceptional results. I am very proud of this project and all it has accomplished.

The ISS project has fulfilled its intention of elevating the relevance of science. Sadly, the IMLS grant funding ends this December, 2011 and the ISS project will conclude as well. The legacy of the project includes lasting science content – lesson plans, science equipment, refined teaching methods – transferable to all visiting school field trips down the road. Saint Michael’s College now requires a science practicum of all pre-service teachers modeled after the ISS program. UVM and Champlain College are both working to engage community partners in more established service-learning science experiences. In Burlington, Milton and Winooski School Districts, strong relationships have been established between ECHO and the Curriculum Coordinators as they work to embed science learning into the demands of math and literacy. Teachers have told me countless times that they feel more comfortable teaching science and using ECHO as a respected science resource. But it is the elementary students who have benefited most. Many of them, who in some cases are now in fifth grade and have been coming to ECHO since Kindergarten, have clear ownership to ECHO – they know ECHO as an exciting destination, they know its mission, and they have an emerging science identity because of their experiences.

Now that the grant is concluding, it is with sadness, too, that I announce my departure from ECHO. As education priorities shift, I find myself desiring to go deeper with science education through my connections to the schools, pre-service teacher training, service-learning and teacher professional development. I will start this mission as a new adjunct faculty at Champlain College teaching a science methods course in January. Beyond this, I hope to stay engaged with the local school districts as the Vermont Common Core State Standards emerge. ECHO’s Education Team will remain in great hands with Molly Loomis, Director of Education, at the helm. Molly has been a wonderful support to ISS and fully understands the value of maintaining our now established relationships.

As I depart, I wish to acknowledge the years of support provided by Judy Allard, retired Burlington High School Biology teacher who has given hundreds of hours of volunteer time to ECHO to make ISS a reality. Judy, I will miss our kitchen science experiments, lesson plan debates, wacky ideas for how to capture student interest in science (the cow, the timeliness, the stream table we built in the garage…) and the countless hours spent purchasing, sorting, organizing and maintaining all that science equipment! Judy, you are a master teacher and someone with whom I have been privileged to share this journey. And of course, I also owe great debt to Elizabeth Nuckols, ECHO’s Education Specialist who has continually added her creativity, energy, humor and vast science expertise to ISS. You will continue to carry the torch as ECHO moves forward supporting schools and all the dedicated teachers who want to make science come alive. Thank you for your honesty, steady nature, and willingness to pick up where I leave off. ECHO is lucky to have you.

Should anyone wish to contact me beyond December 16th, I can be reached at tracytruzansky@gmail.com. Thanks to all the staff, interns and volunteers for making this chapter in my book so worthwhile.
Best of luck to all of you!

Top photo: Tracy Truzansky in canoe
Second photo: The final pre-service teachers of ISS, all from Saint Michael's College
Third photo: Tracy on a teaching field trip, presenting geology to 5th graders at Edmunds Elementary School here in Burlington. Courtesy Donna Iverson.
Fourth photo: April, one of ECHO's hugest supporters and one of Tracy's daughters.

Take Your Child's Class to Work ~ at ECHO!

2011-11-29T12:49:00.006-05:00

It was a great idea. The fourth and fifth grade teachers at the Ferrisburgh Central School were all for it and the students were psyched. What was it? A road trip/class trip to ECHO!

And the exhibit du jour? GROSSOLOGY: The (Impolite) Science of the Human Body. A totally hilarious way to look at all the things our body does to keep us healthy. A home run for any kid...and, truth be told, for most adults.

Sure, some parents just take their own kids to work but most don't work at ECHO. When you work at ECHO, which I am privileged to do, you bring your kid's entire class to work!

And they had a great time. Here is a photo album of their day at ECHO.

But this was more than just a day away from the usual school day. This was work! In advance of the visit, the kids were provided with a multi-paged questionnaire by their science teacher, Ms. Elson. On it were things to discover and learn from the exhibit. This was mandatory class work and despite the seemingly silliness of the exhibit, there was some real important facts presented. And, believe it or not, the kids took this task very seriously, but with plenty of giggling and chatter involved. A lively group.

And that is what this exhibit does. It create conversation, involves the visitor in real learning and enterains all at the same time.

Like I said, a home run.

And getting to see my daughter and her school mates have a great time while learning, was like winning the world series. Oh, and the extra special hug I got from my daughter when I came home in the evening was pretty special too.

GROSSOLOGY will be at ECHO through the holidays with the last day being January 8th. I encourage all of you to come on down with your family and "enjoy the learning". Maybe you'll get some extra hugs too.

Happy Holidays!

Top photo: Ferrisburgh Central School student fills out their "homework" during her visit to ECHO
Bottom photo: ECHO's Director of Marketing and Communication, Gerianne Smart and her daughter Grace during her schools class trip to ECHO.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T14:50:00.006-04:00

Have you seen this scary Halloween face at ECHO? Where? Is it the face of the scariest fish, or our creepiest snake, or something more ghoulish?

It may not be what you may think...

Take another look:
It's a set of markings on the plastron (lower shell) of our baby spiney softshell turtles! Today's holiday must have been on the mind of Nikko, my Animal Care volunteer, who pointed out the faces looking at us this Sunday morning as he cleaned their holding tank.

Time to Go Against the Flow?

2011-10-23T10:25:00.020-04:00

Recently, economic woes around much of the world have blossomed into the Occupy Wall Street movement, making the evening news each night. People are taking actions, challenging others to join them and go against of flow of life as usual. At ECHO, one of our Atlantic Salmon is doing its own version of getting attention. Has economic unrest trickled down to our unpaid animal ambassadors?

One of our Atlantic salmon looks like it's doing a headstand while its tank-mates are swimming along in the usual way. What is going on & why?

As I had written in a previous post, animals will do seemingly odd things in captivity, and it is often helpful to be aware of the environmental cues available to the animal where it lives. Although no one can truly know what is going through an animal's mind at any given time, we can tap into our knowledge of the biology and ecology of an animal to develop a hypothesis (educated guess) about what is going on.

I know from both the video and seeing these animals live that the salmon doing the headstand is the largest salmon in the tank. I also have observed that there is a steady current that flows from the bottom to the top of the tank; this is where he or she does its thing. Look closely at the algae growing on the log:

I've never seen our friend exhibit this behavior in other parts of the tank where there is no current. Does this behavior make any sense in the context of what wild fish do?

The life of an Atlantic salmon in the wild starts in spring when a fertilized egg hatches from a nest created in autumn by an adult female in a gravel bed in a fast-flowing part of a river. After hatching it spends time in the safety of the gravel bed, living off of a yolk sac attached to its belly. Once this energy supply is gone, it moves up into the water column and spend 2-3 years as a river dweller, eating aquatic insects. By its third birthday, the young salmon move downstream into the ocean or large lake and switch their diet to small fish. As it grows and reaches maturity, the salmon will make spawning runs, traveling up the river of its birth in late October or November. Unlike the salmon species of the Pacific Northwest which die after spawning just once, Atlantic salmon spawn multiple times throughout their adult life, so long as they have the energy to do it.

What strikes me most about the Atlantic salmon's life-cycle is the undercurrent (pun intended) of flowing water throughout. They are powerful swimmers that seek the current of flowing rivers when their body size, energy reserves, and environmental cues indicate that all systems are go for spawning. At ECHO, the temperature cues for our fish do not exist; the Atlantic salmon and lake trout tank is a fairly constant 55 to 59° F. The length of the day from our lighting is constant for these fish as well. So, the environmental cues that they might use to know that it is autumn are absent. However the flow of water in our tank from bottom to top is there and our fish are well fed. These conditions may have allowed our largest Atlantic salmon to become reproductively mature and the flow may be the only available cue to which she can respond. She swims vertically on a quest for spawning grounds. That is my hypothesis. Over time, more observations may change my mind and the hypothesis might change. If my hypothesis is correct, I will expect to see more of our fish exhibit this behavior as they get larger.

Want to see wild Atlantic salmon from Lake Champlain? As I write this, our local population of land-locked Atlantic salmon are making their way up rivers for spawning. If you visit the salmon lift (run by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife), you may have a chance to see these creatures during their spawning run. The lift is located above Salmon Hole on the Winooski River, beside the Burlington-Winooski bridge. You can also watch a story about this from WPTZ's Conservation Correspondent, and ECHO's Conservation Education Specialist, Bridget Butler by clicking here.

Food Less Traveled 2, Fabulous Foodie Event

2011-10-17T16:44:00.010-04:00

Most of us don't think about where our food comes as we're taking a nice bite into it... but that is changing and local restaurants, and the food producers they partner with, are making that change happen.

Last Thursday, October 13, 2011, eight Burlington area restaurants created delicious food using locally sourced food ingredients provided by over 35 Vermont food producers. The restaurants were vying for the title of Grand Food Miles Champion and/or any one of three other titles which included: Lowest Food Miles, People's Choice, and Judges’ Choice. More than 180 guests enjoyed servings from each restaurant and helped to decide the People's Choice award. They also tasted four varieties of wine from Boyden Valley Winery. (Photo: Skinny Pancake steak & potatoes.)

What is a food mile? A food mile is a phrase to describe the distance a food travels to get to one’s plate. No ingredients in our competition traveled more than 60 miles to the kitchen!

Awards winners:

Lowest Food Miles: In third place, with 9.7 miles was Skinny Pancake. In second place with 6.52 miles was Sugarsnap. First place went to Barkeaters with 6.45 miles – Creating a delicious dish using local ingredients that traveled the least distance. Their dish was Bloomin’ Beet and Carrot Latkes with Apple Relish. The food producers included Bloomfield Farm, Charlotte; Nitty Gritty Grains, Charlotte; Philo Farm, Charlotte and Shelburne Orchards, Shelburne.

People’s Choice: In second place there was a tie between Leunigs Bistro and Sweetwaters. In first place was American Flatbread – Creating a delicious dish deemed the best overall by ECHO guests. Their dish was Cider Braised Lamb with Butternut Squash Puree and Spiced Apple Chutney. The food producers included Shelburne farms, Shelburne; Shelburne Orchard, Shelburne, Stony Loam Farm, Charlotte. (Photo: American Flatbread with line of hungry folk.)

Judges’ Choice: Third place was August First, second place was Sugarsnap and the winner was Skinny Pancake – Creating a delicious dish deemed the best overall by the celebrity judges. Their dish was Steak and Potatoes. The food producers included Arethusa Farm, Burlington Intervale; Charlotte Berry Farm, Charlotte, Jericho Settlers’ Farm, Jericho; Personal Garden, Burlington.

The Judges’ Choice was determined by the votes of four celebrity judges: Alice Leavitt, food writer, Seven Days newspaper; Sally Pollack, Burlington Free Press Food writer; Sarah Langan, core faculty member, New England Culinary Institute; and Cheryl Herrick, food blogger from crankycakes.com.

Grand Food Miles Champion: Sugarsnap – Creating the best overall dish with the least food miles, determined by a combination of overall points in the three categories. Their dish was Roasted Garlic Soup with Cheddar Tuile. The food producers included Bread and Butter Farm, S. Burlington; City Chicks, Burlington Interval; Full Moon Farms, Hinesburg; Samara farm, Burlington Intervale, Shelburne farms, Shelburne; Sugarsnap Farm, Burlington Intervale; Windstone Farm, Williston.

The other restaurants involved were: August First, Farmhouse Tap & Grill, Leunig’s Bistro and Sweetwaters.

When asked about the quality of the food prepared by area chefs, food judge Cheryl Herrick commented, “The variety of what was prepared was amazing and the level of excellence was motivational.” Another food judge, Alice Levitt was pleasantly surprised by some of the ingredients used stating “I saw chefs using products that I didn’t even know we had in Vermont. And the use of the common Sumac to create a caramel in a dessert was amazing.” (Photo: Winning Chefs from Sugarsnap, American Flatbread, Skinny Pancake.)

“We couldn’t be happier with the turnout and the quality of offerings at this year’s event”, said Molly Loomis, ECHO’s Director of Education. “This event created the opportunity to learn, build relationships and show creativity with fresh Vermont food ingredients. All of our ECHO After Dark programming (second Thursday of each month) is geared toward our 21+ audience with one foot anchored in learning and the other in fun!”

Neighbors Helping Neighbors: A Volunteer Experience I'll Never Forget

2011-09-22T13:01:00.013-04:00

Memorable, hi-energy, fun, supportive and completely exhausting are just a couple of thoughts the ECHO and Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) volunteer team shared at the end of a very long night of selling t-shirts and hoodies for the Phish Benefit Vermont Flood Recovery Concert. Jimmy and Brent were our Phish "Merch World" gurus that trained and organized our team of six (photo left): (left to right) Colleen Hickey, LCBP; Laura Hollowell, LCBP; Julie Silveman (Volunteer Team Organizer), ECHO; Emily Bird, LCBP; Elizabeth Nuckols, ECHO and Stephen Perkins, ECHO. ECHO and the LCBP were thrilled to be able to help The Waterwheel Foundation with this event since they do so much to support environmental causes all around the country and here at home, in the Lake Champlain Basin.

At 5:30PM on September 14, 2011 the doors opened to the The Champlain Valley Exposition for Phish fans to find their spot for the momentous event and buy Phish limited edition Flood Recovery posters, t-shirts and hoodies. And buy they did! As Steve (photo right) said, "I've been to concerts similar to this in the past and was blown-away by the constant crush of people at the retail booth." It was obvious by their enthusiasm, fans were so happy to have Phish back home and they were psyched to be able to contribute to such an important cause. Our merry band of t-shirt slingers were all thanked countless times by concert-goers for volunteering and helping out. Even the few disappointed late comers that went away without their first choice t-shirt design were happy just to participate and take home a piece of the vibe.

According to the Burlington Free Press the benefit concert raised more than $1.2 million for Vermont flood recovery, that's $200,000 more than the band was hoping to raise. It feels great to volunteer and contribute to the effort. Our little band of "Merch" volunteers and staff raised about $80,000 for our Vermont neighbors. In between the selling frenzies, we were able to grab a couple of minutes of the show--which was fantastic and felt surprisingly intimate for a 12,000 person audience. It must have been all of the good karma.

It has been a really tough year for so many Vermonters affected by the record setting spring and August floods. Who knew we would break high-water records for so many Vermont rivers and Lake Champlain? We could not have predicted the one-two punch of natural disasters that slammed Vermont this year. What is predictable, and what we've always known in our heart-of-hearts, is that Vermonters always pitch in and help others in need. Never a doubt.
All for One and One for All!

For more photos visit ECHO's Facebook album.

Photos by: (c) Julie Silverman/ECHO

Goodnight Irene ... When Will We See the Likes of You Again?

