Our Connecticut State of the Birds 2013 report, “The Seventh Habitat and the Decline of Our Aerial Insectivores,” delves into the mysterious population decline of 17 species of birds that nest in Connecticut and rely on a diet of insects caught on the wing. Released Friday, the report identifies pesticides as a possible cause of […]
Blog – Connecticut Audubon Society
Swallows, Swifts and Other Aerial Insectivores Are Declining: Connecticut State of the Birds 2013 Looks at Why
Sunday, February 24th, 2013Connecticut Audubon Society Opposes Diverting Funding from the Community Investment Act
Monday, February 18th, 2013The Community Investment Act is one of Connecticut’s most important sources of land conservation funds. Since 2005, it has funded 88 purchases, permanently protecting 2,707 acres of open space and 15 community gardens, at a cost of $15.3 million. Another round of grants announced recently will protect an additional 2,730 acres. But a bill being […]
Hurricane Sandy “Rapid Assessment” Study Finds Significant Habitat Damage from Virginia to Massachusetts, Including Connecticut
Saturday, January 12th, 2013Participating Conservation Scientists from Connecticut Audubon Society Reviewed Six Critical Habitats Along the State’s Coast and Found Major Erosion that Could Hinder Vulnerable Coastal Breeding Birds January 10, 2013 – In the days after Hurricane Sandy hit the coast, Connecticut Audubon Society’s conservation staff made field visits to six important habitats in the state and […]
Connecticut Audubon Completes Conservation Plan Aimed at Protecting the ‘Green Heart’ of Fairfield County for Aspetuck Land Trust
Wednesday, January 2nd, 2013Our Conservation Services staff has completed a major conservation and management plan for Aspetuck Land Trust, helping the organization balance conservation and recreation on its heavily-used Trout Brook Valley preserve. Trout Brook Valley is one of the most important ecological features of Fairfield County. It forms the core of a 6,400-acre expanse that our conservation […]
Conservation Funding Cut in Hartford But Only Partially
Thursday, December 20th, 2012The Connecticut General Assembly voted to cut $2 million from the Community Investment Act as part of Governor Malloy’s plan to reduce the state’s deficit. That counts as a victory of sorts for conservation because the governor’s proposal was to cut $5 million. Amy Patterson, the head of the Connecticut Land Conservation Council, which led […]
Take Action: Funding for Land Conservation is Under Threat in Hartford
Thursday, December 13th, 2012One of the only vehicles for funding land conservation in Connecticut right now is the Community Investment Act. It requires that every time a land transaction is recorded by a town clerk in the state, a small fee gets added on. The money goes into a fund to be used for land acquisition, farmland preservation, […]
Bull Moose
Friday, October 26th, 2012The photos of moose in Goshen that we posted on our blogs yesterday drew more than a thousand pageviews, and also prompted an email from Andrew LaBonte, a wildlife biologist with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Andrew is based in North Franklin. He had been working with our previous conservation biologist, Twan […]
For Connecticut’s Sake, Preserve Plum Island, N.Y.
Thursday, October 25th, 2012Plum Island, one of a string of small islands that extends off the tip of Orient Point, Long Island, is owned by the federal government and is being put up for sale. Its 840 acres are mostly undeveloped and encompass bluffs, beach, grasslands and other rare coastal habitat (more here). Roseate Terns, Piping Plovers, Least […]
Moose (and a Bear) at Our Croft Preserve in Litchfield County
Thursday, October 25th, 2012The motion-activated trail camera at our Richard G. Croft Memorial Preserve, in Goshen, captured some amazing photos of the resident family of moose (a male with a beautiful rack of antlers, one or two females, and a calf) recently. Here’s one of the photos. You can see more, along with a closeup of a bear […]
Three of the Next Generation of Conservationists Learn About Raptors at Our Center at Fairfield
Wednesday, October 17th, 2012Colleen Noyes, one of our teacher-naturalists, took to heart the message of our Connecticut State of the Birds 2012 report this week. The report – titled Where Is the Next Generation of Conservationists Coming From? – argues that kids today spend less time outdoors interacting with nature than previous generations did, and posits that that […]
