Red-necked Grebe
Podiceps grisegena
The Red-necked Grebe is a waterbird found in Connecticut coastal waters, rivers, and large inland lakes during the colder months of the year. This member of the family Gavidae (Loons and Grebes) is one of three species of grebes that include Connecticut in its normal range each year (the other two being Pied-billed Grebe and Horned Grebe).
King Eider
Somateria spectabilis
Where to find it: For the past two weeks there have been three King Eiders at Sunken Island in Fairfield, two females and one first-winter male. To look for these rare eiders, follow Beach Road in Fairfield west to its end at the mouth of Pine Creek. Sunken Island is about one quarter of a mile offshore and is covered at high tide, but the terminus is marked by a large red bell buoy. Small groups of ducks, including the eiders, are often seen feeding in the shallow water off the island. A spotting scope is necessary to view these birds, as they are usually 200 yards offshore.
Passenger Pigeon
Ectopistes migratorius
Where to find it: Passenger Pigeons have been extinct for exactly 100 years but on March 12 Connecticut Audubon Society and the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies are presenting a talk by Joel Greenberg, author of the new book A Feathered River Across the Sky: The Passenger Pigeon’s Flight to Extinction, at Kroon Hall. The talk is free and open to the public. One or two preserved Passenger Pigeon specimens from the collection of the Yale Peabody Museum will be on display, to give you a chance to see what they looked like.
Great Cormorant
Phalacrocorax carbo
The Great Cormorant is the largest North American cormorant and is found on nearly all continents. In the States, it is restricted to the east coast, where it breeds on a just a few rocky island colonies in Maine. It is a regular winter visitor to Connecticut where it replaces the more commonly found summer resident, the Double-crested Cormorant.
At the end of each summer, thousands of Tree Swallows swoop over the lower Connecticut River, hawking insects in massive, dark clouds. Autumn still sees big flocks of Common Grackles noisily moving through our woodlands and suburbs in search of food. Communal crow roosts and boisterous gull rookeries can still amaze us. But nothing we […]
Northern Harrier
Circus cyaneus
The Northern Harrier is a hawk of grasslands and open country. It is one of about 15 or so species in its genus, Circus, of the taxonomic family Accipitridae, which includes the various eagles, hawks, and kites.
For a number of years Connecticut Audubon Society been working in Hartford to try to improve the way the state of Connecticut acquires and protects open space. One of the key issues has been that when the state acquires conservation land, the land is not truly protected – the state, at its discretion, can sell […]
Barrow’s Goldeneye Bucephala islandica Where to find it: This is one of our rarer wintering ducks, but some locations over the years have been better than others. Currently a Barrow’s Goldeneye has been seen off and on at Penfield Reef in Fairfield. This week another was spotted at Gulf Beach in Milford. Over the years […]
Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatus) Where to find it: Hooded Mergansers are beautiful, small diving ducks that frequent open brackish creeks and marshes in the late fall and winter. Currently, one of the most reliable sites for viewing numbers of “Hoodies” is Lordship Boulevard, in Stratford, especially near the Sikorsky Airport, where the tidal creek flows into […]
Snow Goose
Chen caerulescens
Where to find it: Snow Goose occurs each winter in Connecticut but only in limited numbers, unlike the massive flocks found on the Delmarva Peninsula and the rice fields of Arkansas. Locally, you can expect to typically find one or two birds mixed in with large flocks of Canada Geese. Most records are from inland sites – from farm fields or of birds resting on lakes. Agricultural fields are your best bet in winter when this Arctic nesting species moves to the south.
Brown Creeper
Certhia americana
Where to find it: Brown Creepers are found throughout Connecticut in mature woodlands. In the winter, they frequent deciduous forests, often in with mixed flocks of chickadees and titmice. Their main diet consists of insects and larvae that they probe out of deep grooved bark. The deeper grooves hold more insects and eggs. Brown Creepers typically feed by “creeping” up and around the trunks of large trees and then dropping to the base of a nearby tree and starting over.
Save the Date
Wednesday, March 12, 7 pm
A talk by Joel Greenberg
Author of A Feathered River Across the Sky: The Passenger Pigeon’s Flight to Extinction
Lapland Longspur
Calcarius lapponicus
Where to find it: Those searching for Lapland Longspurs should visit coastal locations with open expanses of grassland, dunes, sand barrens or other open ruderal habitats.
Long-billed Dowitcher
Limnodromus scolopaceus
Where to find it: A single Long-billed Dowitcher has been present at the Birdseye Street boat ramp in Stratford for the past two weeks where it has been roosting along the shoreline.
Long-tailed Duck
Clangula hyemalis
Where to find it: Look in shallow, sandy bottomed, salt water areas of Long Island Sound, at the mouths of rivers and occasionally inland on larger rivers and lakes.
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Sphyrapicus varius
Where to find it: Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers can be found throughout the state particularly during fall migration and sporadically throughout the winter. It is more commonly found nesting in the northwest corner of the state and increasingly more common in the northeast corner.
The Ipswich Savannah Sparrow
Passerculus sandwichensis princeps
Where to find it: An Ipswich Sparrow has appeared at our Stratford Point Coastal Grassland Conservation Area this winter. It has been seen a handful of times on the outer bluffside trail, and is typically spotted by walking the trail until you note a very pale colored sparrow that may pop up onto one of the bluff boulders. We expect one or more individuals to remain with us at Stratford Point throughout the winter.
Snow Bunting
Plectrophenax nivalis
Where to find them:
Snow Buntings are commonly found in large flocks during fall migration at open coastal fields and parking lots, and in agricultural fields inland. The Connecticut Audubon Society’s Coastal Center at Milford Point is a good starting point, as is our Stratford Point coastal restoration site, across the Housatonic River.
Eurasian Wigeon
Anas penelope
Where to find it: Eurasian Wigeons (the bird to the left with the rust-colored head; the bird to the right of it is an American Wigeon) have been visiting Milford in recent weeks, at the Mondo Ponds Nature Preserve and Education Center and Jonathan Law High School pond.
November 22, 2013 – Rusty Blackbirds are now seeking out their wintering range. They are not common but you can find them in Connecticut, mixed in as individuals in flocks of other blackbirds species, or as small flocks of up to 30-plus individuals.