2011-09-13T12:39:00.002-04:00

Hurricane Irene had tremendous effects throughout our region, especially in areas South of the Basin. Lives were lost, property destroyed, bridges and roads removed outright. Irene was a natural event that we will not forget. But when might we see the likes of her again?

Whether the flooding caused by Irene is a 100-year or 500-year flood will not be determined for some time, and the determination may vary from one river system to another. Labeling floods by return period, that is, saying that a flood is a 50- or 100-year flood is done by hydrologists. If Irene produced a 100-year flood event in the Winooski River, then we can be assured that we're done with floods that big for 100 years, right? Not quite. This is where scientific language doesn't do us any favors, especially when it gets used without explanation.

The beginning of this podcast has a good explanation that helps clarify things a bit:
USGS Multimedia Gallery: Two 500-Year Floods Within 15 Years?

To quote Bob Holmes, United State Geological Survey's Flood Coordinator, "Essentially, a 500 year flood is just that quantity of water that has the 1 in 500 chance in happening in any one year. Another way to say it would be, there's a .2% chance of a flood of this magnitude occurring in any one year."

So it's not likely that we'll see large floods next year, but it is possible. The process of assigning flood return intervals uses historical data from stream gauges that measure how much water is flowing, or discharge, at any given time. Hydrologists use the data from the largest discharges recorded over time to generate the probabilities of similar large discharges happening in the future. But probabilities, or odds, are tricky things. Just because the odds may tell us that something is unlikely to happen doesn't mean it will not.

As for flood events, probabilities are determined directly from past history and assume that the conditions that influence river discharge are not changing. This is rarely the case, and thus hydrologists update their predictions with new data from time to time. What conditions affect events? In short, anything that affects how much precipitation falls on the land that drains into waterways and/or affects the rate at which water moves from the land into streams and rivers. Under current climate change predictions, the northeast will experience more extreme weather events (more water in the form of snow and rain) in the future. Our Basin, and most watersheds world-wide are experiencing increasing development of land for human needs which in-turn means higher rates of run-off from roads, parking lots, buildings, and agricultural fields. Our steep mountainous landscape and its underlying geology also affect the rate at which water moves. Given these patterns, we can expect that what we now consider to be a 100-year flood event will become more common and the future's 100-year flood event will be larger.

How we deal with the influences of our own activities on the damage caused by floods largely depends upon how communities manage their landscapes. On a town level, adopting planning and zoning regulations that incorporate these concepts (in the form of FEMA flood maps) to limit development in low lying areas can be successful. In urban areas, support of stormwater management regulations can offer a one-two punch, reducing the rate at which water runs off of impervious surfaces and reducing the pollution into our waterways from the chemicals that might wash off those surfaces. Like any natural disaster, it takes time to recover from the tremendous loses. Part of the recovery is looking for opportunities to change how we use and manage the landscape, and implementing changes before the next extreme weather event comes along.

Photo credit: Vehicle chaos, Hancock, VT by Lars Gange & Mansfield Heliflight

For more info, check out:
Vermont Dept. of Environmental Conservation's River Management Program
New York Dept. of Environmental Conservation Floodplain Management

Leaving Water for Elephants

2011-08-28T14:57:00.018-04:00

It has been nine years since I started at ECHO. It is the longest I have ever stayed at one institution. The work has been perhaps the most challenging, but it has been for an institution with a mission I believe in, I am passionate about and I will miss. I feel very fortunate that I have been able to make the Basin my home for the past nine years and ECHO my place of employment.

It's interesting to reflect on my tenure here.

George Little was here when I came on board. His presence was inspirational in terms of mission and integrity. George made us feel good about what we did. I admired and miss George. Sarah Muyskens was here in the beginning. Sarah made you feel like it all made sense and though perhaps your task seemed difficult, she knew you’d get it done, and you did. Buzz Hoehr was here in the beginning. His dedication to ECHO’s mission and the Lake was and still is contagious.

George Little with Sequoia Young who sold paper she made to raise money for ECHO

A few years later, to impress upon our guests that our environmental impact wasn’t just in the Basin, it was global, we began exhibiting exotic frogs. We discovered few institutions kept Surinam toads because they are a difficult species to keep in captivity. We researched and developed a successful husbandry protocol. We brought in a dart frog that carried chytrid fungus into the collection. We learned how to treat and we eradicated the fungus. We developed husbandry protocols for Mossy Frogs and propagated them before many AZA zoos or aquariums were able to do so.

Young Vietnamese Mossy Frog.

On the facilities side, we learned about the world of weather studios and chromakey walls. We buried a beluga skeleton. We made a café guests could think about. We installed Native American artifacts throughout the building. In the world of temporary exhibits, ECHO invariably wowed exhibit owners by consistently demonstrating that two people in Burlington, Vermont could do the work of four or six in half the time. Thank you, Ben.

In the maintenance world at ECHO, there were enumerable projects that lead to dead ends for either Ben or myself, yet when we put our heads together, we were able to resolve what we individually could not. It was an amazing symbiosis that I can only hope to again encounter where next I go.

At ECHO, we created an animal care program that was a resource for the state and many other museums and science centers in New England. It stemmed from a belief that the stewardship responsibility we have for the Basin is the same responsibility we have for the captive collection. We owed it to the animal ambassadors we took out of the wild, to our guests, our volunteers and our staff. Those animal care staff I leave behind and those that have come and gone have done outstanding work. I will never forget the image of Tessa and Brian laboring to dropper feed tenths of milliliters of antibiotics to 38 baby softshell turtles: that’s dedication to animal care! Thank you Brian, Tessa, Q, Wyn, Stephanie, Rosie and Josh.

I will miss many of the animal ambassadors here at ECHO. When I first came on board, the fish collection lived in an 18’ diameter pool in the Moran plant. The pool needed a partition and it had to be built in the pool. I was snorkeling in the pool, zip tying partitions together. I turned my head to the side to look around and found the muskie inches from my mask. He looked at me. I looked at him. Neither of us moved so I went back to zip tying and he went back to watching me work. He became one of my favorite animals that day.

I came here to share stewardship. The softshell turtle head start program was the pinnacle of stewardship for the animal care department. I enjoyed sharing the program with our guests in daily demos. I had fun looking for and finding a spark of appreciation for wildlife that some folks had never thought much about before.

I have learned a lot about myself during my time at ECHO. It has helped me grow in ways I wanted to grow and in ways I was not aware of but needed to grow. It has had other benefits as well. Many years ago, before we were even on the waterfront, a woman, well versed in herpetology, applied for an animal care job when we were looking to hire a fish person. Later, after someone else left, we interviewed that same woman again. We had a fish person, we needed a herper. We offered her the job. She turned it down. I kept in touch with her through a little unknown ECHO kayaking club that was composed of a few folks including this woman. A few years later, I married her. Thank you ECHO and thank you Erin for our past and our future.

An opportunity has come up at an institution I have admired since its inception in 1995. It is an opportunity to go back to working with animals I have loved working with at four different institutions. I have accepted an offer to fill the position of Director of Elephant Husbandry at The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. I was not looking for jobs, content as I was at ECHO, but Erin, my wonderful wife, my better half, said they needed me there when they posted job openings for a Director of Elephant Husbandry and a Director of Facilities Maintenance. The sanctuary provides a home for fourteen elephants on 2700 acres. They manage elephants in the type of environment where elephants should be kept and they care for elephants the way elephants should be cared for in captivity.

I am not eager to leave ECHO. I have great memories here. I will miss all of the wonderful people who worked here in the past and who work here now. A special thanks to Phelan for putting faith in me and allowing me an incredible amount of freedom to do what I thought needed to be done to manage the collection and the building.

I leave behind a great group of people with a wealth of knowledge and expertise; a group that strives to constantly do better, better this wonderful place known as ECHO, better ECHO’s efforts to better the Basin. Whoever comes on board as the new Director of Animal Care and Facilities will have a tremendous advantage by virtue of the incredibly proficient team they are inheriting.

On many occasions, on many evenings, at the end of the workday, I have been the last person to leave, and as I walked through the building in silence and solitude, I admired the building, the institution, it’s mission, it’s people, and the work and products those people created. I felt very fortunate, very proud to have been a part of it all. When I leave for the last time, the last night, it will be a very sad moment. My thanks to all the support I have always gotten from all the incredible staff at ECHO, from the dedicated and supportive board members, and my wife, Erin, for allowing me to dive into an aquatic life at ECHO and soon a mammoth life with pachyderms.

ECHO Summer 2011 Smart Grid Interns Say Goodbye!

2011-08-27T12:09:00.014-04:00

As the Smart Grid Outreach Education interns, we have been working for the past few months to develop programs that build awareness about smart grid technology across Vermont. Although we would like to think our work has helped spread complete awareness about this topic to the boarders of Vermont and beyond, we realize that is a lot of work for one summer. So if you were wondering, the smart grid is the 21^st century upgrade of the electrical grid. It utilizes digital communications technology to relay information between various parts of the grid. The smart grid communication network will enable better outage management and reduce the potential for large-scale blackouts. ‘Smart meters’ are part of the smart grid communication network and will replace your current electricity meters. These new meters can take power measurements and send them securely to you and your utility company. You can use the information collected by your smart meter to better manage and understand your electric use. Smart grid technology will also allow for better integration of solar, wind and other renewable resources into the electrical grid.

Wrapping up our time at ECHO, we hope that our guests have enjoyed the products of our work. We developed a display with informational panels about the smart grid as well as fun and interactive programs about peak power, the history of the electric grid, smart buildings, renewable energy, and power consumption, all in regards to the smart grid. We have had a wonderful time collaborating with the eEnergy Vermont Communications Working Group, Vermont’s utilities & transmission companies, renewable energy companies, consulting agencies, educational outreach programs, government agencies, technology companies and our guests. To all of our collaborators, sponsors and guests, we thank you. Your continued support, guidance and feedback made this project possible. We look forward to following the development and implementation of Smart Grid technology. Our display will remain present at ECHO for a few more weeks, so if you haven’t had the opportunity to make it down, we hope that you will have that chance before ECHOs next exciting exhibit comes alive.

Remember, you can have an impact. Smarter decisions regarding our electrical use will affect our future.

Very Sincerely,

Brianna Baker & Kristofor Sellstrom

(Photo left: Brianna, Linda Bowden & Kristofor. Photo right: Kristofor & Brianna)

Coming Home

2011-08-02T08:22:00.007-04:00

It's so very nice to be back in BTV! After a number of years away from home, the most recent decade spent in Bennington, I've returned to the historic family farmstead in Williston. My wife and two young children are settled in nicely and enjoying the wonders of country living. I look forward to bringing my love for the Lake Champlain basin and my experience with strategic thinking and non-profit management to my role as Director of Development and Community Relations of ECHO.

Generations of my family have called Vermont home - most of them living within the Lake Champlain Basin. My grandparents' camp on Malletts Bay transformed the summers of my youth into one big lake adventure. Now my children are experiencing that same wonder. In preparing for our move from Bennington to Williston I found a pond yacht made by my grandfather at age 10. Over the winter I hope to restore the yacht so that we can return it to Lake Champlain in the spring.

This landscape - this lake - this basin, are intertwined with all of our lives and define what it means to live here. I am very happy to have a hand in supporting ECHO, this wonderful institution that is the voice, the educational gateway, to Lake Champlain.

More Than Just a Flip of the Switch

2011-07-25T15:53:00.000-04:00

It only took a moment to flip the switch and make it happen, but months and months of planning and working together with a variety of organizations, contractors, educators and utility companies and co-ops finally came together in July and allowed ECHO to begin to feed 27,000 kWh of power into Vermont’s electrical grid.

The solar array that is now on the rooftop at ECHO is one of the many such projects being installed across Vermont. This solar power production, combined with ECHO’s smart building, puts us at the forefront of the emerging Smart Grid. Because eight Vermont electric utilities and co-ops came together and secured a $80 million grant, Vermont will be one of the nation’s first Smart Grid states by 2013.

Since 1960, electricity use has tripled in the United States, but the grid infrastructure has not advanced. The electric grid, which is a network of power plants, transmission lines and utilities, will now become even more complex as all of us potentially become producers (and consumers) of power with that solar panel on your roof, wind turbine out back or battery-operated car that is plugged in. The smart grid will utilize digital technology so that various parts of the grid can communicate. For you, the new Smart Meter on the side of your home will enable you to better manage and understand your electricity usage.

For ECHO, in addition to our commitment to doing our share of reducing our collective energy and ecological footprint, we are interested in helping us all better understand how we can all participate in a healthier environment. Two summer interns recently joined us who are focused exclusively on Smart Grid. Come join Brianna Baker and Kristofer Sellstrom as they create, new, exciting ways for you to explore the coming Smart Grid. How does the electrical grid work? What is a Smart Meter? What happens when the meters can be found across Vermont? These and many other questions are answered every day. Check out their recent blog post.

So it really is more than just a flip of a switch. It is a commitment to continuing to share the innovations and the successes with the public and our peers as we continue down this path of energy sustainability and conservation. We welcome you to come on down to ECHO and poke around…you just might start to see some of these innovations in action.

ECHO Smart Grid Interns Turn It On!

2011-07-20T15:12:00.006-04:00

As the new Smart Grid Outreach Education interns, Kris Sellstrom and I have been working for the past five weeks to develop programs to build awareness about Smart Grid technology across Vermont. So what exactly is the smart grid? The smart grid is 21^st century upgrade of the electrical grid. It utilizes digital communications technology to relay information between various parts of the grid. The smart grid communication network will enable better outage management and reduce the potential for large-scale blackouts. ‘Smart meters’ are part of the smart grid communication network and will replace your current electricity meters. These new meters can take power measurements and send them securely to you and your utility company. You can use the information collected by your smart meter to better manage and understand your electric use. Smart grid technology will also allow for better integration of solar, wind and other renewable resources into the electrical grid.

Throughout the internship Kris and I have been working with the eEnergy Vermont Communications Working Group to get feedback and support on our programs. We have also had support from Vermont’s utilities & transmission, renewable energy companies, consulting agencies, educational outreach programs, government agencies, and technology companies. Thus far we have developed a display with informational panels about the smart grid as well as fun and interactive programs about peak power, the history of the electric grid, and smart buildings, which utilizes a building model developed for us by Control Technologies. We are still working on programs focused on environmental impact & renewable energy, consumer impact, and power consumption. Beginning July 26^t^h, we will be running a daily smart grid program at 2:00 pm here at ECHO. Please stop by and discover more about the exciting world of Smart Grid Technology and ways you could put this information to good use for your own daily energy decisions.
- Brianna Baker, ECHO, Smart Grid Intern, Summer 2011

Brianna with the first prototype of the intern's Lego Loads encounter which aims to spread
awareness about peak power and electricity consumption of household appliances.

