Outrageously Outstanding Outreach
The Bridgeport WildLife Guards are rolling along in the 2016 season, and last week I stopped in to visit them for a while on a couple of days. We went for a walk to see some Piping Plovers and Least Terns along their own Pleasure Beach and the connected Long Beach in Stratford, the two parts of the mile-long barrier beach. While Pleasure Beach’s Piping Plover has fledged we still sometimes find a bird or two foraging or flying by. No Least Terns nested there in 2016, but they are currently nesting in nearby areas of Long Beach. Those birds forage all over the general area so visitors...
Read MoreButterfly on Butterfly
Here we have butterfly on butterfly – Monarch (Danaus plexippus) butterflies nectaring on this Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) as photographed yesterday and today. The Asclepias likely tipped you off to the fact that this is indeed a species of native milkweed plant. It is always attractive to our lepidoptera. Enjoy the orange on orange! Have you found your Monarchs yet? How about any eggs or caterpillars? Scott Kruitbosch Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
Read MoreEastern Tiger Swallowtail
There is no way to overstate how perfect, fresh and crisp this gorgeous Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) looked while feeding on the Eastern Purple Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) last week. This individual was meticulously designed and seemed hand-crafted for ultimate beauty. It actually flew on to a flower for a drink within a couple feet of me while I was already photographing a skipper, showing no trepidation as I was swinging a big lens all over the place. I had to back up to be able to focus! This dorsal view shows well that is a female with all of that blue along the outer...
Read MoreGadwall Sunset
I photographed this spectacular sunset last week at Stratford Point while attempting to give it a number of different looks by changing lenses and positioning. A friendly Gadwall felt a little less friendly once it saw me approaching the water, but you can still see the duck behind the spartina in the first photo. That spartina is slowly regenerating and growing in to the intertidal zone, helping to protect and preserve the low energy side of the site from tidal and wave action. There are still plenty of pools for long-legged waders to feed in on small fish like sand lance, and there are...
Read MoreEdible Invasives
As part of our initiative to raise awareness about problematic local plants during New York Invasive Species Awareness Week, we hosted a special event entitled ‘Backyard Botanical Bothers’ at RTPI’s new satellite location at 108 East Third Street in Jamestown. I teamed up with a talented local chef, James Salamone to create a few tasty dishes utilizing invasive plants. In the days leading up to Tueday’s event, we foraged for fresh ingredients in local fields and forests. Samples of the two dishes we created, ‘Garlic Mustard Fried Rice’ and ‘Wild Blackberry-Knotweed Cobbler’, were served up...
Read MoreWildLife Guards Learning & Educating
The Bridgeport WildLife Guards are both learning and educating at Pleasure Beach! RTPI and Audubon Connecticut trained staff members teach these high school students each day, and they in turn help to educate dozens of daily visitors about the rare and endangered plants and animals that surround them along this stunning shoreline. We are teaching the teachers of the next generation about science and conservation, and as you can see below, they are engaging in creative ways to reach people – especially children. I spent some time with the WildLife Guards last Saturday and observed their...
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