Connecticut Audbon Society

State of the Birds

Blog – 2018

 

As migration heats up, here are 10 things you can do to help birds

Wednesday, March 29th, 2023

March 29, 2023 — As spring migration starts to heat up, here are 10 actions you can take to help bring birds back, individually and with others.

Renewing Hartford’s Urban Bird Treaty

Friday, April 7th, 2023

Hartford was designated an Urban Bird Treaty city in 2011. The designation is up for renewal and the Connecticut Audubon Society, Friends of Keney Park, and Park Watershed are collaborating on an update. The result will be better habitat for birds throughout the city’s parks, and more chances for city residents to learn about and enjoy them.  The Urban Bird Treaty is a national network whose goal is to improve bird habitat in urban areas, and help city residents experience and learn about birds and the natural world.

For our 125th Anniversary, take the 125-Bird Challenge

Friday, March 24th, 2023

March 24, 2023 — To encourage you to visit our sanctuaries during our 125th anniversary year, we’ve come up with a fun activity: the 125-Bird Challenge. It’s not a competition. We do hope however that it’s a good incentive. Many of our sanctuaries are big and unique, and are worth a special visit.

Benjamin D. Williams III: 1936-2023

Thursday, March 23rd, 2023

March 28, 2023 — Our friend and long-time Board member Ben Williams died on March 7, 2023. Knowledgeable, affable, and dedicated to conservation, Ben served on Connecticut Audubon’s Pomfret regional board for 16 years and on the state Board of Directors for 10. As part of the Center at Pomfret’s Science in Nature school programs, he introduced thousands of kids to the wonders of nature and insects in particular.  His booming voice and passion for the subject matter won him great respect and admiration.

March 2023: Pussy Willow

Wednesday, March 22nd, 2023

For March, Sarah W. Middeleer writes about a native plant whose flowers signal early spring. Sarah is a landscape designer whose work focuses on ecology and designing for wildlife. She serves as vice chair of the Connecticut Audubon Board of Directors.

Mabel Osgood Wright: A lifelong commitment to birds

Wednesday, March 8th, 2023

March 8, 2023 — to help mark the 125th anniversary of the founding of the Connecticut Audubon Society, we’re re-publishing a short account of Mabel Osgood Wright’s life and achievements, written by a subsequent leader of the organization, Kathleen Van Der Aue, now chair emerita. Wright (1859-1934) was among a group of women who founded Connecticut Audubon in January 1898. A prolific author and an important conservationist on the national scene, she went on the serve as president of Connecticut Audubon until 1924.

Register for a special screening of “Mabel Osgood Wright: Pioneering Conservationist”

Friday, March 3rd, 2023

Help celebrate Connecticut Audubon’s 125th anniversary with a special online screening of “Mabel Osgood Wright: Pioneering Conservationist,” a film by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Karyl Evans.

Monday, March 20, 2023, 7 p.m. via Zoom.

Wright was among a small group of women from Fairfield who founded the Connecticut Audubon Society in 1898. The filmmaker, Karyl Evans, will open the presentation with an introduction about the movie and how she made it. A Q&A will follow the showing. 

Single-use plastics are a hazard to birds. This bill will reduce the problem.

Tuesday, February 21st, 2023

February 21, 2023 — Connecticut’s waters are awash in plastics, putting birds and other wildlife at risk. A bill before the General Assembly would help.

February 2023: Redosier Dogwood

Tuesday, February 21st, 2023

February 21, 2023 — Redosier dogwood (Cornus sericea), also known as red-twig or red-stem dogwood, is a handsome shrub form of the genus Cornus. The fruit of the dogwood genus (Cornus) is eaten by at least 95 species of birds.

Rat and mouse poisons also kill hawks and owls. Connecticut Audubon supports banning 2nd-generation rodenticides.

Thursday, February 16th, 2023

February 16, 2023 — Poisons that target rats and mice are especially insidious when it comes to birds. We submitted testimony in Hartford yesterday supporting a ban.

This pesticide kills pollinators and birds. It’s time to further restrict its use.

