Grasshopper Sparrow
Here’s another winter treat from earlier this week – a Grasshopper Sparrow! This bird should have been spending its holidays wintering in the southern U.S. or Central America. However, our friend Paul Fusco spotted this little one feeding in open grass along a trail. This was before the major snowfall on Thursday, and conditions have only worsened. We put some seed out for it that the bird was enjoying at the time. Hopefully it kept moving south before the latest storm and found refuge in other locations like this. Grasshopper Sparrows are another grasslands species with a...
Read MoreSunset on Stratford Point
Everyone seemed to enjoy these sunset photos from last week at Stratford Point so I thought I would share them with all of you here, too. It has been so satisfying to see our gorgeous gardens being so busy after a year of hard work by staff and volunteers watering, weeding, planting additions, and maintaining everything we have to offer our pollinators and birds. We are all eager to see what sparrows arrive to feed on the many seeds in our plots during the most sparrow-y month of the year. Scott Kruitbosch Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
Read MoreIpswich Savannah Sparrow
The Savannah Sparrow is a familiar bird to many of us, abundant in our farmlands, fields, grasslands, shrublands, shores, roadsides, and other open habitats. You can find them across the northern U.S. and Canada during the nesting and migration seasons, and you’ll spot them overwintering in the southern U.S. or Mexico. This particular individual looks a little different than your average Savannah Sparrow – notice anything unusual? It is somewhat larger and heavier that a typical Savannah Sparrow, and its brown shades and yellow eye spot are considerably paler. This is an...
Read MoreJanuary Sunset
This has been a tough winter for sunsets with either inclement weather and overcast skies or often low, dark clouds covering up the sun slipping under the horizon. However, last night was an exception for us at Stratford Point as we were treated to this sight. The snow is gone! Will we be getting more soon instead of setting record highs? Scott Kruitbosch Conservation & Outreach Coordinator
Read MoreOrange-crowned Warbler
This Orange-crowned Warbler (Oreothlypis celata) was a great surprise to see and photograph today after it was found at Stratford Point by my colleague Patrick Comins, Audubon Connecticut’s Director of Bird Conservation. They are an uncommon warbler even in some of the more common parts of their range, and a tough one to find in the Northeast thus far this fall. We were at the office this Saturday morning and afternoon for a staff and volunteer work party to plant more trees, grasses, and shrubs for birds, but the Orange-crowned seemed at home in the mugwort and existing grasslands,...
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