Snowy Owl Eyes
The Snowy Owl currently delighting the Connecticut shoreline stopped by Stratford Point again today, and I took a few minutes to take some shots of our friend. This bird first visited us 11 days ago, and it has made the lighthouse its home at times. Today it was sitting on the tip of the bluff as it was during its initial visit, and I was able to get some closer photos. These were taken at 500mm and are extremely cropped. I have plenty of photos with its eyes mostly shut, and my point is that the bird was not alarmed by our presence – I just chose to share the shots showing its...
Read More2015 Waterbird Results
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s Wildlife Division (CT DEEP) has now released the official nesting results for the state-threatened Least Tern and the federally-threatened Piping Plover from the 2015 monitoring season, and the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds (AAfCW) – Audubon Connecticut and the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History – has completed our American Oystercatcher report. The first bit of fantastic news is that we hosted a new all-time high number of Piping Plover pairs in the state with 62 attempting to breed...
Read MoreJanuary Black-bellied Plover
This Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola) is one of several that have been hanging out around the Stratford Point area all winter. The species can overwinter in Connecticut if the season is cooperative enough without ice, snow and frigid temperatures making foraging and surviving more difficult, and so far we have been treating them relatively well. While it has been a chilly week we have only had a trace of snow, and the daytime temperatures still climb to above freezing. In only two months dozens of our volunteer monitors will be hitting the field for the beginning of the Audubon...
Read MoreSnowy Owl on Lighthouse
There is a new lighthouse keeper at the Stratford Point light – or at least there was for a little while – as this Snowy Owl sat on duty on the platform. I will trust you to keep it between us when I tell you that, for the most part, the Snowy stayed in the shade and snoozed the day away. There was a little bit of preening and an occasional stretch, but the bird used this great out of the way location as a sleeping spot. It certainly looks valiant and noble perched up there, likely wondering how this wonderful perch was made in such a perfect location along the water with long...
Read MoreSnowy Squinting
Hey, if you were staring into the sun, you would be squinting your eyes, right? It’s no different for a Snowy Owl with those big yellow eyes. No, this bird was not trying to nap, it was just doing what comes naturally. This is the same individual as Monday’s posting and was from the same day, too. This bird has been all over the coast of Stratford and Milford, Connecticut, being very active and enjoying the varied and favorable pockets of habitat. Long Island Sound has a lot of appeal to the species, and I wonder what it is doing at night with all of the ducks we have pouring...
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