Hot winter continues!

Nearly a month ago I wrote about how this was actually a "hot" winter with far above normal temperatures across our region of the country. The deviations we had been seeing were extreme, and I doubt I have to tell anyone who has been in Connecticut in the last week that this continued in an "off the charts" way. Vernal pool activity has been full steam ahead as frogs are singing their choruses night and day. Fox Sparrows and others are making a quiet march through the state, not being pushed into the open by snow that we could easily be having at this time of year.

Trees are exploding with buds as countless species of woody vegetation and flowers pop open with days in the mid 70s. In 2010 we experienced an incredible leaf-out with many trees full of leaves before most of the neotropical migrants had returned, making life easier for them but harder for eager birders. This year we stand a good chance of beating that. Take a look at the newly burned Stratford Point as green shoots pop up everywhere in the black earth!

We are shattering daily temperature records with by several degrees, and look to do much of the same again next week. So where do we stand on temperatures? Here is where we stood as of March 14 (in degrees Fahrenheit, via the National Weather Service):


Bridgeport
November: +4.3
December: +5.7
January: +5.6
February: +6.3
March: +7.0

Hartford
November: +3.9
December: +5.9
January: +5.5
February: +6.0
March: +6.8


Unbelievable. The early birds keep coming, too. Have you seen (or maybe more accurately heard) your first of year Eastern Phoebe or Pine Warbler yet? More will be on the way next week.


Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation Technician


All photos © Scott Kruitbosch and not to be reproduced without explicit permission

Utilities Merger Leads to Big Conservation Victory

As an organization, we want to see government agencies, landowners and non-profits work together to protect important habitats in Connecticut forever. That’s the model that has worked at Stratford Point, on land owned by the DuPont Corp., protected by a conservation easement held by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and managed by Connecticut Audubon Society.

But we don’t want the perfect to be the enemy of the good, which is why we supported an effort by Connecticut Fund for the Environment to use the proposed merger of Northeast Utilities and NSTAR as leverage to extend for another decade a memorandum of understanding concerning 9,500 acres owned by Northeast Utilities.

The 9,500 acres is spread around the state in 375 parcels. A decade or so ago, when it looked as if Con Edison was going to buy NU, the sale agreement included a memorandum of understanding that said if NU-Con Ed wanted to sell any of those parcels, it had to give advance notice to municipalities, land trusts, conservation organizations, etc.

That memorandum expires in two years. CFE used the proposed merger to push for a 10-year extension.

Which they achieved, for 8,500 acres.

The great news is that the other 1,000 acres will be preserved forever. Here’s what the Hartford Courant reported (the link includes a link to a PDF list of the 375 parcels):

... nearly 1,000 acres of that land — sparkling gems among the 375 tracts owned by NU — will be placed in an irrevocable land trust controlled by an independent board with appointed members, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection told me today. The trust will provide stewardship for 188 acres on King’s Island in Enfield and Suffield; 723 acres on Skiff Mountain in Sharon; 57 acres off Hanover Road in Newtown; and 13 acres off Bartlett Road in Waterford.

CFE led the conservationists’ efforts. Connecticut Audubon Society supported the work. Last month, Robert Martinez, CAS’s president, wrote to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority:

… we urge the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority to require an extension of the current Memorandum of Understanding that obligates NU to give advance notice to municipalities, land trusts and other conservation organizations when it offers any of those 375 tracts for sale. This advance notice is designed to give us and others time to evaluate the conservation value of the tract and formulate an acquisition strategy before the land is offered to developers.

We got what we wanted, and more. Which is good news for conservation in Connecticut.

Tom Andersen
Director of Communications and Community Outreach

March movement on the Sound

March is known for starting migratory movement, but the incredible +20-25 degree temperature deviation that occurred in the region yesterday only helped spur on even more birds our way. There have been multiple reports of Piping Plover, Osprey, Tree Swallows, Pine Warblers, Eastern Phoebes, and so forth arriving already, before we hit the midpoint of the month. I will let the incredible "heat wave" play out before analyzing that and its obvious effect on our environment (do you see all the trees with buds and flowers everywhere?!), but here are a few shots of birds coming and going around Stratford Point in the last week.

