Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds at Jamestown Audubon
Tomorrow, October 3, I will be presenting a program on the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds (AAfCW) at the Jamestown Audubon Center & Sanctuary at 11AM. AAfCW 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 and Environmental Protection (CT DEEP) in an innovative joint initiative on Connecticut’s beaches, islands, and other coastal areas to monitor birds like the federally threatened Piping Plover and...
Read MoreGreat success with Connecticut waterbirds
Today I sent out the final 2014 Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds (AAfCW) weekly update email to all of our shorebird monitors and volunteers. Waterbird nesting season has come to a close and all of the juvenile and adult birds are on the way south for the year. Despite having a reduced staff the third AAfCW year may be the most successful yet in terms of breeding productivity for critical species like the federally threatened Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus), habitat monitoring, conservation efforts, volunteer engagement, outreach and education. Here is a brief rundown of some of...
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 MoreLeast Tern hatchling (Sternula antillarum)
We have a bunch of our Connecticut locations with hatchling Least Terns right now though they are not anywhere in the state in high numbers this year. They can be a difficult species to predict and protect, sensitive to a multitude of disturbances both natural and introduced by humans and vulnerable to changes in prey levels.
Read MoreConnecticut waterbirds in action
We are currently at the peak of activity for Connecticut’s waterbirds with terns, shorebirds and long-legged waders raising young across the state. The shoreline and its beaches, marshes and other waterways are full of activity with birds foraging, carrying food back to hatchlings or mates, defending territories and protecting eggs…there is something to look at everywhere! RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser and I have been hard at work on our Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds project and spent some time surveying this week collecting these photos along the way. Bear in mind when...
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