Photo by Kristofor Sellstrom, ECHO, Smart Grid Intern, Summer 2011

Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence

2011-07-15T12:21:00.007-04:00

On June 30, 2011, more than twenty-three organizations and individuals were recognized for their exceptional contributions to environmental causes at the Governor’s Environmental Awards. ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center’s 2009-2010 Environmental Teen Leadership Program, otherwise known as the E-Team, won the Governor’s award for Youth Environmental Citizenship.

As this year's E-Team Coordinator, I was thrilled to accompany several members of last year's E-Team, including Meiling Chau, Cesar Hammond, Thomas Elston, Sheperd Lantz, and Joyce Pan, and our Director of Education, Molly Loomis, to the ceremony. Taylor Sanders, Mohamed Mohamed, Em Geiselman, Thejas Wesley and 2010 E-Team Coordinator Amanda Gurgul, though not in attendance for the Governor’s Environmental Awards, were also honored by this recognition. Several hundred people were in attendance at the ceremony hosted by Vermont Secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources, Deb Markowitz and Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation, Justin Johnson.

We were so proud to be honored for the hard work that these 9th and 10th graders do during their year-long commitment to ECHO. The E-team is a competitive program with only a select few students chosen to participate each year. While working at ECHO 6 hours every week, they learn about the animals here, the Basin, the mission of the organization, and how to educate and delight ECHO visitors on the floor. Many of our E-team alums are inspired to pursue science and conservation as a career, but all of them will be the future stewards of the environment and our Basin. We couldn’t be more proud of their accomplishments!

ECHO will begin interviewing new applicants for the program in September. For more information on joining our E-team visit ECHO’s website. Check out more photos of E-Team members accepting their award on ECHO's Facebook page.

Pictured, L to R: Molly Loomis, Meiling Chau, Cesar Hammond, Thomas Elston, Secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources Deb Markowitz, Sheperd Lantz, Joyce Pan, Kirsten Brewer, and Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation Justin Johnson; ©2011, Gerianne Smart, ECHO’s Director of Marketing and Communications

Welcome Summer Interns!

2011-07-14T12:40:00.005-04:00

Each summer, ECHO welcomes a talented group of interns onto the Education team. This summer, we added eight students from the University of Vermont to train as public educators on ECHO's exhibit floor. They participated in a weeklong training session in June and are currently practicing content development, program delivery, and floor management. Sophie Case, Nancy Jones, Stephan Kostolitz, and Marta McBean are helping us deliver daily experiences to ECHO's guests. Brianna Baker and Kristofor Sellstrom are focusing on developing programs to build awareness about Smart Grid technology across Vermont. Erika Torrez and Emma Hamilton, teen interns from Champlain Valley Union High school and Burlington High School, also joined the team as assistant educators on the floor. Collectively, they bring new energy and expertise to ECHO's summer schedule. After a summer with ECHO, we know our summer interns will add powerful environmental communication skills to the future workforce! Learn more about our teen program here.

Pictured: First row: Nancy Jones, Sophie Case & Stephan Kostolitz, Education intern
Second row: Kristofor Sellstrom & Brianna Baker, Smart Grid Interns, Molly Loomis, Linda Bowden, Elizabeth Nuckols, Education Staff, Marta McBean, Education Intern
Third row: Silver Evans, Technology Intern
© 2011, Gerianne Smart, ECHO’s Director of Marketing and Communications

The Dance of the Pumpkinseed Sunfish

2011-07-05T12:30:00.002-04:00

Most, if not all, North American freshwater fish species reproduce only once a year. Some, such as lake trout and brook trout, spawn in the autumn. Most others spawn in spring and summer. But how do they know when conditions are right? How do they all coordinate to ensure spawning successfully produces baby fish each year?

Without a calendar to consult, fish have to rely on their senses to tell them when environmental conditions are right for spawning. For many temperate lake species, like sunfishes, the most reliable cue to predict when to spawn is water temperature. Water temperatures in lakes follow a predictable pattern each year: warming in late spring and summer as day lengths get longer and cooling by late summer and fall as day lengths shorten. Over millennia, the pumpkinseed sunfish have settled on about 65-70 degrees Fahrenheit as their trigger for the initiation of spawning.

But what if water temperatures are constant, say the 68 degrees that our pumpkinseed sunfish experience in our Upper River tank in the Land of Opportunity at ECHO? Do they spawn constantly, or not at all?

As it happens, pumpkinseed sunfish also are sensing the length of each day. Day lengths are even more predictable than water temperature and not dependent upon weather patterns which can change rapidly within the Basin. A pumpkinseed sunfish's hormone levels are primed by longer days so that it is ready to spawn when temperatures hit the mark. If water temperatures are always above the mark, like here at ECHO, then the length of the day tells our sunfish when the time is right. In the past month, the pumpkinseed sunfish in our Upper River tank have initiated their spawning behavior; the same behaviors will likely not be observed in Lake Champlain for several more week.

So what happens? The males in the population stake out territories in shallow water by creating saucer-shaped nests, fanning silt away from the bottom and not letting other fishes near their nesting site:

When a female arrives, the male engages her in a dance-like spawning ritual. They swim in circles together, and the female dips to the side as they spawn:

Bluegill sunfish also engage in very similar behavior:

Once the male has spawned, often with multiple females, he continues to guard his nest from intruders until the eggs hatch and his offspring swim away together in a cluster.

While the behavior observed here at ECHO is interesting, there are larger concerns when we create changes in water temperatures in the wild. Two areas of concern are industrial cooling water releases and water releases from dams. Water is often a cheap and available resource for industrial operations for cooling power plants and other applications. Heat is essentially released as a by-product and is often regulated as a pollutant because of its effects on aquatic ecosystems, including alteration of animal life-cycles. When water is released from large reservoirs for energy production or flood control, temperatures vary from warmer surface waters to cooler (and sometimes oxygen-deprived) deeper waters. Again, there are regulations that require dam operators consider the type of water that they release. As with any human activity, there is always more to understand about our effects on the ecosystems that support us, and more creative solutions to the problems we cause that are yet to be discovered.

Spiny Softshell Turtle Release Event

2011-05-31T14:33:00.009-04:00

This past October, Steve Parren, a biologist with the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife (VTFW), brought Spiny Softshell turtle hatchlings to ECHO that he had collected from nest sites which had been compromised or were vulnerable to predation. These hatchlings have since made their temporary home at ECHO under the care of ECHO’s Animal Care Department but it'll soon be time for these youngsters to head back out to the Lake (albeit a much larger Lake this year!).

On June 22, Lake level permitting, these youngsters will be released back into the wild in a cooperative effort between VTFW and ECHO to support this threatened species in Vermont. Members are invited to share in this incredibly rewarding and fun stewardship activity. The usual, optimal release site is currently inaccessible due to the continuing high Lake levels. As the release date approaches and (hopefully) the Lake level drops, we will determine the best possible site and/or an alternative date for releasing the turtles. There are a limited number of slots available for participation.

UPDATE JUNE 14, 2011 (via marketing department): The release date is confirmed as June 22. As in years past, ECHO members will be invited via an E-blast. This will go out any day now (week of June 12). Slots fill up quickly so check your email and respond by email. Each will be time stamped and we will call you to confirm the time and place. Thank you!

So long, fare well, and thank you.

2011-05-31T14:21:00.006-04:00

June is always bittersweet for us at ECHO. We are gearing up for a busy summer season, welcoming camps, out of town guests and generally enjoying the beautiful ECHO deck, but it is also the time we say goodbye to many interns and volunteers, including the E-team, our environmental ambassadors.

The E-team spent the last 8 months at ECHO learning everything about the Ecology Culture History and Opportunity of the Basin and learning how to share this information in a fun and educational way with visitors.

As the E-Team coordinator, I am especially proud of the accomplishments of the E-team this year because we are now officially a part of the ASTC (Association for Science and Technology Centers) Youth Inspired Challenge. This initiative is inspired by President Obama’s goal to increase STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) knowledge in our nation’s youth. At ECHO we have cultivated a small community of young learners that is curious about the natural world and science, looks forward to a future education and career in science, and values education and dialogue on the issues. Congratulations E-team, and thank you for being leaders. You are the future of the Lake Champlain Basin!

Written by Kirsten Brewer, ECHO's Open Door Coordinator, Americorps State
(posted by Gerianne Smart, Director of Marketing and Communications)

Pictured: 2011 ECHO E-Team! © ECHO

Turtle Travel Time

2011-05-30T12:15:00.006-04:00

Monday morning, on the commute in, I rescued my first turtle of the season: a painted turtle on Dorset Street near Pond Road. It was facing west, so I took it west into the brush along the road. It was easy enough to do since I was commuting on a motorcycle. Stop, bend down to pick it up, put it on the seat between my legs and drive off onto the shoulder. Probably the first motorcycle ride for the turtle. He pulled his head in when I picked him up and kept it in during the ride; I guess he had a helmet.

Whether or not we broke the helmet law, the annual rise in turtle travels is upon us. Tis the season when turtles start moving out of the water in search of the perfect substrate to lay their eggs. If you find a turtle wandering around and it’s in a bad location, like the middle of Dorset Street, take a moment, do a turtle a favor, and practice a little environmental stewardship: move the turtle to where it seems to be going, to a safer place. Always take it in the direction its going: if you take it back from where it came, it's very likely to turn around and try again.

Why did the Wood turtle Cross the Road?**

Why bother? Turtles are semi-aquatic omnivores. Young turtles consume aquatic invertebrates; things that can grow up to become the insects that buzz and bother us throughout the summer. I think we have enough of those; I'm fine with helping species that consume insects. On the flip side, though one should never flip a turtle, turtles are food for many of the more charismatic species we're more apt to get excited about: the warm, fuzzy or feathered species. Turtles are food for otters, raccoons, fox, coyotes and other mammals. Herons, egrets, birds of prey and other bird species also consume turtles. If you don't get green and environmental for sake of the turtles themselves, do it for the birds and the mammals. If that doesn't cut it, just do it to see how good you feel about it after you do it.

**Why did the wood turtle cross the road? You tell me!

Slow, Quick, Quick: The Flood Foxtrot

2011-05-27T10:50:00.013-04:00

Mother Nature has clearly been dancing to her own rhythm this year. December's early and constant snow falls began our record breaking winter which didn't end until we had beaten almost every precipitation record on the books. January 2-3, 2010 ranks number one with 33.1" snowfall and the third highest occurred with the March "monster" on 6-7, 2011 with 25.8" of snow.

The gradual snow melt in March caused only minor flooding episodes, nothing unusual for a spring in the region --accept for the potholes and ruts that rerouted school buses and swallowed up grown adults. As a skier I was out enjoying some the best snow in my lifetime, putting in amazing spring skiing turns until the end of April. But while the skiers watched the snow melt run down the mountain streams and creeks we could see the rivers slowly expand over farm fields and dirt roads.

Mother Nature danced up one storm after another in April. According to the Vermont State Climate Office Climate Impact Summary Report for April there were frequent periods of rain on April, 4-5, 10-11, 16-17, 20, 23, and 25-28. With record and near record rainfall and flooding across portions of northern Vermont during the afternoon of April 26th into the early morning hours of April 27th. ECHO "temporarily" installed a flood cam on April 27th to keep track of waterfront flooding that we thought would only last a week or maybe two. Let's just say we have had to reinforce the duct tape and we certainly would have gigged up a better system had we known what we know now.

Now after over a month of flooded yards, rotting buildings, fish spawning in parking lots and battle weary communities, she picks up her pace. In just one night, May 26, 2011, Mother Nature hit this region with a massive rain dump to rival the 1927 flood. Rivers like the Winooski River in Montpelier jumped their banks at lighting speed. According to the National Weather Service table the Winooski River in Montpelier climbed from 5 feet at 7:15 pm on May 26, 2011 to 17.59 feet at 6:15am on May 27, 2011. That's 12.59 feet in less than 12 hours! Now that's a flash flood.

Amazingly, almost as fast as the river has risen, it is leveling off and receding. We know this is due to the high volume of raging water from all the rivers and streams heading down stream to Lake Champlain, already swollen over her banks at 102'+ for more than a month now. We'd hate to classify this as a "routine", but certainly we are all learning how to live with this high water by working together to make the best out of a tough situation. Meanwhile, we're hoping that Mother Nature hangs up her dancing shoes real soon and settles down for a nice, normal spring and summer.

Photo: May 26, 2011, Burlington's New North End flash floods when the storm drains can't keep up with the rain, (C) Julie Silverman/ECHO

ECHO's Impact on Pre-Service Teachers

2011-05-20T09:00:00.006-04:00

Below is an excerpt from Jackie Stacey, a Junior and pre-service teacher from the Department of Education at St. Michael's College who took part in the Spring, 2011 semester of ECHO's Inquiry Science in the Schools project. Her commitment of 80 hours of practicum experience working directly with Burlington School District 3rd graders has had significant impact on her career trajectory. ECHO was lucky to have such a dedicated, emerging educator in our midst. We have grown from our association with Jackie and all the support staff and faculty at St. Michael's College.

Tracy Truzansky,
ECHO Assistant Director of Education

"If I could use one word to describe my experience at ECHO Inquiry Science in the Schools (ISS) project> I would, but there is no way I can simply choose a single phrase. This practicum has pushed me in ways I didn't think were possible, I was challenged on a daily basis to understand new material, utilize inquiry science, and provide a vital learning experience to six different classes of third grade students. I was forced to analyze my own disappointing experience with elementary science and harness that energy to create a positive and successful learning environment for the students placed under my care. Looking back on my semester and the time I spent with this program I can confidently say that if given the opportunity I would gladly repeat it; not to say that this was an easy course by any means, but because of the hard work and dedication I have come out on the other end feeling that much more prepared to become a professional teacher.

One of the biggest reasons I decided to become a teacher was the fact that I knew I could make a difference. In high school I spent two weeks in the Amazon Jungle in Peru working at a school. If I could make changes happen for these kids in just two weeks, the possibilities would be endless of what I could do with a class in a year. I have gained so much from this program; confidence, teaching strategies, content, and most importantly a new found love for science. I have never been more excited to take what I have learned and use it. I have the opportunity to be a great teacher, and ECHO has played a significant role in this endeavor. Students will continue to graduate from Saint Michael's College and become very talented teachers, but not many will be able to understand the experience I have had with ECHO and how it has completely prepared me for the professional world of teaching."

- Jackie Stacey,
St. Michael's College Pre-Service Teacher

We're all connected...or are we?