This Snow Bunting was one of a bunch on the way north. I do not think we will be seeing any more until fall after this...

 
Here is a record shot of three Northern Shovelers, a pleasant surprise last Sunday. I spotted another drake a few moments after I took that, and a hen has been seen as well as all five seem content to stick around in Long Island Sound. They are an uncommon find, though even more so in this spot, and quite rare for Stratford Point.

 
This pair of Brown-headed Cowbirds is feeding on the freshly burned grasslands, which have drawn in Common Grackles, Red-winged Blackbirds, American Robins, and of course unfortunate pests in the form of the European Starling. Killdeer have also been seen wandering over the blackened earth. It will be fascinating to see what else is attracted to the changed habitat.

 

Finally, this Song Sparrow may be a resident, or it may not, as many of the species and other wintering sparrows filter back to the north. Their numbers have increased while birds like the American Tree Sparrow are seen out of place, quietly moving back to their northern homes before the big waves of migrants commence flight.

Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation Technician


All photos © Scott Kruitbosch and not to be reproduced without explicit permission

Town of Stratford/CAS bird walk results 3/11

The latest Town of Stratford bird walk with CAS took place yesterday at the Stewart B. McKinney NWR "railroad track trail" and associated areas on Long Beach Boulevard. This popular birding destination is well known for its spring bounties of shorebirds and neotropical migrants, and can hold uncommon or threatened birds year-round. It is home to many state-listed species of birds, plants, reptiles, and more.

About 25 people enjoyed good views of a decent variety of birds considering the date and number of us traversing through the habitat. Two cool sightings bookended the walk with a Northern Harrier cruising by as we prepared to set out and a group of 31 migrant Fish Crows flying to the northeast as we said our goodbyes. Here are all of the species seen:

Mute Swan
Gadwall
American Black Duck
Mallard
Green-winged Teal
Great Blue Heron
Killdeer
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull (American)
Mourning Dove
Downy Woodpecker
Fish Crow
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Song Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
American Goldfinch

The list reflects mid-March rather well, with recently arrived blackbird species and Killdeer along with a few more ducks. In the next week we will see Tree Swallows zooming through the sky and warblers like Palm and Pine not long behind with this constant warm flow. Our next walk will be at Long Beach on 3/25 at 8 a.m. when we should be seeing more shorebirds and perhaps the infamous Piping Plover! We hope you can join us.


Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation Technician

More volunteers needed

Yesterday the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, as well as Audubon Connecticut and the Connecticut Audubon Society, both organizations working as the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds, joined together to help train volunteers to conserve threatened beach-nesting coastal waterbirds. The session went wonderfully with well over 40 enthusiastic volunteers in attendance, many new to this valuable service.

However, for those who could not make it Saturday or missed signing up, you can still join in helping monitor threatened species like the Piping Plover and Least Tern. You can call USFWS Ranger Shaun Roche at (860) 399-2513 or email Shaun_Roche@fws.gov, or email ctwaterbirds@gmail.com and the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds will instruct you about how to go about it. We will provide information, videos of the training session, and if you are new to volunteering, time with Master Plover Monitors or seasonal technicians on the beach.

Below is some of the original information for we sent out for potential volunteers so you can get a sense of what to expect as one.

=================

Connecticut's shoreline provides critical habitat for the federally threatened Piping Plover. You can help us conserve this threatened beach-nesting species:

    Do you have an interest in wildlife?
    Do you enjoy walking along the beaches of Long Island Sound?
    Can you spare at least two hours a month to help threatened birds in our state?

Please consider volunteering as a Piping Plover monitor for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service!

For the last several years the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the Connecticut Audubon Society, Audubon Connecticut, The Nature Conservancy and The Friends of Milford Point/Stratford Great Meadows NWR have partnered together to monitor beaches between West Haven and Stratford for nesting Piping Plovers.

