Conservation Science

This six-year study, using college students as interns, examined the diversity and distribution of submerged aquatic vegetation along the lower Connecticut River.

Firefly Atlas is a national program designed to better understand and conserve the diversity of fireflies in North America. Fireflies use a pattern of light producing flashes to find and recognize each other. Participants attend a training session at the RTP Estuary Center to discuss how to collect data for Firefly Atlas and how to recognize flash patterns. Using monitoring supplies provided by the RTPEC, volunteers will choose a local observation site. Participants will start monitoring after sunset and record information on habitat, weather, firefly species, and flash patterns.

The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is a four-day global event, integrated with the eBird online checklist program. Participants submit observations from more than 120 countries documenting more than half the world’s species. Learn how to participate in the count and what birds you can see in Connecticut in winter in our webinar, then search for birds with us at the Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center.

Odonata Central is a national program designed to expand the understanding of the distribution, biogeography, biodiversity, and identification of Odonata—dragonflies and damselflies—in the Western Hemisphere. Participants attend a training session at the RTP Estuary Center to discuss the biology of odonates and how to collect data. With monitoring supplies from the RTPEC, volunteers will choose a location to monitor, photographing and identifying dragonflies and damselflies that they encounter.

Project FeederWatch, run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, aims to track winter populations of birds throughout North America. It runs from November 1 to April 30, and provides information on wintering populations, as well as habitat and resource use. Participants monitor birds in their area (no feeders are needed) and provide weekly data on when and where birds are. The RTP Estuary Center participates in FeederWatch, monitoring birds at the feeders in our sunken garden.

Project Limulus is a regional program organized by Sacred Heart University in Fairfield. The objective is to better understand the distribution, movement, longevity, and mortality of horseshoe crabs in Long Island Sound. Horseshoe crabs are a near-threatened species, and overharvesting has led to a dramatic decline.

Participants can attend a virtual training session via Zoom to discuss the biology of horseshoe crabs, as well as the protocol for counting and tagging at the beach. A separate day will be dedicated to the beach event to take part in tagging and monitoring horseshoe crabs. 

The Shorebird Monitoring program trains and coordinates volunteer stewards to work with state and federal agencies to monitor nesting coastal birds and educate the public. This project is conducted in partnership with the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds, Audubon Connecticut, DEEP, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History and US Fish and Wildlife.