2011-05-11T16:13:00.001-04:00

For thousands of years, Lake Champlain Basin's vast natural network of rivers, streams, ponds and lakes connected every inch of the watershed's 8,234 square miles (21,326 sq. km) of forests, fields, marshes, swamps and shores. The original inhabitants of the region used these blue highways as trade routes and many created seasonal settlements along river and lake shores.

Jump to the 18th and 19th centuries, the European settlers--that learned about these trade routes and natural resources--wanted to expand their ability to service growing communities like Burlington, and move lumber and other wood products, marble, granite, and farm products to market. To do this they opened the Champlain Canal in 1823, thus offering a major new trade route connecting Lake Champlain to New York City and beyond. To connect west to Buffalo, the Erie Canal was completed in 1825. To complete the northern route to Montreal, the Chamby Canal opened for business in 1843. In its heyday, this "commerce triangle" slashed the cost of shipping goods and created a busy and lucrative regional economy.

Today in the Champlain Valley, we rely on the canal system mostly for recreational use. Motor boats, sail boats and the occasional small excursion cruise boat rejoice in the seasonal ritual of the opening of the Champlain Canal in May. This year due to the extreme flooding and slowly receding high water throughout Vermont, New York and Quebec, the canal system is closed until May 23rd--delaying the return of many boaters to Lake Champlain. In fact, the raging water and delayed opening of the Champlain Canal is affecting the PCB dredging operation on the Hudson River.

So, we're feeling a little more isolated from the rest of the northeast these days. We know the waters will recede, the docks will go in and the boaters will return to the Burlington Waterfront in due course. In the meantime, we continue to be amazed at the Flood of 2011 and the far-reaching impacts it has had on our lives within the Lake Champlain Basin.

Photos: Historic Champlain Canal, (C) ECHO Collections; Hoehl Park and Navy Memorial at ECHO, (C) Julie Silverman

Waders, Raincoats & Work Gloves

2011-05-05T17:31:00.015-04:00

Today, like many other folks living and working around the waterfront, I donned my big brown waders, bright red raincoat and I began moving equipment around ECHO to higher ground. Our parking booth on the south side of the building flooded this morning and we had to put it up on stilts like a tiny seaside home. We are now measuring the water level based on how close it is to flooding the foundation--we have about 21" to go--and by the steps that are flooded--one at posting. As we get ready for our Cafe Scientifique tonight, 6:30-8:30--aptly named Emerging Contaminants~Sex, Drugs & Vices that Affect our Water --staff have been moving all of the debris away form ECHO's west side for the building for the media and caterers to get in. But ECHO is one of the lucky businesses on the Burlington Waterfront. Our doors are still open to the public and we are here for you to talk and learn about the Lake, whether you love it or hate it right now. We want to hear from you.

ECHO's Voices for the Lake website is a perfect place for folks to share their experiences, thoughts, passions, concerns, stories and issues related to the Lake. Anyone can write a story, contribute a photo, post a video, record a story or share a link. There are so many people across the Champlain Valley affected by the flooding, Voices for the Lake is a place to share your stories with others.

Here's my story-
I love skiing, sailing, gardening, ducks, frogs and even muskrats...but enough with the water already! I'm starting to feel like the worms that are crawling into my garage to keep from drowning--I've rescued as many as I can and I've relocated them to my raised strawberry beds. But, with my rain barrel over flowing for days now and my basement feeling cave-like, I'm not sure there is much drier or higher ground left in Burlington anymore. With tonight's forecast of snow at higher elevations and more rain on the way, I think we are all feeling a little soggy and worm-like.

Photos: Julie Silverman/ECHO (C)

Lake Flooding Impacts Us in Many Ways

2011-05-03T17:51:00.007-04:00

We have all been watching the steady rise in Lake Champlain very closely. Here at ECHO, with our first floor at 104 ft, we are still over a foot above the current lake level. The aerial photo is of ECHO. To see more go to the Lake Champlain Basin Program album. This floor level, along with our sea walls and paving, has managed to keep the encroaching lake at bay. But this has not been the reality for many folks living along the lake or near the swollen rivers. ECHO Board member Buzz Hoerr has a place in Colchester. I will let him tell his story….

Phelan Fretz
Executive Director

Here are some observations from dealing with lakeshore flooding for the past couple of weeks at our home, surrounded by water.

For our kids, it's very important to keep it light, they feed on the emotional reactions we have. So when it's sunny and calm, we have canoe races up and down the road, and they go exploring on sailboards through the woods. It can be overwhelming if you don't take the wins when they happen. There are plenty of tough days, like yesterday's wind/waves and then last night seeing this next front re-forecasted to be much more of a rain event than originally believed. When you take a few trips a day to the "outside", literally a few hundred feet up the road, people are gardening, fixing ruts beside their driveways, mulching around trees, while you will be returning to your own little disaster zone, rowing into your house with groceries, laundry, kids from school, medical needs, it seems very surreal.

When I saw the reactions of those in Japan and in the SE US to what they've been through, it kind of hits you from a distance. But when you live something like this, and feel how disorienting it is (and this isn't anywhere near as bad as what they've been through), the loss of order we all depend on in our daily lives so we can deal with the social ups and downs of money, work, kids, etc. all changes completely, and it really throws you off. I think that is what has struck me the most. People say and do things, both good and not good, that they would never "normally" do. People will do things that take care of their own lives but intrude on others, like charging up and down a flooded road not thinking at all what those waves are doing to the insides of garages, crawlspaces, etc. And others offer to help and will do extraordinary things they might not normally do, like let you sleep in their less damaged house, or use their shower or bathrooms because they have septic and you don't. Besides what each of us is dealing with ourselves, that can really help or hurt a lot. Constantly telling yourself there is nothing you can do to change the weather, only little things to keep the damage to a minimum and your living situation tolerable, can never stop, or you can become terrified when waves or logs are pounding your house all night and you blame yourself. Helplessness is not a fun state to be in when it's not just your house, but your home, in so many ways you never really thought about before. We miss our dog, there's nowhere for him to go to do his business, so we put him in the kennel. No matter how low I get, he always thinks I'm the greatest person in the world. I could use that certainty, that unquestioning faith and devotion now!

We realize it will go down a lot slower than it came up, and there will be times when big rain and winds will disrupt the movement back to what is "normal". Clearly, with the lake about a foot above average for several years now, we are in a "new normal", and actually have been for a while. Evidence of increased precipitation is there, but also we have paved, roofed, drained and tiled so much of our developed acreage and farmland that the water gets down here much more quickly than it used to, thus the critical mass that led to this. People have diked the one outlet for the lake, the Richelieu River in Quebec, with seawalls to protect all the homes along it all the way to the St. Lawrence. So the ability to spread out over its banks to the normal floodplains that are now farm fields has been pretty much eliminated, holding up the draining process of the many more rivers that empty into Lake Champlain. And think of the literally years of excess nutrients and toxic pollutants from silted river channels, farm fields, yards, parking lots, etc, that will have an effect we can't possibly measure yet if ever, all coming down in the space of the last few weeks.

My first neighbor had lived in this spot for many years, and was a man of few words who I really respected and looked to for experience from his time here. He told me one thing that rings in my ears now, "the lake always wins".....

Buzz Hoerr

Wind and Water

2011-05-02T17:19:00.015-04:00

Today the winds have been blowing steadily around 15 mph from the south creating whitecaps and moving more debris and water up onto southern shores. The Navy Memorial--home of the Lone Sailor--in ECHO's Hoehl Park are partially underwater. Someone braved the waves and flooded parking lot to give the Lone Sailor a 'staff' to steady himself against the waves.

Other brave adventurers took advantage of the wind to kiteboard on the waterfront while lunch-time spectators watched in amazement. It is rare to see kiteboarders launch airborne in Burlington Bay, a port usually busy with boat traffic but with the breakwater under feet of water and no boats to speak of--not even the die-hard UVM sailing team--a few hearty souls have the ocean-like harbor to themselves.

Stay up to date on waterfront weather, visit ECHO Lake Weather and the National Weather Service Burlington Lake Champlain Forecast.
Photos: Julie Silverman/ECHO (C)

Flooding Redefines VT's Green Up Day

2011-04-29T17:37:00.020-04:00

I have been taking photos everyday--sometimes twice a day--of the mind-boggling flooding, along with what seems like half of Chittenden County that has been pouring the down hill to take photos of the waterfront--even ECHO's parking lot. I've been watching people snap the classic landscape flood shot, the artsy drift wood close-up, and the "I was there when it happened" photo but no one seems to be looking at all of the the garbage that has also colored our waterfront. The mix of natural materials with manufactured garbage will make cleaning up after the flooding expansive, very expensive, complex and I fear smelly as the days warm.

There is garbage mixed in with all of the driftwood. I did a quick inventory while policing ECHO and aside from the random broken flip-flop and old leather shoe, most of the trash was plastic. This is no surprise since plastic floats, it is made into nearly everything and takes forever to break down--almost literally. But where is all of this garbage coming from? Neighborhood streets, yards, parking lots, river banks...you name it. Wherever trash is not thrown in a garbage can or recycled, it gets carried by the rain and snow melt into rivers, streams, creeks and makes it's way into Lake Champlain. Now with the record shattering flooding, it is coming back to haunt us like ghosts from an earlier time. Unlike watching a scary movie, we can change the ending of this ghost story.

Daily we all can make purchasing decisions to buy products with less packaging or with biodegradable packaging, and simply buy less stuff. We can make sure we recycle all that we can and make sure our garbage and recycling is secured so that it does not blow away and add to the problem. And we can also participate in Green Up Vermont Day on May 7, 2011, visit www.greenupvermont.org for more information. I've been cleaning up garbage with family and friends along road sides, in parks and on the Burlington waterfront for almost as long as Green Up Day has been around, but this year the flooding throughout Vermont will really change this years events. But will it change people's behaviors?
Photos by: Julie Silverman/ECHO (C)

ECHO is getting closer to the Lake

2011-04-28T15:59:00.015-04:00

If you work or live on the shores of Lake Champlain you are getting closer to the lake -- uncomfortably close for many. Today Lake Champlain surpassed all records official--April 27, 1993 of 101.86 feet above sea level in Burlington and unofficial, 102.1 feet set back in May 4, 1869 recorded at Rouses Point, N.Y. At 2:45p.m. today the USGS Lake Champlain gauge at ECHO recorded 102.18 feet.

ECHO sits on the shore of the largest bathtub or basin in the region—with a total area of 8,234 square miles—from the tops of the Green Mountains to the east, to the western reaches of the Adirondack Mountains. When rain, snow, sleets or hail falls in the basin, much of the water travels down to Lake Champlain—this year causing record breaking flooding.

I’ve worked on the waterfront since 1995 and I’ve experienced my share of floods—I’ve even filled a sand bag or two— but nothing like this. The Lake is claiming waterfront parking lots, cars, homes, businesses, playgrounds, bike paths, and anything that was built below record high water. If it isn’t the heavy rain, record breaking snow melt, or ground saturation, it’s the driving wind that adds to the damaging affects of the rising water.

ECHO is surrounded by a steel retaining wall that usually holds back most of the water, but today the wind is driving the waves up and over this first line of defense. ECHO has a backup plan to defend against the rising water, elevation. Thanks to the great foresight of a team of architects, engineers and community members, ECHO was designed with this type of flooding in mind. ECHO’s foundation was built in 2003 at 105 feet above sea level. Let’s hope that this will be high enough to weather the next couple of days or…

Photos: (right) ECHO roof top Lake view, Julie Silverman/ECHO (c); (left) Lake Champlain Transportation and Champ, Julie Silverman/ECHO(c)

Champlain on the Rise: Flooding Cam Added @ ECHO

2011-04-27T19:33:00.007-04:00

We've added a new, temporary second webcam at ECHO today, pointing south over our parking lot. While that wouldn't be the most exciting vantage point on the average day, recent weather conditions have had us all looking out the windows a bit more than usual the past week, and we wanted to share the view.

Visit the Lake Weather section of our website to check out both our standard ECHO Cam, which runs year-round and looks out over the lake, plus our new Waterfront Flooding Cam, which we'll keep in place until the water recedes. Click on the thumbnail of the camera to open it up full-screen and get a detailed view. The new camera looks south from ECHO, over our parking lot, and toward the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum shipyard, Burlington Ferry dock, and Perkin's Pier, all of which are currently experiencing flooding. As of this writing, the water has filled the back-most section of ECHO's lot, and is rising in the low area of the lot in the bottom left corner of the webcam, where a storm drain is located. (But don't worry, there's still plenty of dry waterfront parking available, if you want to come down to ECHO and see things for yourself!) Check out the below photo to see the initial shot when the webcam first came online this afternoon, and then compare it to the current live image on the webcam.

On the Lake Weather page, you'll also find links to the USGS Lake Gauge at ECHO. This gauge is located on the seawall, about 100 feet west of the camera position, and offers data like current Lake temperature and level. As of 7PM EDT on 4/27/11, the level is being reported as 101.61 feet. The National Weather Service Flood Stage for the lake is at 100 feet, so we're already a foot and a half above that. According to the National Weather Service, Lake Champlain is forecast to continue rising to near 102 feet by early Friday afternoon, and additional rises may be possible thereafter.

If the lake does actually reach 102 feet, it will have set a new historical lake level. As you can see in the graph on the right, showing the historical Lake level in Burlington from 1907 to 2005, the current record high was set at 101.86 feet, 18 years ago today, on April 27, 1993.

With thunderstorms forecast for tonight, tomorrow, and more rain on Friday, plus additional rain forecast all of next week, additional rises are likely. Keep an eye on the cam and the Lake Gauge, and you might just see history in the making.

Pictured: Champ goes for a swim as the Lake rises by the Burlington Ferry Dock, (C) Julie Silverman/ECHO; Waterfront Flooding Cam at ECHO on April 27th; Lake Levels at Burlington, Courtesy of USGS.

Frogs in Spring: A Water-driven Symphony

2011-04-18T17:00:00.003-04:00

In the Basin, we call it Mud Season. Winter's freeze loosens its grip on the water on the waters around us. The dirt road that I live on becomes gooey, ice fishing is done for the year, roadside snow banks slowly disappear, and water flows into the low spots all over the landscape. If you are like me, you wait for even warmer weather before really being active in the outdoors. But for our local amphibians, there's no time like the present to getting moving & shaking; and for male frogs and toads, calling for a mate!

So why the hurry? Why not wait until warmer weather, when cold-blooded animals like frogs should be more active? For some frogs, it's all about the water. Specifically, how long will water be there to support their tadpoles? For wood frogs, as soon as their vernal pool breeding habitats (like in the photo to the left) start holding water, the clock starts ticking for eggs (see photo below) to hatch & tadpoles to grow up to adulthood.