Wednesday, February 15th, 2023

February 15, 2023 — The Connecticut Audubon Society submitted testimony yesterday in support of a bill that would ban some uses of a pesticide that is particularly bad for pollinators and birds, and also asked for the proposal to be strengthened. We’ve been collaborating with the CT Pesticide Reform Coalition.

February 1898: The archives tell a story of ambition and success in building a statewide organization to preserve birds

Sunday, February 12th, 2023

February 12, 2023 — The group of people who founded the Connecticut Audubon Society 125 years ago was small, and everyone in the group was from the small town of Fairfield, population 4,500. But those realities did not hold them back. They were ambitious and well-organized, and they had plans to be part of something bigger. They didn’t stay local for long. and they didn’t stay small for long either.

“On Jany 28th 1898 the first meeting of the Audubon Society was held at the house of Mrs. W.B. Glover, in Fairfield”

Saturday, January 28th, 2023

January 28, 2023 — One hundred and twenty five years ago today, a small group of women organized to be part of a movement spreading across the country. The threat of extinction to a dozen or more birds was real, and the women wanted to do something about it. They formed the Audubon Society of the State of Connecticut

Nature on Display in New Exhibitions Celebrating Pulitzer Prize-Winning Writer and Photographer

Saturday, January 21st, 2023

January 21, 2023 – More than half a century ago, naturalist writer and photographer Edwin Way Teale bought a rustic retreat in the heart of northeastern Connecticut. His work at Trail Wood, a 168-acre farmstead in Hampton, inspired a new generation of environmental conservationists to honor the land and continue his legacy. Two public exhibitions that mark Teale’s legacy are opening this month.

January 2023: Eastern Red Cedar

Friday, January 20th, 2023

Eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) is a handsome evergreen conifer that offers structure and winter interest to our gardens. It is often overlooked, but cedar has much to offer the home gardener and is a magnet for birds and many species of butterflies and moths.

Connecticut Audubon’s newest preserve: Stratford Point, a conservation centerpiece in a rich ecological region

Monday, January 9th, 2023

January 9, 2023 — Connecticut Audubon is kicking off its 125th anniversary year by announcing the acquisition of the Stratford Point preserve, a 28-acre coastal habitat in the heart of one of the state’s most important environmental regions.

December 2022: Winterberry

Thursday, December 15th, 2022

  Homegrown Habitat provides advice on what and where to plant, one per month, written by Sarah W. Middeleer, a landscape designer whose work focuses on ecology and designing for wildlife. Sarah serves as vice chair of the Connecticut Audubon Board of Directors. Write to her at homegrown@ctaudubon.org. Winterberry Ilex verticillata December 15, 2022 — […]

Keep up with how the media covered Connecticut State of the Birds and the Osprey Nation 2022 report

Tuesday, December 6th, 2022

December 6, 2022 — Connecticut Audubon’s two recent, important reports captured the attention of the news media in the state and beyond. Both the Osprey Nation 2022 report (and the project itself) and the annual Connecticut State of the Birds report broke important news and explained trends in Connecticut bird conservation. Connecticut Audubon members and donors are responsible for the support needed to complete this important work.

Connecticut State of the Birds 2022: These Species Tell the Story of Conservation Over 125 Years, and Point to the Issues of the Future

Thursday, December 1st, 2022

December 1, 2022 — Connecticut Audubon’s 2022 State of the Birds report, released today, looks at the health and future of five groups of birds, in Connecticut and beyond, whose conservation history is tied closely to the history of environmental conservation in the United States. Titled “125 Years of Bird Conservation Through Local Action,” the report marks the 125th anniversary of the Connecticut Audubon Society, which was founded in January 1898. (Bald Eagle photo by Julian Hough.)

Join us on Dec. 1 for “125 Years of Bird Conservation Through Local Action” — the official release of the Connecticut State of the Birds 2022 report

Sunday, November 27th, 2022

November 27, 2022 — Join us on Thursday, December 1, 11 a.m., on Zoom for the official release of the 2022 Connecticut State of the Birds report. The authors of the report’s articles will join Connecticut Audubon staff to discuss the report and the history and future of conservation. It’s free but you must RSVP to get the link.

 

 

 

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