Unintentional Disturbances Threaten Waterbirds
There are a number of activities that can unintentionally scare, disturb or even threaten the survival of our waterbirds throughout the spring and summer seasons. Even a person with good intentions can fail to realize how sensitive a bird like the Piping Plover is, feeling threatened by dogs on the leash as they still see them as a predator invading their territory, making birds more prone to abandoning the area, wasting valuable energy or separating them from eggs or young, increasing mortality. Most beaches in Connecticut ban all dogs during the warm seasons in consideration of public...
Read MoreBrown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis)
The Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) is probably the most rare bird that my Shetland Sheepdog has on his actually seen Connecticut life list as one drifted over our heads, to his amazement, a few days after Superstorm Sandy at Stratford Point in Stratford, Connecticut in 2012. He has been around some cool rarities but this is a bird he really saw as he locked his eyes on the low and massive glider circling over us, flying back to the southwest and out of sight. This particular pelican was photographed in Florida, a place they would much rather be…especially now! Scott Kruitbosch...
Read MoreKeep Pets Indoors!
It is currently the heart of the winter season. Despite that I am often left wondering why dogs are roaming the neighborhood or left in the yard all day long, and how cats can be locked outside all night to freeze in the snow and dangerously low temperatures. Please keep your pets indoors or supervised for the benefit of wildlife and themselves! Cats should never be permitted outside as they are astoundingly adept bird and small mammal killers that take the lives of billions of creatures in our country each year. Dogs will enjoy playing outdoors any time, like my boy here, eating the snow...
Read MoreWintering Hermit Thrush
This is one of seemingly many (in the relative sense) Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) I have spotted in the last couple of months as this hardy species has been sticking out the late autumn in a number of my frequented locations. The bird pictured is one of those individuals. The most enigmatic sighting I had recently was with my Shetland Sheepdog a couple of weeks ago as we found a bird foraging in the lawn under a maple tree near the edge of mature woodlands. It looked at us and hopped up into one of the eye-level branches as we approached, casually watching us. It watched my dog...
Read MoreHappy Halloween!
Happy Halloween! I do not have any cute kids in costumes so I thought I would share my Shetland Sheepdog, Zach, looking the most serious he ever has in his life. That playful boy will be three years old next week and he is a hardcore birder, conservationist and biologist. He was raised as a puppy on hawk watching, waterbird monitoring and waterfowl hazing. He learned to always look up and enjoys watching doves flying around the neighborhood, sparrows scratching at the grass, ducks and geese swimming offshore, gulls feeding on the rocks and raptors screeching by. He has a heck of a life list...
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