If the males aren't out making their distinctive "quack" that signals the start of breeding, there is a good chance that no wood frog tadpoles will emerge from their ephemeral woodland pools before they dry up for the season.

For other frogs like Spring Peepers (pictured below), whose cricket-like call surrounds us in Springtime sound, there is a longer time window to get out and make some noise. They are less picky about their breeding habitats and will use shallow wetlands and pond edges that may never dry out, or at least be around for many weeks. And because they are in less of a rush, you might hear their calls throughout spring.
But don't expect to hear each frog species singing alone; often they will be heard along with other early-breeding species like American toads and Gray Treefrogs. Who you might hear depends both on the time of year as well as the habitats for both the tadpoles and the adults that are available in the immediate area.

So why should we care? Well, besides helping us out by consuming a large number of insects, amphibians are thought of as proverbial "canaries in the coal mine"- indicating when environmental conditions are changing... and sometimes for the worse. Their skin is thin and permeable so chemicals move easily into their bodies, they are directly tied to ecologically important wetland habitats that are disappearing world-wide, and their life-cycles are relatively short (3-7 years) so large negative changes will affect their populations relatively quickly. Finally, it is the noise that they make that makes it relatively easy and cheap to monitor their populations over time- even if you just do it for fun in your own backyard.

For more information about monitoring amphibian populations, see the Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas.

Big Night Hanging With the Herps

2011-04-11T16:24:00.031-04:00

Sunday night, April 10th, was a great night for hanging out with herps in Chittenden County. The weather was perfect: plenty of rain and temperatures in the 50's.

At the west end of Sherman Hollow there were Spring Peepers and Wood Frogs crossing.

West of Sleepy Hollow on Sherman Hollow Road there were more Spotted Salamanders crossing than I'd ever seen before. A local resident came over to share her enthusiasm about the crossings and her fondness for the herps. She also thoroughly enjoyed the increased visitation by Barred Owls coming around to partake of the amphibious buffet.

It was pouring, it was foggy and there were spotted salamanders crossing the road from the Sleepy Hollow area almost all the way to the west end of Sherman Hollow. I very slowly and carefully drove out of there then headed over to Pond Road south of Shelburne Pond.

On Pond Road, there were far more Spring Peepers than on Sherman Hollow, but the best sighting for me on the road were these two:A Northern water snake and a Toe Biter.

Back home at midnight, walking the dog on Taft Road, came upon this Pickerel frog; a nice way to end a great night out with the herps.

Tonight (April 10th): Forecast good for Big Herp Move

2011-04-10T10:39:00.008-04:00

Tonight's forecast (April 10th) calls for rain until around 9PM with temps in the 50's. If the rains come, I'll be checking out Sherman Hollow and Shelburne Pond Roads looking for the emerging amphibians on the move. I'll be out at dusk until the rain stops, the amphibians stop or my camera battery and I run out of juice. Grab your rain gear, a good flashlight, some coffee and come on out!

Spring Peeper attempting to 'not be seen' ("If I don't move, they won't see me"): often look like pebbles on the road (small enough to set on a nickle).

Spotted Salamander making a road crossing.

Male Wood Frog: males have huge thumbs for grasping females during 'significant' rites of spring. (Note: hands were dipped in pond before picking up frog to avoid harming him with any chemicals on hands.)

NanoDays at ECHO!

2011-04-06T10:04:00.006-04:00

On Saturday April 2^nd, staff and students from the UVM Physics Department partnered with ECHO for Nanodays! Dave Hammond, Scientific Electronics Technician, Professor Dennis Clougherty, and eleven undergraduate physics students spent the morning entertaining and explaining, with hands-on activities, to our 400 or more guests some of the wonders of the science of the very little: nanoscience. One cool experiment the students demonstrated was Exploring Size - Scented Balloons; letting visitors use their sense of smell to explore the world on the nanoscale. Guests learned that we can smell some things that are too small to see, and that a nanometer is a billionth of a meter. There was a hands-on activity called Sand, Plants and Pants where guests explored how the application of nano-sized particles or substances can change a bigger material’s properties. Visitors investigated the hydrophobic properties of nano-fabric pants thatcouldn’t get wet and magic sand and plants that repelled water. Another activity encouraged you to measure your hand in nanometers (your hair strand is ~80,000 nanometers) or watch with fascination how the ferrofluid appeared to dance on the pulsed electromagnet. The Van de Graaff generator was supplemented with “dancing” foil which demonstrated static electricity. It was an exciting day of events that kept the young and the young at heart learning in a hands-on way. A couple of highlights during the day were some science “tricks” demonstrated by Dave. He demonstrated, with help from liquid nitrogen, how to float a paper cup above magnets and shoot a metal disk into the air. Educating us through several small experiments, Dave shared interesting facts about how conductivity works; like the way cold objects conduct currents better and how conductive metals generate more powerful fields when a strong magnet is nearby. His finale can be seen on the side photo where a super-cooled metal disk, when repelled by the strong magnet, went flying from the main floor of ECHO to the third floor by the geese! At the end of the day, we were sad to see them go but the UVM Physics Department will be back with us another day with more fun and knowledge to share.

Co-authored by: Patrick Brien, ECHO Intern, Champlain College and Linda Bowden, ECHO’s Lifelong Learning Coordinator

Photos by Patrick Brien, ECHO intern. Top right: Viviana Marie Kennedy with UVM student Isabel Kloumann. Bottom left: David Hammond, UVM.

Hitting the Road with Amphibians

2011-03-29T16:29:00.008-04:00

Spring can't be too far off. Open fields and woodlands, once covered with snow, now reveal rock, soil and dormant vegetation. Some of these lands, though seemingly devoid of life, harbor hibernating amphibians and are perhaps pathways to adjacent bodies of water, some permanent, some ephemeral. Soon these bodies of water will be exploding with the sound of frogs. Upon the arrival of the first rainy night of spring, Spring peepers and Wood frogs will awaken from their once frosty hibernation sites in upland areas, and make their way to water to stake a claim and call throughout the night to fulfill the instinctual urge to go forth and multiply. Salamander species, including the somewhat common Spotted salamander, as well as the less often seen Jefferson’s and Blue-spotted salamanders, will also emerge from winter’s waning icy grip and hit the road in pursuit of courtship and copulation.

Spring Peeper and typical egg mass

However, when an amphibian hits the road, sometimes the road hits back. When roads lie between upland areas and bodies of water, amphibians, driven by instinct, will cross even the most perilous ones often with tragic consequences. Route 17 just north of Jerusalem is often thick with frogs and salamanders heading east to the ponds below. The amphibian crossing on Shelburne Pond Road would make even Vincent Price cringe (for the younger crowd; Freddie Krueger? Hannibal Lecter?). At some crossings, up to 90% of amphibian populations are eliminated.

Does it matter if amphibian populations disappear? Amphibians consume insects. What might happen to our insect populations if we lost our amphibians? What might happen to the dispersal rates of diseases carried by insects, diseases such as equine encephalitis or west Nile virus if we didn’t have amphibians? Looking at it from a slightly different point of view, amphibians are not only consumers; they are consumed! If 90% of our amphibians disappeared, how might that impact the food chain: how might consumer populations like bears, fox, raccoons, otters, muskie, or various bird species change? If you eliminate one color in a Rembrandt, you no longer have a Rembrandt. If you let one element of an ecosystem disappear, your ecosystem changes; you no longer have a Rembrandt.

Spotted Salamander and typical egg mass

You can help Vermont’s amphibians by monitoring road crossings and reporting amphibian sightings. There are various amphibian monitor training programs throughout Vermont.

See:
Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center, Brattleboro
North Branch Nature Center, Montpelier & Central Vermont

For more information about monitoring road crossings read:
Crossing Guard Handbook

You can also report amphibian (and reptile) sightings to Vermont-based biologists who maintain a state “Herp Atlas” by visiting their website here.

If you’re not into monitoring or reporting, but you are interested in witnessing amphibian migrations, go to echovermont.org, under the Quick Links, click on Contact Us and email us to let us know. I’ll let you know when and where I’m going out to check out this incredible activity; bring a good flashlight, warm clothes, rain gear and get ready to have a nocturnal, amphibious, good time.

Dialogues and Solutions a Big Hit!

2011-03-28T14:52:00.005-04:00

Many thanks to all the folks who drove great distances to join us Monday night, March 21st, for a solutions-based conversation following the showing of the movie BLOOM: The Plight of Lake Champlain. We had about 100 people who enjoyed local beers, hors d’oeuvres from Sugar Snap and, most importantly, fabulous dialogue! Our BLOOM, Dialogue and Solutions evening achieved everything we hoped it would which was to bring together citizens, watershed experts and organizations so that folks would leave at the end with a laundry list of immediate and very doable actions. After our facilitated groups came back together, they shared their top two picks which I’ll share with you now.

Agriculture: Farmers have made incredible strides in water quality improvements with their farming techniques in recent years.

1. The farming group felt there was a need for better communication between stake-holders. We’re all in this together. There needs to better communication between farmers and neighbors, between farmers and farmers, farmers and the community resulting in better understanding of what’s happening on the fields and what’s needed by the community.

2. The farmers would like data to show that their practices are making a difference. They would love it if someone wanted to do a study to approach them and inform them of how they could help this way.

Urban: Storm water carries many unwanted pollutants from our rooftops, paved driveways, parking lots, and roads. These pollutants eventually make it to our rivers, streams and finally to our Lake. Here we will share some solutions that reduce these types of pollutants from the materials we use to the habits we have.

1. Replace asphalt with porous driveway materials. There is citizen power within our own spaces for improvement.

2. What about the Lake? Watch the rain in rainstorms and see where the water is going. Perhaps make a water map around your community that can lead to specific neighborhood actions.

Home Owners: There are things we can do in our everyday lives that can make an immediate difference in our water quality. This group will focus on those actions as diverse as what we do with our kitty litter to the kinds of chemicals we put on our lawn and gardens.

1. Reach as many people as possible creatively emphasizing simple messages.

2. Make a better connection with community through neighborhood-specific educational programs, share via block parties, Front Porch Forum.

We also had fliers and other information supplied by the Lake Champlain Committee, Lake Champlain Basin Program, CSWD, and the Intervale Nursery Center. I encourage you to go to their websites to find electronic versions of materials which have pages of tips you can follow in your everyday lives, lists of stewardship organizations, planting recommendations for rain gardens and more.

We’re hoping to post many of the solutions on our blog and encourage all of you to make a contribution to our facebook page, twitter or our Voicesforthelake.org website. Plus, we’re mapping out our adult evening schedule so that we will have many more opportunities to incorporate dialogue, stewardship, and fun into evenings like this. So here is my challenge to you. Can you help us with this project? Please join me by sharing your stories of good practices in your neighborhood, farm or home!

A volunteer gets closer to the lake

2011-03-14T17:41:00.011-04:00

ECHO launched an exciting new expansion campaign at our Raise the Roof opening on January 14, 2011. The "Get Closer to the Lake" campaign is the result of an extensive strategic planning process started in 2008 to address the needs for additional program enhancements and capital investments. If you missed the event (like me), and want to learn more, ECHO has been holding a series of information breakfasts this spring to introduce the community to our plans for expansion and improvement.

Last week I participated in an information breakfast to get closer to the lake with Executive Director Phelan Fretz and Director of Development Kate Villa. As a newer volunteer, it was an eye-opener to important aspects of the history and vision of ECHO, as well as the plan for the future. We toured the facility, stopping at key locations in the building to understand the changes that will be made to the spaces, and how those changes will benefit ECHO visitors.

Three key areas that will be developed are:
The Lakeside Pavilion:
Extending the west side of the building and reaching towards the water, this development will utilize an additional 5,900 square feet of space, and provide a flexible venue for events and programming. Are you as excited as I am about an expanded space for Café Scientifique? For visiting exhibits, conferences, and presentations? Yes!
New Discovery Place:
The discovery place will move and double in size, incorporating the water play area and expanding the theme of Native American connections to Lake Champlain. ECHO knows that pre-school aged children and their caregivers are some of our most important and frequent visitors, and we want to highlight our commitment to them. As an education volunteer, it will be a pleasure to bring the activities and storytime programs for our youngest learners to a wonderful new space.
The Lake Science Lab:
The Discovery Place move will open up the southwest corner of the top floor of ECHO, providing a lab and presentation space for science researchers. Who are the researchers? The visitors! ECHO is always looking for ways to expand programming for adults and teens, and the lab will be outfitted for hands on science involving laboratory equipment to help you get even more involved in the issues affecting Lake Champlain.

Pick up a "Get Closer to the Lake packet" and learn more.
ECHO will continue to hold breakfasts in April, so look forward to the posting of those dates!
If you would like to join in on one of these events and learn more about ECHO’s plans, please contact Kate Villa, Director of Development, at kvilla@echovermont.org.

Syverine Abrahamson
Education Volunteer

WATCH THE EXPANSION VIDEO ON YOUTUBE

Winooski JFK Joins ECHO for Inquiry Science

2011-03-10T16:03:00.004-05:00

Animal classification, body characteristics, vertebrates vs. invertebrates - topics not often on the tip of the tongue for an 8 year old, but at JFK elementary in Winooski today, the students were on topic! The sixty 3rd graders at JFK have just completed 6 hours of science inquiry with ECHO learning about animals with a backbone that live in the Lake Champlain Basin. Their attention to detail - such as the stages of a frog's life cycle - provided animated discussions around scientific evidence in species identification using teeth, skulls, movement, temperature regulation and body coverings. What was really engaging were the number of personal stories students told about observations of life in their own back yards. As one little girl said, "I once saw a hummingbird in my yard. It was sucking the juice from a flower thingy. It was fascinating. I think I will start my own nature photo album. This ECHO stuff is pretty neat." High praise from an 8 year old who could be a future environmental scientist tackling our local lake issues... Onward!

Snow Structures

2011-02-27T17:03:00.007-05:00

With winter on it's last leg, the E-Team took advantage of the waterfront's still abundant snow by participating in a friendly snow structure build-off. The challenge was to build a snow bridge a foot high and three “normal steps” long within a half hour. The only tools provided were two recycling bins that could be used to make snow bricks. And with only an hour of daylight remaining, the teams we’re off!

Team 1: Elizabeth, Maja, Faisal, Henry and Erika

It may look like playing, but building snow structures is an art of survival. If you’ve been to ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center lately you might have noticed the milk jug igloo that is underway! The milk jug igloo is built to replicate the homes built by the indigenous people of the Arctic. To better understand igloos, we let the E-Team have a shot at building their own snow structures. By using snow bricks, the teams began to know the strength of different shapes. Like at the “Raise the Roof” exhibit, the kids used their understanding of structures to try and build the strongest foot bridge they could out of snow.

