AAfCW thank you party
Here are some of our guests arriving as we set up earlier this evening at the beautiful Short Beach Park in Stratford, Connecticut to celebrate and thank all of the tremendous volunteers at the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds for their work in helping Audubon Connecticut, CT DEEP, USFWS and RTPI all spring and summer. We had at least 379 volunteers assist us in surveying, monitoring, outreach and education thus far in CT in 2014! It was a great evening with a lot of good friends and stories. Thank you again to all who have helped AAfCW in our first three years and thanks to the Town...
Read MoreMantis above Pachysandra
Here’s a Chinese Mantis hanging out while looking for a snack above a Pachysandra species a few hours ago on this cool September morning. The European Mantis is actually the official state insect of Connecticut despite the fact it is a non-native species. This is supposedly because, “mantis are beneficial insects for farmers and are therefore symbolic reminders of the importance of the natural environment to human and biological survival” according to the CT DEEP website. That is a confounding statement/explanation to me. Maybe we could try something else – the...
Read MoreCoyote advisement in Connecticut
I thought this coyote “warning” (really a press release that should be called a notification or information) released by the police department in my hometown of Stratford, Connecticut and the State of Connecticut DEEP Wildlife Division was interesting, both in content and approach. It contains a lot of helpful facts and tips so that everyone can enjoy the outdoors and know what to do if they see a coyote. The more we develop our world and make it favorable to certain species, taking away their habitat in the process, the more we will encounter them and have to adapt ourselves....
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...
Read MoreBeach birds and volunteer monitoring
Yesterday I was a part of beach training for the new volunteer monitors of the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds (AAfCW). This session, to help those entering the AAfCW program with how to safely monitor and survey Piping Plovers and Least Terns, was conducted by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection with staff from Audubon Connecticut and myself from RTPI on hand. AAfCW and our collective staff act as a bridge to aid the State of Connecticut and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, regulatory agencies for these state and, in the case of the Piping Plover,...
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