Julia Pupko, an ECO AmeriCorps volunteer working as a community science outreach naturalist with the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, takes a closer look at a parenthesis lady beetle, which is native to Vermont, at Norwich Nature Center in Norwich, Vt., on Monday, June 7, 2021.

Kate Ripley, of Chelsea, Vt., and her daughter Ella Bjorkman, 5, float down a small rapid on an inner tube in the White River in Sharon, Vt., on Monday, June 28, 2021. Ripley's boyfriend got off of work early due to the heat, so she and Bjorkman picked him up and went straight to the river.

Flood damage caused by heavy rain is visible on South Road in Canaan, N.H., on Monday, July 10, 2023. Bob Barrett, who has lived on the road for six years, said this is the worst he’s ever seen it. “This is mind-blowing, it really is,” he said of how quickly the road washed out.

Nelson and Joyce Gilman at their home at Riverside Mobile Home Park in Woodstock, Vt., on Wednesday, August 25, 2021. The Gilmans were pickling cucumbers when Tropical Storm Irene hit the area, and they joke that when they evacuated their home they grabbed Nelson's diabetes medications, a few pillows and the pans of cucumbers. "It's funny now, but it wasn't then," Joyce said.

Kaidyn Cox, 12, of North Haverhill, N.H., hugs her five-month-old shorthorn Oscar after competing in the open oxen show during the Bradford Fair in Bradford, Vt., on Saturday, July 16, 2022. This was the first year the fair was held since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mascoma defender Bella Davis (14) holds a bag of ice to her forehead to cool down at halftime during a girls varsity soccer game at Newport Middle High School in Newport, N.H., on Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023.

Casey Mispel carries her son Joe, 3, while she and her daughter Faith, 13, walk toward their flood-damaged home in Bridgewater, Vt., on Monday, July 17, 2023. The family was on vacation in Maine on July 10 when heavy rain caused their property to flood, damaging their home and most of their belongings. Friends and neighbors worked to help save what they could, including the Mispels’ three cats, two rabbits, and two ferrets. “Everybody’s safe, so that’s what’s important,” Casey Mispel said.

Orchard Manager Shane Teveris fills a keg with hard cider at Poverty Lane Orchards in Lebanon, N.H., on Wednesday, August 16, 2023. The orchard lost its entire crop of pick-your-own apples, but the apples used for alcohol faired better in the frost. “Everybody loses a different way this year,” Teveris said of the unpredictable growing weather, “but we’ve all lost.”

Director Grae O’Toole, left, and assistant director Bren Lundborg administer medication to a scarlet tanager in the Center for Wild Bird Rehabilitation and Ambassador Care at VINS in Quechee, Vt., on Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. Songbirds accounted for a large percentage of the more than 500 baby birds the center cared for this year, a record number for VINS. No specific species or illness drove up the number of baby birds cared for, Lundborg said, suggesting that more people just knew where to bring the injured birds than in years past. “People are more aware of wildlife rehabilitation.”

Jim Donison, left, who is the director of Lebanon's Public Works Department, and Lebanon Fire Chief Chris Christopoulos examine a sinkhole that opened up on Route 4 in front of Liberty Utilities in Lebanon, N.H., on Friday, Nov. 12, 2021. Donison said crews won’t be able to determine the cause of the sinkhole until they are able to look at the pipe underneath, but the issue was likely aggravated by the rain throughout the day.

From left, Alvin Carty, Murray Bailey, Isiah Carty and Donavan Bailey, guest workers from Jamaica, weed rows of beets grown from seed at Deep Meadow Farm in Ascutney, Vt., on Friday, May 27, 2022. Direct seed crops like beets and carrots have gotten off to a slow start this season because of fluctuations in temperature and rainfall.

Travis Compo, of Weathersfield, Vt., climbs through the brush while participating in a line search exercise in the woods behind the Hanover Fire Department in Hanover, N.H., on Thursday, March 30, 2023. Compo, who has been a volunteer firefighter for over a decade, said that he’s always been interested in joining a search and rescue team, but the widely publicized search and eventual recovery of 19-year-old Emily Sotelo last November “kind of kicked it into high gear.” The major drive for Compo isn’t only the person in distress, but also a dedication to his team. “You don’t always respond specifically just for that subject or patient, you have team members going and they’re going to have to work harder if you don’t go,” he said. “I’ve always enjoyed helping people and the camaraderie that’s involved in that.”

Donna Hill, left, of Thetford, Vt., talks to her daughter Katherine Hill, of West Fairlee, Vt., before setting out on a moose hunt in Victory, Vt., on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023. Nearly every member of the Hill family has received a moose permit at least once in the three decades since the program began.

Donna Hill, of Thetford, Vt., tracks moose through the woods with the help of her daughter Katherine Hill and son-in-law Andrew Eaton, both of West Fairlee, Vt., in Victory, Vt., on Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023. Moose tend to thrive in areas where a large portion of their habitat is made up of young and regenerating forests.

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department deer and moose project leader Nick Fortin finds several engorged larval ticks as he combs through the fur of a cow moose at a biological check station at the Island Pond State Highway Garage in Island Pond, Vt., on Monday, Oct. 23, 2023. Winter ticks thrive in milder, shorter winters and unlike other tick species they remain on one host throughout all of their developmental stages from fall to early spring.

Jimmy Kinnarney, of South Royalton, Vt., mucks out stalls and scrapes manure from the barnyard at Westlands Farm on the border of Sharon and South Royalton, Vt., on Wednesday, April 3, 2024. Kinnarney has been working on the farm for 22 years, and is regularly assisted by his son Jake to milk cows and keep the barn clean.

From left, John Sheldon, 11, of Norwich, Vt., Jack Batchman, 12, of Brookfield, Vt., Ruby Wible, 9, of Norwich, and Chris Rimmer, former director of the Vermont Center for Ecostudies, look at a cowbird through their binoculars during the second monthly outing of the Upper Valley Youth Birding Club on Campbell Flats Road in Norwich, Vt., on Saturday, June 7, 2025. Rimmer, an avid birder, started the club to help the next generation learn about birds and foster an appreciation for them.

Smoke rises into the air during a prescribed burn in Woodstock, Vt., on Thursday, April 9, 2026. The parcel was last burned in 2024, and regular prescribed burns help to maintain habitat for a variety of species like upland birds and turkeys while also creating vistas for hikers along the Appalachian Trail.