Banded Peregrine Falcon
Here is a recent flashback story for everyone on this lovely Friday. October is always a terrific month to find all sorts of raptors making their way south for a prolonged migration or dispersing from their nesting area to find acceptable wintering grounds. Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) continue to rebound from their demise due to pesticides in our region in the last century, taking up breeding sites on skyscrapers in major cities, under bridges on interstates, and even nest box platforms at locations like Dunkirk’s power plant on Lake Erie in our own Chautauqua County. Some of...
Read MoreAnother Western Rarity
There are scattered very rare western birds continually being spotted across the Northeast. A gorgeous male Painted Bunting in New York City’s Prospect Park made some big news recently, and yesterday Stefan Martin found a Townsend’s Solitaire in the Cos Cob section of Greenwich, Connecticut. Masschusetts, Vermont, Maine and New York have also had Townsend’s Solitaires recently, as you can see on this eBird occurrence map for the species – orange markers are less than 30 days old while others are from October and early November. Keep your eyes open for all sorts of...
Read MoreRecord Shattering Cold & Historic Snow
To be entirely honest I meant to write this blog entry a couple of weeks ago. Yes, I have been busy during that time with meetings, gearing up for spring and summer projects, surveying, and much more. Nevertheless, I could not get myself too excited to write about the unbelievably and astonishingly historic cold we have had this winter, especially in February, or the feet of snow dumped on the region, rewriting more records for some locations. After feeling the first signs of spring in the past week I feel renewed, ready for the thaw and once again energized about our weather and climate....
Read MoreWaterbird Working Group Meeting
This past Monday the Southern New England‐Long Island Sound Waterbird Working Group annual meeting was convened for the first time since 2013. A couple dozen representatives from government agencies and NGOs from Maine to New York, including RTPI Conservation & Outreach Coordinator Scott Kruitbosch, met in Connecticut to discuss the last season and prepare for the coming nesting season both in person and via webinar. It takes an enormous group effort to protect and save some of our most threatened birds. Photo by Audubon Connecticut Director of Bird Conservation Patrick...
Read MoreFebruary Snowy Owls
This blog entry is a companion to the Winter Bird Forecasts brought to you by Audubon Connecticut and the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History. Be sure to check out Winter Bird Forecast #5! Oh my, has it been cold and snowy or what? The last month was historic for some of our region as Boston and many other areas of Massachusetts have been buried in feet of snow. Parts of Connecticut and New York have been inundated as well and everyone across the Northeast has felt frigid air with barely any days above freezing, totally lacking any significant thaws. It is the definition of...
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