When the time was up, both teams had finished their bridges and anxiously awaited judgment. Judgment was based on if a) three steps could be taken on it, and, b) if the bridge had at least clearance of 1 foot. Both teams’ bridges passed the test, however now the teams were in a stalemate. The deciding factor in the competition was now all down to the “jump test”! To see which the better snow structure was, both bridges were to be jumped on, and whichever bridge still remained would be the winner. The teams silently awaited the jump, each hoping theirs would hold. Kirsten lined up, despite her fear of heights atop of the first bridge, and took a jump…

Neither of the bridges could stand up to the rigorous jump test, but nonetheless the E-Team members were all winners in this competition, and now are fully aware of the skills and expertise necessary to build a traditional igloo. If you’re ready to build your own structure, E-Team recommends that you brush up on your skills at ECHO by visiting the Raise the Roof exhibit!

By Pat Alcott UVM ‘14

Great Conversations about Creative Construction

2011-02-25T16:16:00.013-05:00

In the world of learning research, there is much talk about the power of conversation. Rather than just learning from books and lessons, people learn about the world when they engage in casual conversations together by sharing observations, expressing ideas, and making personal connections to content. Here at ECHO, we’re always looking for opportunities for engage visitors in conversations about science and the world around us.

This week, families have been talking up a storm during our Daily Design Challenges. Each day at noon we’ve hosted an open-ended construction activity, which challenges groups to think together and build a sturdy structure using a limited set of materials. Activities draw on ideas from our Raise the Roof exhibit, which is all about buildings—what holds them up, what keeps them standing and what knocks them down. Design Challenges have invited groups to build a tower out of straws and tape that can hold a raw egg for 20 seconds; to construct a chair using just newspaper and duct tape that can hold a person; to create a tower out of 2 sheets of newspaper that can withstand a “book-quake;” and to build a bridge out of dry noodles and glue that can support the weight of a mini “car.”

The results have been amazing! The room has been abuzz with conversation about how to work together, what makes a sturdy structure, and how to use simple materials creatively. Teams of Girl Scouts, grandparents & grandchildren, and families of just about every combination, have plotted, debated and laughed together while constructing and testing their designs. They’ve concocted bridges, towers, and chairs of just about every sort imaginable in under an hour. And, most importantly, we at ECHO have learned a thing or two about how much learning is possible when you combine simple materials and great family conversation!

Each day, Design Challenge winners are posted in our “Hall of Fame” on ECHO’s first floor and on our Facebook Page. Please join us for the final four Design Challenges scheduled this week:

Saturday, February 26: Create a Pasta Bridge
Sunday, February 27: Build a Newspaper Tower
Monday, February 28: Construct a Straw Tower to hold an egg
Tuesday, March 1: Create an Upcycled Chair

A Day in the Life: E-Team

2011-02-24T13:57:00.004-05:00

What does it take to be an E-Teamer? Behind the scenes here at the ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center, the E-Team is much more than meets the eye. While you may have met some of them at the Sea Tank, or while making buttons or frog masks, underneath that green E-Team shirt lays more than just a teenager. Having the pleasure to work with them, I can tell you that these are not average kids. Dedicating 6 hours a week to ECHO takes more than bribery to get a teenager to volunteer, it takes passion and understanding of a greater good, which is why these kids are more than average; they are environmental all-stars.

But what is it that they actually do here? We give them the space to explore their own interests and to challenge themselves. Every shift starts in the E-Team lounge where we meet to talk about what we think would be the most fun and entertaining way to teach and engage guests. Doesn’t narrow it down too much does it? No worries, because there is no limit to what the E-Team is capable of doing. They pick from an overwhelming variety of activities, from enlightening guests on the elusive and mysterious nature of the Moose, to sending frog masks to orphans in Korea. Every day the E-Team is offered the opportunity to learn a new topic by teaching it to others. “It’s a real opportunity to be able to learn with others and help others understand, it’s a great experience,” says Henry Sadler a sophomore from Vermont Common Schools. For example, how many kids can tell you the difference between a Plastron and a Carapace on a turtle? (See picture)

The E-Team is something we here at ECHO are very proud of. Because of their dedication, they are bridging the gap between generations to enlighten our youth to the wonders of the Lake Champlain Basin, and our responsibility as stewards to it.

-Pat Alcott UVM '14

Thomas, Emma and Faisal teach their families all about turtles

Inquiry Science in the Schools

2011-02-18T10:34:00.010-05:00

Students from Saint Michael's College, Champlain College and now, University of Vermont, have provided over 400 hours of science instruction to Burlington, Winooski and Milton students in grades 2,3, and 5 in the past two years.The ISS program will be completing Year Two (Cycle 5) this spring semester. When all is said and done they will have reached 1,348 elementary students in 68 classrooms. The momentum of this program is driven by growing partnerships with the education departments in our local higher education institutions. The program is designed to increase pre-service teachers’ confidence in teaching science content through inquiry process skills – critical to developing a scientific mind. The ISS project has been possible through grants from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the A.D. Henderson Foundation other local contributions and is managed by Tracy Truzansky, ECHO Assistant Director of Education. “This project has provides critical benefits to new teachers entering the workforce while providing a successful science partnership model for school district administration and classroom teachers struggling to provide in depth, relevant science to students with local environmental applications,” says Truzansky.

“Through inquiry in the classroom students are always left wanting more. As a future teacher it is my hope to provide the most [science] inquiry I can in my class. I want students to be able to really ‘get to know’ science and how it pertains to their everyday lives.”

– Olivia, St. Michael’s College Pre-service Teacher

- Photo - Sydney, St. Michael's College Pre-service Teacher dressed as a wetland scientist

Turtle love

2011-02-15T06:02:00.003-05:00

If you're out snorkeling or scuba diving somewhere in the Lake Champlain basin and a Painted turtle swims up to you, hovers in the water near you, extends his front legs in front of his head and flutters them to and fro sideways, you should be flattered, you're being courted by a turtle. A belated Happy Valentines Day from the world of turtles (turtles do everything slowly... one cannot expect them to be on time with their Valentines).

I used to like Clam Chowder!

2011-01-18T11:54:00.004-05:00

I still like clam chowder,though this makes you wonder if, like the mercury warnings we hear about fish consumption, we should be watching our clam consumption!

Does my favorite Italian Dish "Linguine ai Frutti di Mare" become "Linguine ai Frutti e Inquinante di Mare".

What a fascinating way to detect what we can't see in our waterways. What a frightening manifestation of what may be happening in our waterways. Thankfully we have the Clean Water Act. Hopefully we can all implement changes in our own lives to avoid chemical depositions in our waterways. We have to remember, our waterways may look good, but chemistry is often elusive. If you're letting phosphorous or other chemicals leave your property, you may be messing with my clam chowder! See what you think about Clamming Up

Panting Fish?

2011-01-09T23:00:00.003-05:00

While caring for fish here at ECHO, we always stop to observe and look for issues in an aquarium if we see a fish "gilling hard" or flexing it's mouth with each exaggerated action of the gill flap. This behavior indicates some sort of stressor in the environment. The stressor can be aggression from another fish, it can be a pathogen taking hold of the fish or it can be a water chemistry problem. Now, this change in gilling rates is being used to detect deteriorating water chemistry in water supply systems for people. The new canary in the coal mine. Click here to learn about these new "Intelligent Aquatic Biomonitoring" Systems.

Snake Hibernation: Too Cool To Move

2011-01-06T12:44:00.004-05:00

Imagine living outdoors in a Vermont winter and not having the ability to create your own body heat! Our native herpetological species, including Vermont snakes, respond to this challenge by retreating to an appropriate place to hunker down for the winter to avoid freezing temperatures.

So how do these stationary serpents survive the cold without food all winter? Their metabolism slows down and their bodies use the resources they have stored over the last year in the form of lipids, glycogen and glucose in the liver.
Each species has its own preferred type of hibernacula. Finding the right spot to ball up for the winter is very important, safe hibernacula provide a snake with shelter from freezing temperatures, protection from predators, access to air and enough moisture to avoid drying out. Here in Vermont snakes seek safe hibernating areas under rocks, stumps, roots, or under logs. Some slide into mammal burrows or dig into loose soil.

Some snakes aggregate in large ant-mounds for the winter, a choice usually left to the smaller species such as red bellied snakes, Dekay’s brown snake, young smooth green snakes and young garter snakes. Black rat snakes and the endangered timber rattle snake are also communal hibernators, sharing large and deep rock crevices and cracks. Communal hibernating brings together males and females for mating opportunities before or after it’s too cool to move!

Tessa Faye-Foulds
Environmental Exhibit Specialist

E-Team: Teen Leaders extradonaire!

2011-01-05T09:35:00.010-05:00

Ever been to ECHO and wondered about those kids in the green shirts? Weekend shifts are staffed by the E-Team, ECHO’s Environmental Teen Leadership program. I have the great pleasure to supervise this group of outstanding freshmen and sophomores and learn alongside them as we explore all things, Lake Champlain Basin style.

Elizabeth staffs the button making station.

The E-team is a group of 10 freshmen and sophomores from the Greater Burlington area; Burlington, Winooski, Champlain Valley Union and Vermont Commons School are well represented. When they aren’t educating and delighting guests at ECHO these teens are playing soccer, rowing crew, starring in plays, shredding the slopes, tutoring younger students and siblings, and acting as leaders in their religious communities. Despite the demands of their busy schedules they commit to ECHO for 6 hours every week, and many choose to come in for extra volunteer hours as well!

Emma showing off her frog mask, with Williams at work.

Last month the E-team demonstrated their fabulous leadership skills by hosting students from the C.P. Smith after school program. The elementary school students were able to tour our regular exhibits as well as participate in Conservation Quest programming led by the teens. Not only was this a very fun and exciting afternoon for the C.P. Smith students, it was also very beneficial for the E-Team.

Every week E-Team is at ECHO teaching guests about the Lake Champlain Basin and learning what it means to be a good educator. This additional teaching opportunity gave them the chance to create a lesson plan, share responsibilities and work with a different audience than we usually have on the weekends.

Mohamed plays Wheel of Power with the after school group

School groups are able to visit ECHO at a discounted admission price through the Open Door program. This program is funded by an U.S. EPA grant and the generosity of members participating in the You Give, We Give Campaign.To everyone that has supported ECHO, thank you!

Chelonian Chill

2010-12-05T14:50:00.005-05:00

Chelonia refers to turtles. "Chill" refers to what happens in winter in Vermont; not the chill we humans experience, we're talking about Chelonian style hibernation.

The Chelonian chill can last six months in Vermont. It takes place in the bottom of lakes, ponds and other bodies of water. That’s where the 39 degree Fahrenheit water, the densest water, settles in, like the turtles, for the winter. It’s a good temperature for turtles to chill in.

Spiny Softshell Turtle

Instead of forty beats per minute like on a warm summer day, during hibernation the Chelonian heart drops to one beat every ten minutes.

The Chelonian Chill seems a bit risky since a good portion of it may take place under ice. There’s no going to the surface to fill the lungs with oxygen. Turtles can get all the oxygen they need through two areas of their bodies. They open their mouths and let water into their throats, which are lined with tiny blood vessels that absorb oxygen from the water. Cool? Yes. Meanwhile, at the other end of the ‘business’, they can do the same through their cloaca, their anus, their bums. Cool? Yes, but maybe a little less so for some folks.

There’s still more amazing turtle stuff going on under the ice: going with insufficient oxygen can lead to a buildup of lactic acid, which can be fatal, similar to what over-exerting athletes can experience. Turtles resolve the lactic acid buildup by dissolving small amounts of calcium salts from their shells, which neutralizes the lactic acid. Of course, turtles avoid much of a buildup of lactic acid by doing just about nothing through the winter. That’s chillin.

On the Eco-Conscious Catwalk

2010-12-01T11:54:00.017-05:00

The Upcycled Fashion Show at ECHO is only a few days away, which is good. Not only because it's going to be a fabulous evening for adults to enjoy learning about sustainable fashion, but because I'll finally be able to get this terrible 90s song out of my head. Just think catwalk...and being too sexy for your shirt...and that weird group Right Said Fred. Don't click the link, it'll stick in your head too.

I will say that what I don't mind sticking in my head are all the things I've learned about the fashion industry since we started planning this event. As someone who teaches about conservation, I immediately think of water; the water it takes to produce cotton, the water it takes to dye fabric, the chemicals in dye, the water I use to wash my clothes (man, I hate laundry), and the list in my head goes on and on. Push that even further and start thinking about oil consumption as it relates to the clothing industry and you'll never look at your clothes the same way again.

The word "upcycling" has started to pop up in places including the DIY-scene (do-it-yourself) and it is a perfect concept to introduce as part of the Conservation Quest exhibit. The terms upcycling and downcycling were coined by the authors of the the book Cradle to Cradle which examines the way we produce goods. My definition - upcycling is taking an object, keeping it out of the recycling stream and trying to find a way to repurpose that item so that it is of more value or of better quality than what I was just about to recycle.

Now, I'm not much of a fashionista. And, I'm much more of a thrift-store shopper than one that goes for the latest trends. However, confession time here - I love watching Project Runway. I've always been blown away not only by the creativity of designers but also the skill it takes to imagine something and then take needle and thread and make it real. What does this have to do with upcycling? Well, my most favorite design came from the episode a few years back that had the "car challenge". Contestants had to use materials they could strip from a car for their design. My fav, the seat-belt coat - loved it! And, I can't forget this year's episode "You Can Totally Wear That Again", where they (thank-goodness) deconstructed some horrifying bridesmaids dresses and turned them into dresses you could actually wear in public.

Imagine my surprise then when I met Gyllian Rae Svensson owner of The Bobbin Sew Bar & Craft Lounge who is totally into the sustainable fashion movement AND had been invited to be on Project Runway. SWEET! Really, Gyllian blew my mind the first time I sat down with her to talk about the concept for an upcycled fashion show at ECHO. She talked about wanting to start a fashion movement that was as strong as the localvore movement. Makes sense doesn't it? The jeans I have on today used 1,800 gallons of water just to grow the cotton that goes into them, never mind the water and chemicals used to dye them. If my jeans can be repurposed; deconstructed then reconstructed into something fabulous AND fashionable, well right-on! And she's not the only one doing this in Vermont. Gyllian's pulled together a few other local designers to show off their upcycling skills at ECHO next week.

