Author Archive

June 17, 2022 — Despite its large size, Clapper Rail is not an easy bird to locate. These marsh birds are known for their elusive nature and are more often heard than seen. The grasses that make up salt marshes hide them well and provide crucial habitat for feeding and nesting.

Jue 16, 2022 — Now is the perfect time to hear the beautiful, flute-like call of the Wood Thrush throughout — as its name would indicate — the woods of rural Connecticut. Listen in the early morning and evening along quiet roads or paths. Follow the call and find the bird and you’ll see that it has a reddish-brown head, back, wings, and tail, and large white dark spots on a white breast and undersides.

June 14, 2022 — A small hunter of insects, the Alder Flycatcher is one of the interesting members of the Tyrant flycatcher family. The Empidonax genus within this family is made up of nondescript dull olive individuals who are most reliably differentiated from one another by their unique songs and calls. Alder Flycatcher is very difficult to separate from Willow Flycatcher, other than by voice.

In the sanctuaries …
June 13, 2022 — So far, so good for the Piping Plovers nesting on the Milford Point sandbar. Twenty baby birds have hatched and adults are still incubating eggs on three other nests. It’s an incredibly perilous time out there for this federally-threatened species. The birds can’t fly yet and are at the mercy of storm tides and predators. Which is where you come in.

June 9, 2022

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Nyctanassa violacea
Yellow-crowned Night-Herons are birds of marshes and wet meadows but are not widely distributed across the state. These waders live in or near our coastal wetlands and forage in tidal marshes, tide pools and along the shore of Long Island Sound where they feed on crustaceans, largely fiddler crabs.

June 7, 2022 — With updated information on safe dates for mowing fields in which Bobolinks nest. Bobolinks are found in large grasslands (hay, pasture, airports), of at least 10 acres in size usually. Fields with hills tend to have more birds; they usually nest on the top of the hill or the side in the thick grasses. If you’re in the right area, it’s an easy bird to locate. The males will sit on the top of a clump of grass or nearby tree or shrub and sing, defending their territory from other males; the males also sing while flying low over the grassland.

June 6, 2022 — Until the end of June, the Daily Bird will feature Connecticut’s nesting species, including information on where to find these beauties. The series starts with Indigo Bunting.

June 2, 2022 — A pesticide restriction bill that passed the General Assembly in Hartford with the strong support of Connecticut Audubon’s grassroots advocates was signed into law yesterday by Governor Ned Lamont. Public Act 22-142 makes it illegal to use chlorpyrifos on golf courses or for any cosmetic or non-agricultural use.

May 23, 2022 — Timely advocacy on the part of Connecticut Audubon members and others around the state led to passage of a bill in Hartford that will cut the use of an insecticide that’s dangerous to birds.

May 20, 2022 — The state of Connecticut has set new rules in hopes of protecting horseshoe crabs. The shorebirds that eat the crabs’ eggs might benefit as well. The rules shorten the season for commercial fishing of horseshoe crabs and lower by 70% the number of crabs that can be caught.

Usually first noticed by a ringing “weeta, weeta, weeteeo” song, a Hooded Warbler sighting highlights almost any bird walk in the Connecticut woods. Hooded Warblers reach the northern edge of their breeding range here in Connecticut (although there is a breeding population in southern Ontario), generally arriving during the first week of May and setting up housekeeping almost immediately. Hooded Warbler would be a great bird to add to your list during the Migration Madness Birdathon, May 13-15.

The Black-throated Blue Warbler, stunningly unique in its adult male garb, is quite average in other ways. It’s never as rare or hard to find as a Mourning Warbler, and never as abundant at the height of migration as a Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler, or a Palm Warbler.