American Lady butterfly (Vanessa virginiensis)
I have yet to see a Giant Swallowtail for 2014 but I was happy to photograph this American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis) while looking earlier this week at RTPI. How are your butterfly numbers doing? I’ve spotted a Monarch or two here and there when out for prolonged periods but it’s still slow.
Read MoreMonarch proposed to U.S. Endangered Species Act
Kudos to our friends at The Xerces Society for joining forces with other experts in filing a legal request with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to add the Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) to the Endangered Species Act. This process takes several years normally so prepare to wait! I was pleased to see they added a “request that the USFWS pass a special rule, called a 4(d) rule, that will allow scientific research, citizen tagging and monitoring, milkweed production, and non-commercial rearing in classrooms and households to continue and not to be considered as “take” or...
Read MoreNicoya Peninsula Avian Research Station seeking volunteers
The Nicoya Peninsula Avian Research Station is seeking volunteer banding technicians for a winter project in northwestern Costa Rica. The research is aimed toward the study of molt and aging criteria in Costa Rican resident bird species, and collection of data from wintering Nearctic-Neotropical migrants for the Institute for Bird Populations’ MoSI Program. Winter participants will aid in the operation of four bird banding sites on the Nicoya Peninsula. These positions are opportunities for students, educators, amateur or professional ornithologists, and nature enthusiasts to visit one of...
Read MoreShare eBird checklists with us
These Semipalmated Sandpipers may be flying by a coast near you now as shorebird migration heats up. Have you birded in Connecticut in 2014? Do you have eBird checklists from ANY 2014 date with ANY tern, shorebird or wader species? Please share them with us with the email address ctwaterbirds@gmail.com via eBird’s share function. This extra data and hours from time you spent as a citizen scientist helps our mission at the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds tremendously – thanks!
Read MoreConnecticut volunteers needed: fencing and signage removal
We now have three fencing removal dates set by CT DEEP to take down signage, stakes and string fencing placed on Connecticut beaches for the protection of of nesting coastal waterbirds and education of the public during the spring and summer. Breeding season is winding down and our Piping Plovers, Least Terns, American Oystercatchers and Common Terns have nearly all fledged and started to head south. We at the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds would appreciate any volunteers who could help us out at these locations and times: Monday, August 18th at 10:30AM – Long Beach in...
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