Stratford Point Thanksgiving birds

I stopped by Stratford Point today to do a standard survey and found a few notable birds. As I drove up, I saw a small group of Canada Geese fly by. This in itself is a bit odd for the site. A few more followed during the hour I was there, and one of them contained an obvious Cackling Goose. This was a new species for us at Stratford Point. It was the second I have seen this year out of several thousand Canada Geese. On the water, I saw three more Northern Gannet, a rare but relatively easily seen species at the right time of year there. Finally, I found five Snow Buntings feeding on the grasses in the driveway. They were cooperative and let me snap off a couple hundred photos.

We see you!

I know they can be a tough to find species in Connecticut, and especially tough to get nice views of. We often have them sitting on rocks or feeding on various grasses here in the late fall and winter. They are especially cool to see in the snow. I hope we get more of both soon.

The rare birds seem to love the rocks

Photos © Scott Kruitbosch