2016 AAfCW Totals
I thought it would be a terrific time to update everyone on our Piping Plover and American Oystercatcher numbers for 2016 as we near the end of our year. RTPI is proud to be a partner with Audubon Connecticut for the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds‘ (AAfCW) sixth season in 2017, an active conservation, education and outreach project that provides stewardship and survey efforts by volunteers and staff working to help the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) and Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (CT DEEP) in an innovative joint initiative on...
Read MoreChristmas Bird Counts
Merry Christmas! And Merry Christmas Bird Count season! Whenever December rolls around we all look forward to a day in the field with friends near the holidays or New Year, heading outdoors to record every bird we can in designated areas and count circles in the longest-running citizen science program in the nation. You can learn more about the history of the Audubon Christmas Bird Count here on their website. I have been participating in my hometown count, the Stratford-Milford Connecticut circle, for years. It typically takes place right near Christmas, and in 2016 we found ourselves...
Read MoreJuvenile Northern Harrier
I recently wrote about our winter raptors, and boy oh boy, did we ever get the winter in Chautauqua County! Short-eared Owls (Asio flammeus) and Northern Harriers (Circus cyaneus), like the juvenile recently photographed below, are able to hunt and survive in deep snow, but we may be pushing the limit for some birds in the region now. The snow cover and frigid temperatures are shaking up the local mix of birds of all sorts of species, from ducks to songbirds. A Short-eared Owl was spotted in the county earlier this week, and no doubt others may be easier to find now as they hunt the white...
Read MoreGray Ghost & Winter Raptors
We are now in the beginning of meteorological winter and nearing the start of astronomical winter. Our birds, as usual, are already prepared for the season however we wish to define it, having migrated, irrupted, or dispersed to wintering grounds throughout the region, continent, or perhaps even out of our hemisphere. Those that remain with us have evolved to cope with the freezing conditions and heavy snowfall. One such species is the Northern Harrier, and last week I photographed this adult male “gray ghost” while it was hunting. Look at that gaze – magnificent! The Roger...
Read MoreInjured Rusty Blackbird
I am a huge fan of the Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus), something you may have learned by reading my posts over the last few years here at RTPI. Beyond fandom I am also a member of the International Rusty Blackbird Working Group and help to coordinate spring migration blitzes to record the species with birders and the public to learn more about vital aspects of their biology in an attempt to save one of the fastest declining birds on the continent. October is a great time to spot them heading south for the winter in wooded wetlands, marshes, ponds and agricultural areas. They may be...
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