These migratory birds return to the Connecticut coast each March from their wintering grounds on the Gulf Coast and stay here up to five months to nest and raise their young.  Located on the beach, their nests are extremely susceptible to human disturbance, destruction by predators, and tidal wash outs. Volunteer monitors make a big difference, enhancing the survival and productivity of plovers and terns in our state.

As a monitors, you will observe and record data about various beach nesting birds and their chicks on a variety of Connecticut beaches. The primary duties involve assisting the USFWS with observation and data collection about nesting Piping Plovers, and helping to educate the public about these species. Volunteers work 4-hour shifts from April until the end of the breeding season (usually in August) and must donate a minimum of 4 hours per month.

=================

Thank you for your interest!

Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbird Conservation, Audubon Connecticut and the Connecticut Audubon Society partnering to improve conditions for coastal waterbirds in Connecticut.


Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation Technician

Stratford Point bird walk 3/8 results

There is a reason I always advise visitors to keep in mind that Stratford Point is typically colder and windier than the rest of the state, and yesterday was a perfect example. While inland Stratford was in the mid 60s with a light and warm-feeling breeze, Stratford Point topped off in the upper 50s with strong cold-feeling wind off the still chilly Long Island Sound. I had scheduled the walk the day after the full moon coinciding with low tide in the hopes we would have plankton-feeding birds (see this post on that subject) as well as many coming in to rest on the sandbars in the mouth of the Housatonic River. Normally calm waters are better for this type of feeding, but even with some waves the gulls were here!

Despite the windy and rough conditions, and the fact we felt frozen as the sun went down, a nice group of people enjoyed a bird walk that featured thousands of gulls. I estimated, considering how many were in front of us and going in and out of the area, feeding on the water and on the sandbars, we had around 4,000 gulls. About 75-80% of them were Ring-billed Gulls, with the rest being Herring, sprinkled in with a few Great Black-backed. Walk participant Tina Green picked out a rare adult Lesser Black-backed Gull that was plankton-feeding in gull groups the size of the shots below. They were actually far closer to shore than they appear (not all white dots) but I wanted to show everyone the magnitude of what occurs, and scopes offered excellent views.

 

 
Also in the large group of gulls feeding along with them were American Black Duck, American Wigeon, Greater and Lesser Scaup, and Bufflehead - very cool! Here is the full list of birds seen on the day, a few being before most of the group arrived as I walked the property.

Brant
Mute Swan
Gadwall
American Wigeon
American Black Duck 
Mallard
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Surf Scoter
Long-tailed Duck 
Bufflehead
Red-breasted Merganser 
Red-throated Loon
Common Loon 
Great Cormorant
Killdeer
Sanderling
Dunlin
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull (American)
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Song Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird 
House Finch 
House Sparrow 

Thank you to everyone who came! If you couldn't make it we hope to see you next time and will schedule an April walk soon.


Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation Technician

All photos © Scott Kruitbosch and not to be reproduced without explicit permission

Merlin and more raptors coming back

I mentioned in this post on the Stratford Point controlled burn that the Bald Eagle that flew over may have been a returning migrant as it moved in the correct direction and we do not often see them fly over in such a manner. Last week I also had this Merlin show up at Stratford Point, and having not had one for over two months, I presume this bird was also on the move back north.

It sat in the White-tailed Kite's old tree doing absolutely nothing else, likely tired from a journey back to New England and resting up for another one to who knows where. It was not there in the morning, only the mid-afternoon, and may well have flown in. We often see such birds at Stratford Point, and in the past I have observed them coming up the coastline and landing here, or even out from the middle of Long Island Sound. Last year I recall an American Kestrel zooming in from out over the water and landing on one of our telephone poles.

It is a very good time to see some of these falcons and others returning to known areas or passing by migrant traps. Get your kestrel boxes up now!


Scott Kruitbosch
Conservation Technician
 
All photos © Scott Kruitbosch and not to be reproduced without explicit permission