So, I hope you'll join me next Thursday night for our first and hopefully not last, Upcycled Fashion Show. We'll all have the opportunity to learn more about sustainable fashion from Gyllian and the other designers at the show, and have a drink with a little conversation about being too sexy for the eco-conscious catwalk. Hey, and if you have your own upcycling craft gig going on, click on over to our Facebook page and share some photos of your creations. We'd love to see 'em and share 'em. Or, wear 'em to the show!

What are you waiting for?
Click here to find out how to get your tickets!
Or click here to share your photos on Facebook!

Top photo: The Bobbin Sew Bar & Craft Lounge
Bottom photo: Project Runway photos

~Posted by Bridget Butler, ECHO's Conservation Education Specialist

Food Miles SMACK DOWN!

2010-11-18T15:31:00.011-05:00

How do you design an event that is educational, creative and fun at a Lake Aquarium and Science Center? Our educational team attempted to take this on with our Food Less Traveled event on November 11. The idea for the event came from our current changing exhibit, Conservation Quest~Power Play. Our team wanted to extend the local foods idea exploring the number of food miles it takes to bring a plate of food to our tables.

First we contacted the major players in this event, the restaurants. Many were on-board with the idea, responding enthusiastically to the food challenge. From the chefs we asked for recipes that would be judged on their local food source miles, their overall appeal, and (of course) their taste. Hoping for 100-150 guests, we asked the participating restaurants to have finger foods for 125 people.

We decided we needed an emcee, so we contact local foodie Cheryl Herrick of www.crankycakes.com (a great food blog) and with her help we began the process of developing the program.

Oh, and we were selling tickets to this event…a first for ECHO! We gathered the team, techies and front desk personnel, and figured out an easy way to sell the tickets and established a mechanism for processing all of this information.

Next we had to figure out how many people would come so our chefs could prepare the correct amount of food. Hoping for 100-150 guests, we asked the participating restaurants to have finger foods for 125 people.

From the chefs we asked for recipes that would be judged on their local food source miles, their overall appeal, and (of course) their taste.

What we didn’t anticipate was the seriousness that the restaurants treated this subject. They celebrate and endorse the local movement every day. It was a challenge they were ready to take on as long as the playing field was even. “If someone is sourcing flour,” one restaurant emailed us, “better make sure their flour is local or add the miles.” The small amounts of salt and spice ingredients were considered Marco Polo – alluding to the explorer’s method of carrying small amounts in a small leather satchel – and thus considered zero miles. One chef preferred to use Italian olive oil because the flavor was better than the local variety. This put them out of contention with the local miles but raised the educational message that for this chef, flavor was paramount. Another restaurant sourced their apple cider from one location and their cider vinegar from another further away than a local orchard. His comment, “we’ve always done business together.”

So, how was the math done? We took the number of miles it took to get to each of the ingredients from the restaurant’s home location using Google maps and divided the total miles by the number of ingredients used. American Flatbread ended up with 9 miles; The Farm House Tap and Grill had 22 miles; Sugarsnap pulled in 23 miles; The Skinny Pancake recorded 36 miles; Cosmic Bakery & Café from St. Albans had 36 miles; and The Spot had 600 miles due to their Italian olive oil.

Ovens were set up, circuits blew, but the evening’s major players arrived timely with plates of food and ingredients. Our team used VT road maps to show where each restaurant had sourced their ingredients and pins were placed to indicate locations. This ended up as a very popular visual for both our guests and was photographed with pride by the competing restaurants.

In true New England fashion, folks arrived 15 minutes early for the event and our ending tally was ~123 people ~ a bull’s eye! Staff members were lined up with the guests (a metric of a good event) and the evening went by deliciously quick. Our new marketing director had cued in the media so our messages were broadcast by live TV, food journalists, and bloggers. Click here to view the news broadcast on WPTZ Food Less Traveled. Interns were snapping photos, carrying portable sound systems to broadcast the emcee’s conversations with chefs regarding their ingredients and pairings, and urging participants to cast their ballots.

As you can imagine the flavors were amazing and the choices were hard to judge for the participants. Several of the restaurants chose pork belly as an ingredient. Why? Not only does it taste good but this is the slaughtering season for pork and it is readily available. Hmmm, it made us pause to consider what other ingredients were available in November for such a competition. Also, how do you judge a pork belly dish against a cheesecake?

The votes were cast by attendees who were given one ticket for each of the following elements: taste, presentation and overall favorite. The overall winner was American Flatbread with their Duclos and Thompson Braised Pork Belly with Parsnip and Carrot Puree & Blueberry Infused Maple Syrup. They were also first with presentation and overall favorite. Taste was won by Cosmic Bakery with their Cosmic Maple Cheesecake. The guests left happy with the food quality, the restaurants were pleased with the lively event plus the media exposure and, of course, the smack down competition, and all players were asking if this was now an annual event that ECHO would host! The consensus was YES!

By Linda Bowden, ECHO’s Lifelong Learning Coordinator & Educator

Frogsicles and Other Frigid Amphibians

2010-11-02T16:54:00.008-04:00

As accumulations of snow and frosted windows become more frequent, we think about enjoying or enduring another Vermont winter, or perhaps moving south. In the animal world, as winter approaches, animals endure, leave, or if they can do neither, they hibernate. Amphibians are ectotherms, animals that get a good deal of their body heat from their environment. Lacking appendages that facilitate adequate migrations, they hibernate. They hibernate when the energy demand to stay active and procure food exceeds the available energy in their environment. Shorter days, dropping temperatures and the reduced availability of food, induce hibernation.

In the Lake Champlain basin, not all of our native amphibians hibernate. Eastern Newts, in the adult aquatic life stage, and mudpuppies are active throughout the winter. If you can find a window into the ice of a partially frozen pond, you may be provided a glimpse of the absurd activity of the diminutive Eastern newt in the dead of winter.

Salamanders, like the Spotted Salmander, utilize other animals’ burrows, which is why they are known as ‘mole’ salamanders, to hibernate below the frost line. It’s risky business: your hibernation site could be in someone else’s dining room and you become the meal.

Our more aquatic frog species hibernate by migrating to the bottom of their chilly aquatic environment. Their metabolism slows down due to the cold temperatures. They absorb the little oxygen they need and release carbon dioxide through their skin. They are awake yet sluggish. Unlike hibernating turtles that may dig down into the mud at the bottom of ponds, these frogs stay on the surface of the mud and may actually move around. They do not feed; they live off the stored energy reserves in their bodies. If they go into hibernation without enough reserves or if their pond completely freezes, they perish.

Other frogs, our more terrestrial species like the American toad, the wood frog, the spring peeper and the grey tree frog, hibernate on land . The American toad, an accomplished digger, will dig in enough to hibernate below the frost line. Those that are not good diggers, the wood frog, the peeper and the grey tree frog, hibernate in the leaf litter or under logs and rocks. These animals benefit from a good thick blanket of snow that insulates them from some of the extreme winter temperatures we experience in Vermont. But, if there is little snow and temperatures drop below freezing, the wood frog, the peeper and the grey tree frog can actually spend winter frozen like a popsicle. While ice forms in their body cavity, they develop high levels of sugar and sugar alcohols in vital organs, which acts like antifreeze and prevents damage to those organs. Click here for an incredible video which actually shows a wood frog thawing out.

These are adaptations that have developed for the many amphibians trying to make a living in an area seemingly more suited to those animals with fur or wings. These adaptations are no less impressive than those that allow our native mammalian and avian species to cope with our extreme winter conditions but perhaps less appreciated, after all, it all takes place in the ground, under the snow and ice, and out of sight is often out of mind.

Energy Empowerment

2010-10-01T09:15:00.020-04:00

There is nothing quite as engaging as watching a young child figure things out and try things for the first time: concentration is high, eyebrows knitted, little fingers busy but deliberate and slow steady breathing. The big payoff is when the child "gets it" and sees and hears his or her success! That is the diamond. That is the 'good stuff'.

Below we have Travis Cook, ECHO's
Information Technology Coordinator
and ECHO guest Samantha making a circuit.
Such was the scene recently at ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center at the Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, where dozens upon dozens of children (and parents) explored the use of, creation of and strength of energy.

Our newest exhibit,k CONSERVATION QUESTsm, and the education component POWER PLAY, are currently engaging visitors of all ages and inviting them to explore their use of energy whether it be in their home, in their mode of transportation or in the food choices they make.

The exhibit is great! It is colorful and active with plenty to push, spin, light, pop, bang and stack. Little hands like (and need) to be busy but they also like to be busy doing important things, like learning how much arm-cranking power is needed to light an LED bulb vs a CFL or a incandescent bulb.

ECHO member Freda pedals hard to make a
smoothie while ECHO's Executive Director, Phelan Fretz (with
twirly hat) watches. Kate Villa, Director of Development, holds
down the blender with Maggie observing all the fun.

Also fun to watch were the parents. Whether it was learning to build a circuit themselves or hopping onto a smoothie-making bicycle, they were totally engaged and having fun. And, after all, isn't that part of learning? Having fun? And isn't that one of the greatest gifts you can give to your children ~ letting them see you having fun?

The event I'm referring to was a special Conservation Quest opening event for members yet this reflects very accurately the kind of magic that happens at ECHO every day.

As the new face around here (a little over a month now), I've been able to enjoy a new experience almost every single day. I walk out of the administrative offices and my senses begin to smile with the sights and sounds of laughter and learning. Is anything as sweet?
NEWTon puts a smile on Sara's face,
or is it the other way around?
A small boy getting a circuit to light the light, a mom making her children laugh, a dad encouraging his child to try "one more time" or the smile on a child's face when she finally understands a concept or how something works ~ it is all part of "wonder". Wonder is a fabulous gift that leads to learning and that leads to teaching and the circle keeps growing.

I really like working here. See you soon...

2010 Neonate Spiny Softshell turtles

2010-09-21T08:05:00.005-04:00

ECHO's 2010 Spiny Softshell Turtle Head Start Program has begun. On September 15, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Biologist Steve Parren dropped off 43 baby turtles ranging in age from one to three weeks. This is the third year ECHO will assist efforts to support this threatened species.

The youngsters are on exhibit in the Animal Care Office located on the top floor of ECHO and are featured in daily Animal Encounter presentations for ECHO guests.

Animal Care staff will care for the neonates through the winter. In June, they will be released back into their native habitat. If you're a member at ECHO, watch for an email from ECHO inviting you to participate in the release.

Biologists estimate that there are less than 300 Eastern Spiny Softshell turtles in the Lake Champlain basin. You can be a good steward for the turtles by staying clear of turtle nest sites in the spring, summer and fall. If you're boating in areas where this species is known to occur, be on the lookout for their signature long skinny noses and avoid striking them. Help ensure the best possible water quality in Lake Champlain by reducing or eliminating your use of pollutants, fertilizers, pesticides or other substances that adversely impact water quality.

If you want to learn more, visit ECHO, check out the Lake Champlain Basin Programs Resource Room, and while you're here, be sure to see our newest, cutest residents, the baby Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtles.

Life Saving Caterpillar Guts

2010-08-07T15:49:00.004-04:00

Many unknowns in the natural world have potential implications for human endeavors. If stewardship for sake of protecting what already exists, what we owe to our children, is not obvious in itself to the imprudent consumer, consider the attached article. Societies most learned engineers, chemists, physicists and others sometimes revert to nature’s incredible offerings to find solutions to the seemingly insurmountable. The movement of the gut of a caterpillar becomes the model for the design of a new robot that might one day find trapped miners or earthquake survivors below the rubble of fallen buildings. What if the Dwarf Wedgemussel, the Indiana Bat or Jesup’s Milk-vetch, all endangered species in Vermont, had something to offer fuure generations but they became extinct? Stewardship is not only about preserving species to maintain an ecological balance; it is about preserving the diversity of what we do not yet fully understand. Black bears’ metabolism during hibernation has offered insights into human kidney function. Horseshoe crabs have benefited human medical care. Stewardship to conserve what exists is more than a warm, fuzzy feeling for some longhaired, organic, tree-hugger. Stewardship is conservation of design and function not yet fully known and perhaps, one day, much needed.

www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/61345/title/Gut_first

What's Green About Chemistry?

2010-08-06T12:00:00.004-04:00

This week our blog was done by Michelle Borsavage, an ECHO "Green Team" Intern! Read on to learn what it is she does, and what she has learned while working at ECHO!

This is the beginning of my third month as a summer intern at ECHO. My internship was organized under a grant through the University of Vermont (UVM) provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The aim of this grant is providing adult patrons with opportunities for education and awareness about current trends in the chemical industry.My colleague Eliza and I are appointed members of the “Green Team”, a small team of ECHO and UVM staff whose goal is to educate our visitors about the basics of green chemistry and how the field of chemistry affects our daily lives. A main focus of my time at ECHO has been developing and staffing an exhibit on biodegradable plastics. Biodegradable plastics are made specifically to mimic polymers (long chains of repeating sub-units, i.e. DNA strands and silk) that are naturally occurring. Starches and other organic materials are incorporated into the strands of these polymers so they will biodegrade after disposal. Degradation occurs as bacteria and other microorganisms seek the starch in the polymer chain as food.

On an ordinary day at ECHO, I sit at my exhibit and talk to waves of people including school-aged campers, families and meandering adults. I try to adapt my speech and props based on my audience however best I can so my two underlying messages are clear to all: 1. chemistry is not scary, but actually really awesome; and 2. biodegradable plastics can be an environmentally friendly alternative for traditional plastic.

One particular day at the exhibit, I was interacting with a group of young girls, approximately eleven years old. They were engaged and asked really analytical questions throughout my presentation. Fifteen minutes later, one of the girls ran back towards me. She was dragging her little brother and a frantic mother behind her. This girl gave me a smile and said "Mom check out these biodegradable polymers!" She essentially repeated my entire script and even used my props to her family. I was stunned. I couldn't believe that she retained the information but was even more amazed that she could explain the material to her mother and brother. The two kids then ran away from the workbench hand in hand and the mother stayed behind. She thanked me and talked with me further about the chemical industry. I grasped something valuable from that little girl: learning occurs as part of an active process involving the participation of both the "teacher" and the "learner". I then edited my exhibit script from being lecture-based to a more conversational style. This allows for guests to have a role in their own learning.

As I continue to reflect on my experiences thus far this summer, I am overcome with feelings of accomplishment and pride. I came into this internship with a limited background in public speaking and performing. I will end this summer with the ability to interact with diverse audiences and with a new found confidence. Not only have I learned a lot from this internship, but I have witnessed growth in guests of the ECHO floor.

-Michelle Borsavage

Until Next Week!...

