This has been a big year for the Barnacle Goose in Connecticut and the northeast as a whole. Europe has been seeing some very rough weather that may be to blame for it, as well as two Northern Lapwing sightings including Connecticut's first record. As someone who follows the weather, I have been watching it for some time as they get the snow and cold that I keep hoping for. Frank Mantlik found a Barnacle Goose at Wooster Park in Stratford earlier this morning. I popped over there shortly after he discovered it. Frank told me it was with a group of Canada that flew off, though fortunately it stayed for myself and others to stop by. You can see the goose resting and preening amongst the hundreds of Mallards, some Green-winged Teal, and a couple of American Black Duck in the HD video below.
The fact it is resting and preening was likely why it stayed when the other geese left. Frank also saw a Mallard and Northern Pintail hybrid he has found here in previous years. It is quite a nice looking duck. Once again, the temperatures have plummeted here. Ponds and lakes to the north should be freezing up soon. A couple days ago, I tweeted on the CAS Twitter account about how, before the warm front, this was already helping move waterfowl in to Connecticut. There is a lot more to come very soon as the state stays cold yet dry in the near future. The only storm threat in the next week seems to be a tiny threat from a system that retrogrades near the gulf of Maine. Flurries seem to be the only chance of precipitation, but it could move more interesting birds in and around the area.
Video © Scott Kruitbosch
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