Palm Warbler
Yesterday morning I went out to bird for a bit and had my sights set on a few target species. It may have only been April 23, but the birds have been early thanks to the warm past couple of months, and some of our spring migratory species are already peaking. I definitely wanted to photograph a Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum) in their bright spring yellows before they escaped me to the north for the nesting season. Thankfully this individual delivered, posing for me for about 15 seconds in between foraging. I had followed it for a minute along the forest floor and it took notice –...
Read MoreYellow-rumped Warbler
Here it is, the most abundant warbler you will likely see this year – the Yellow-rumped Warbler. In this case the bird was not showing off where it got that name, and instead it fluffed up and shook off for a moment while still watching for prey. There were plenty of flying (and biting!) insects already in the air here in late April, and it along with dozens of others had their fill flitting through the forest canopy. You can also see the leaves beginning to emerge. In a couple of weeks there will be a lot of green across the landscape and views like this one will already be covered...
Read MoreChipping Sparrow
This is a Chipping Sparrow (Spizella passerina), one of a few of the species I observed and photographed this past Thursday. The early spring sparrow migrants continue to pour through the region with dozens and dozens of Savannah Sparrows dominating any grasslands, fields, farms and open areas. The Eastern Towhees are calling out from shrub and scrub patches, yards, feeding stations and power line corridors. Winter friends like White-throated Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos are starting to wrap up their pushes north for the breeding season. The Field Sparrows have returned to nest right where...
Read MoreWinter Tour Wrap Up
This past winter certainly was an interesting one! With swinging temperatures and sporadic snow storms, much of the area was pretty barren for a majority of the winter season. However, when snow came it was often just enough to get trails prepared and open for snowmobile, ski, snowshoe and foot traffic to pass through. During these short spurts of activity, RTPI’s “Nature at Your Fingertips” winter trails cell phone tour got quite a bit of attention as riders and the like explored the area and it’s many fascinating stories. Below you can find a full summary of this...
Read MoreCT DEEP AAfCW Beach Training
A big thank you to the volunteers who attended Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection training on how to monitor Piping Plovers and Least Terns at Sandy/Morse Points in West Haven this past Sunday. CT DEEP Wildlife Biologist Laura Saucier was joined by Audubon Connecticut Waterbird Technician Ewa Holland and me in my role as Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds Volunteer Coordinator. We gathered with our monitors on the beach on a truly beautiful Sunday morning with the sun shining brightly on the shore. Laura discussed the finer points of how to approach these...
Read MoreNo Migration – Until Now?
Here is an image of last night’s radar taken a little before midnight with strong and heavy avian migration occurring across the Deep South and Gulf Coast. Very few birds made it into the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, and there was no action in the Northeast. It was yet another night of poor bird movement for us, continuing a pattern and a theme that has persisted for a while this April. We have had lovely weather recently all thanks to northerly-based flows keeping air moving off the land being warmed by the sun as high pressures have been centered over the Great Lakes or Mid-Atlantic. We...
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