Why Some Frogs Cruise and Some Frogs Crash

2010-08-02T12:07:00.005-04:00

Have you ever watched frogs hop away from you; I mean really watched them. Some frogs land ready to keep moving. Other frogs land like me when I first started rollerblading: continued locomotion was not a priority. I always thought it was just the specific frog I was observing was perhaps, well, not the sharpest stick in the leaf litter. But there may be more to it than that! See what you think: http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/61385/title/Frogs_leapt__before_they_landed

Lake Sturgeon Veterinary Care

2010-08-01T11:32:00.004-04:00

On July 3, ECHO Animal Care staff noticed one of the larger Lake Sturgeon on display appeared to be disoriented and occasionally unable to right itself. The fish was pulled off exhibit and relocated to an isolation tank. The decision to pull and treat a fish is never a quick one. The stress of handling, a new unfamiliar environment, and water chemistry changes can sometimes exacerbate a medical condition. In this case, with the behaviors we were seeing, we felt we had no choice.

When we move fish at ECHO, we minimize the stress of handling by using nets, not to net the fish, but to herd them into containers, in this case a horse trough. The fish are kept in water at all times to reduce stress and prevent skin, scale, gill, eye or fin injuries that often occur when fish are netted or otherwise handled and removed from the water.

The isolation tank's location, adjacent to the Lake Sturgeon exhibit filtration system, allowed us to transfer exhibit water to the isolation tank to avoid stressful water chemistry changes.

The treatment, recommended by Tennessee Aquarium Veterinary staff, included a salt bath and a two-week regimen of antibiotics, and had been used in the past to successfully treat another Lake Sturgeon at ECHO.

The salt bath was administered as the Lake Sturgeon was transferred to isolation. The first antibiotic dose was administered via intramuscular injection into the long muscle that runs on either side of the backbone. Subsequent antibiotics were administered orally, which was made possible by previous efforts to train the Lake Sturgeon to hand feeding.

After five doses of antibiotics, when the Lake Sturgeon appeared to be behaving normally, it was returned to the Lake Champlain display. While it appears to be doing well, we will continue to keep a close eye on it. This particular Lake Sturgeon, known affectionately to us as "Moe", is one of ECHO's original animal ambassadors.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not thank the many ECHO volunteers, interns and staff for their much-appreciated assistance in this transfer. Through their assistance, we were able to quickly, safely and without stressing the fish, move a horse trough containing a four-foot Lake Sturgeon and approximately one hundred fifty to two hundred pounds of water.

THINK! about it

2010-07-30T12:00:00.003-04:00

I was feeling a little hungry while thinking of a blog post for this week... Hunger, and thinking... these two things vaguely reminded me of something, but I couldn’t quite figure out what it was, then it hit me! It was a sign I had to blog about our café here at ECHO! I ventured downward, into the depths of the aquarium, past the general butler shipwreck and the monster bugs that eyed me as I walked by- finally I had arrived to my destination…The ECHO Think! Café...

I wanted to get the scoop on what this café was all about- because it clearly was more than JUST a café… I was quick to learn that the café has the model of “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” and is extremely sustainable! Everything from compostable utensils, trash bags, and cups to countertops that are made with 50% consumer recycled paper, the Think! Café is one step ahead…Even the paneling on the walls is made of a biofiber wheat-straw that is created from the renewable agriculture source, wheat straw! When you visit the Café it’s easy to get tips on how to be eco-friendly at home with helpful signs and hints… “Think! Café aspires to inspire our diners to make eco-connections between their food choices and the health of the environment”

I had the chance to talk with Marissa, who has worked at the Think! Café since 2008. Marissa’s favorite aspect of the job is meeting people from all over the country and even world that come to visit ECHO…”A few years ago there was a group from Japan, they were taking a photography class I think and it was awesome to see them experience ECHO” Talking with Marissa, I realized how much she enjoyed working on the lake while interacting with guests almost every day.

What do you like most about working on the lake at ECHO?

“Well, I have the best view in the building! When I have a break I love to go out by the water and enjoy the wildlife, the ducks are always a favorite”… “One time, a few friends came on a jet ski to visit for lunch, that was fun!”

What are some popular options in the café?

Marissa was quick to answer, “Down on the Farm and the Out’a Towner are two popular paninis, both really good!”… I did some more research with our office as well, and the “Raise the Roost” Panini was a staff favorite!

I asked Marissa what her favorite exhibit was at ECHO…. “I really enjoy the traveling exhibits, backyard monsters is really cool right now! I love the details in the monster bugs, the one in the entrance is my favorite by far”

Next time you visit ECHO, stop by the Think! Café, enjoy a great local meal, take in the beautiful lake views, and learn about sustainability with your food! Make sure to say hi to Marissa, and let her know you read the blog!

Here is the link to Think! Café ….

http://www.echovermont.org/visitors/foodbeverages.html

Until next week,

-Derek

Where's your VOICE?

2010-07-22T12:00:00.002-04:00

Every week my blog topic changes, this week a rather cool personal story connected with ECHO in such a way that I felt the need to write about it for this week’s entry! My hope is that it can inspire you, the reader, to try out what I did on my own! (Keep reading to find out just what I am talking about...)

My “Personal Story”- This past weekend I found myself at North Beach, a little ways away from the Burlington Waterfront and ECHO. I was at a barbecue with friends enjoying my chicken kabob when in the distance I noticed you could no longer see the Adirondack Mountains… It didn’t take long to realize that far off there was a summer storm encroaching on the lake. The sky was changing all sorts of colors, from the blue it originally was to a deep, vivid yellow as the light reflected in fascinating ways over the new rainclouds. It was a brilliant site! The wind suddenly picked up, and most observers got the hint that the curtain of water hiding the Adirondacks was headed our way, and quickly! I grabbed the plate of kabobs without thinking twice (partly to have more for myself) and took cover under the pavilion. The storm continued its way, engulfing Shelburne point directly across from us, and making the trees whip in the wind…luckily we (and the food) were all safe and dry under the shelter! It didn’t take long for the storm to dissipate from the area and move on, and when it did it left the most amazing gift- a huge double rainbow, brighter than any I have seen in my 20 years in VT, and it was right above us. My friend was quick to joke we should swim to the other end and dive for treasure… My treasure was the excellent chicken kabobs I keep thinking about, so I was all set! I grabbed my phone and took a picture, I only was able to capture one rainbow, but one is in-fact better than none! I loved this moment, witnessing the hidden power of nature, its beauty unleashed; all with friends on beautiful Lake Champlain- times like these are rare…

Its “Connection” to ECHO: Ironically, the Monday after that weekend I met with Bridget Butler who is the mastermind behind VoicesForTheLake.org- I showed her the picture I had taken and she said how perfect a photo like that could be for the Voices for the Lake project! I had heard a lot, and seen a lot about Voices for the Lake, but for some reason it never occurred to me that my stories and pictures were wanted as well- so, I decided to share the photo! It took less than 5 minutes to log on to the website, upload the picture and write a brief description, and within 15 minutes of posting it was already on the website, twitter and Facebook for all of you to enjoy! Something so simple accomplished the goal of Voices for the Lake- a story about my experience enjoying my home… We all have these stories, and this project makes it possible to help these memories last a lifetime (literally!)… I’ll note that my picture directly got the attention of another user who then shared a picture and story of her own!
The Ultimate GOAL for Voices for the Lake! Bridget has created an amazing way for technology to play an integral role in stewardship for Lake Champlain- she fully utilizes twitter Facebook and blogging to keep the public informed of events and happenings, and the Voices website is always packed with fresh content, so every visit to the site is a new and exciting experience!

Here are some snippets from the websites “about” page…
“Voices for the Lake takes the perspective that we have much to learn from the voices of the public. ECHO draws from VFL to understand the interests and needs of the community and provide opportunities for individuals to take action in support of lake stewardship…VFL believes that technology can be a tool to connect individuals with similar values, collect diverse perspectives and questions, and to broker relationships among residents, experts and resources in the field…”

Its excellent that we have a website like this! I know for a fact Bridget would love to see, hear and watch all of your stories about the lake… Good thing you are on your computer now- here is the link, don’t waste any time- make your voice heard!
OH!!... Stay updated with Facebook and voicesforthelake.org for info on the summer sunset cocktail party to officially present the collage of ideas this project has brought forth- officially celebrate Voices coming to the floor at ECHO as a permanent exhibit!

Can’t wait to see your entries-

Until next week,
-Derek

http://www.voicesforthelake.org/
**To share your Lake related story, picture or more, click the above link and then click “share” to get started!I know for a fact that she would love to see, hear and watch all of your stories about the lake… Good thing you are on your computer now- here is the link, don’t waste any time- make your voice heard!

Feeding Surinam Toads

2010-07-19T16:10:00.005-04:00

Surinam Toads are perhaps the most strange and bizarre exotic amphibian species on exhibit at ECHO. Found in the Amazon region of South America, they live amongst suspended sediments, rotting leaves and other organic matter in muddy streams and slow moving rivers. Eyes are of little use in this habitat. Securing food for this carnivorous species is more about feeling its prey than seeing it. Tiny cups on their fingertips sense vibrations in the water from passing prey. When prey is detected, a Surinam opens its cavernous mouth and uses its oversized rear webbed feet and, in a heartbeat, lunges at and devours its prey. At ECHO, we prefer to feed night crawlers to Surinams. Night crawlers are less apt to carry pathogens and are more nutritious than fish. However, the challenge with any captive species is converting dietary intake from natural prey items to a preferred captive food item. In this video, Tessa, one of ECHO's Animal Care Specialists, is successfully feeding a night crawler, for the first time, to a Surinam Toad.

Why exotic frogs at ECHO? Part of ECHO’s mission is to share opportunities for stewardship and our impact on our environment. Our native wildlife collection helps with our mission as it relates to the Lake Champlain Basin. Our exotic frogs help with our mission as it relates to our worldwide impact on our environment. For example, if we purchase materials made from natural resources in the Amazon basin, optimally, it would be great if we knew if these resources were sustainably harvested so as not to adversely impact animals like Surinam Toads. Why should we care? Amphibians eat insects and as you’d probably agree, we have more than enough of those in our lives; anything that consumes them is more than welcomed in our shared habitat.

A Fresh Perspective!

2010-07-16T12:00:00.002-04:00

For this week's blog I wanted a fresh perspective on ECHO (one that wasn't my own). So, this week I met with Carly Millen, a Junior at Saint Michael's College in Colchester VT, studying Business, Marketing and International Relations. Carly is the ECHO Events Intern for the summer season…While meeting with her I got a cool inside scoop on events that are held here along with two exhibits that have become her recent favorites!

So why did she choose to intern at ECHO? “I loved the atmosphere of this place, and I love the opportunity to interact with the great people that visit every day!”… As an event intern, Carly attends the various functions that go on at ECHO including weddings, dinners, and meetings. She quickly added, “It’s cool to see how ECHO transforms to host these events, it’s so open yet you can be anywhere in the building and there is an intimate feeling” She particularly enjoyed a recent wedding she worked at, noting how during the first dance guests had lined along the balcony to watch from above.

What’s a recent ECHO discovery? Carly checked out the “Awesome Forces” movie last week for the first time! “Learning how the lake was formed along with the Adirondack and Green Mountains was very interesting! It gave great, easy to understand information without overwhelming you, and the cool special effects and lighting really enhanced the viewing too!”

Frog World!?! After asking Carly what her favorite exhibit is at ECHO, she really had to think… Finally, she came up with her answer. “Frog World, in particular the Vietnamese Mossy Frog exhibit”… I had her take me to it to show me firsthand. For a minute or two I stood trying to FIND the frog, until I realized it had been right in front of me the whole time! (It blended right in with the moss… clearly I missed the memo in the name of the exhibit!) This is one interesting frog for sure, considering how much it blends in with its natural habitat. We both learned that this type of frog rolls into a ball to look less edible to the animals that prey on it- and in Southeast Asia where this species originates, habitat loss is threatening its very existence.

This week I got a fresh perspective on ECHO from my fellow intern downstairs, Carly... Here is the link to our Frog World exhibit to learn more http://www.echovermont.org/exhibits/fw.html
Look back next Friday for the 4th installment of the marketing intern blog posts!
Until then,
-Derek

New Live Backyard Monster at ECHO

2010-07-13T08:11:00.008-04:00

If you like the giant robotic insects in ECHO's Backyard Monsters exhibit, come see a new, live backyard monster that you might encounter where you live! ECHO's newest arrival, the Giant Water Bug, also known as the "Toe Biter", is one of the largest insects in the U.S. "Toe Biters" consume other insects, small fish, amphibians and apparently have a reputation for taking a stab at toes. They pierce their prey with their sharp beaks and secrete enzymes that break down their prey's body tissue, which is then slurped up by the giant water bug.

The Giant water bug is on display in the Animal Care Room at ECHO. You might also cross paths with this alarmingly gigantic bug when Brian or Tessa, ECHO's Animal Care specialists, might take him out to lunch during Animal Encounters that take place daily at 10:30AM and 3:00PM. Not to worry, if you sit in on one of these encounters, we'll bring a food item for the Toe Biter, we won't ask for anyone's toes.

Buggin' Out!!

2010-07-09T12:00:00.000-04:00

As an intern at ECHO I get to explore this awesome place every time I take a break from work- Today work was extra cool considering my break included a visit to Backyard Monsters, our current traveling exhibit which I have decided to blog about!

Today I felt like I was shrunken down to a crazy small size (much like the honey I shrunk the kids movie, a 90’s classic!) As I walked in I was greeted by a HUGE Praying Mantis… It was so detailed and even moved which made it incredibly lifelike. Other robotic creatures that soon greeted me were the ants, the dragonfly and the scorpion- Each had great detail to really help you see these normally small bugs from an entirely new perspective! (It’s not every day you can be dwarfed by an ant!)

After the robotic insects I checked out the exhibits… One that stood out to me was the bug eye display! There were two huge eye lenses, one human and one bug. The human lens was normal and easy to see through, the bug eye however was almost impossible! (In the picture you can see why!) I learned that humans have one eye lens per eye whereas bugs can have up to 30,000! Bugs are not able to focus their vision like we can, yet they can get a sharp picture from all directions of sight (unlike humans who only focus on certain things).

I would love to go into detail about making my robotic bug walk, learning why mosquitoes do what they do, and getting up-close and personal with a flea………But I don’t want to give away the rest of the exhibit, so if you have not yet been you really should check it out for yourself…Words and iPhone pictures can only do so much!

Here is a link to the exhibit home-page at our ECHO website, http://www.echovermont.org/exhibits/bym.html and make sure to post your comments, pictures and stories about your visit with us on our Facebook FanPage (ECHO Lake Aquarium & Science center)…

Until next week!

-Derek