Hours of steady snowfall resulting in the accumulation of four to five inches of snow on the ground.  Several hours of rain turning that snow into slush and ice. And, that was just the weather before noon!  The 117th annual New Haven Christmas Bird Count was held under difficult conditions, to say the least....

Fargeorge Wildlife Refuge Trip Report: 22 people attending the New Haven Land Trust - New Haven Bird Club joint fieldtrip on Saturday Nov 5, 2016 to the New Haven Land Trust’s Fargeorge Wildlife refuge off of Quinnipiac Ave in New Haven. The weather was chilly and a little cloudy to start. ...

On a rainy September 1st Thursday morning at Milford Point, ten weather-defying birders headed out to the main sandbar, targeting especially its western end, to search for migrating shorebirds. On the way out we found a singing Marsh Wren that posed nicely in the Spartina near the beach. More entertainment was provided by at least 4 juvenile Yellow-crowned Night...

There were fifteen participants on this mid-afternoon walk on the Massaro Farm property in Woodbridge.  The farm is community-supported and is open to the public. There are weedy fields, farm fields, and wet woodlands.  We hiked through some of the fields, and then walked the nature trail through the woods. Despite the cool, blustery day, we saw a number...

Fifteen birders had a fine morning at this beautiful and wild locale.  We hiked from Hunters Mountain Road, down through the ravine, up Forest Road, and then across to the fields north of our starting point.  It was a windy and cool day, but we saw lots of good birds.   Highlights included: Hooded Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Worm-eating...

Twenty six early rising birders met at 7 am Saturday morning at the Keeny Road entrance to the Nehantic State Forest, to be greeted by both Turkey and Black Vultures warming their wings in the morning sun. During the next three and a half hours we birded the road, stopping at Falls Brook crossing, Uncas Pond and the Keeny...

Rhode Island Coast Field Trip Report February 27, 2016 We had a very good day.  Twenty-five birders strong, our resolute group invaded the state to our east for a full day of birding.  We started our day at Beavertail State Park in Jamestown.  It was seasonably cold, but pleasantly calm and clear, and there were lots of birds.  Most...

1/9/16 Hammonasset Beach SP, Madison, CT. The first New Haven Bird Club weekend walk of the year saw 25 participants find 43 different species over four hours this morning in the park while negotiating an extremely high tide. The weather was perfect given the date. Highlights included two first winter Baltimore Orioles, a single Purple Sandpiper and a Dunlin...

Our trip to Lake Chamberlain and the Cooper farm was a splendid fall day. 25 People, including a number of new birders, gathered by the marshy field to watch robins, cedar waxwings and white throated sparrows. Our trip across the dam was rewarded with a flock of 5 bluebirds posing on a bush so that we all got a...

There were 11 of us that braved the Beautiful Fall Weather and went on the joint trip with the New Haven Land Trust and our Bird Club. The big features were lots and lots of Cedar Waxwings and Loads of Robins plus a roosted up American Bald Eagle. The tide was dead low so Hemingway Creek was empty, so...

18 birders took advantage of a spectacular fall day for a walk through a number of Hammonasset spots. A total of 42 species were seen on a birdy day. Highlights included a cooperative Pied-billed Grebe on Swan Pond with several Killdeer on the field across the road. Willard’s Island held many Kinglets, both Golden and Ruby-crowned as well as...

Eighteen enthusiastic birders went to the Nehantic State Forest and Hartman Park in Lyme on May 17th for a full and satisfying morning of birding. We drove on Keeny Road from west to east in the Forest, stopping numerous times along the way. Noteworthy sightings in the Forest were: Great Blue Heron, Yellow-billed Cuckoo (two separate birds at the...

About 16 club members went to the Naugatuck State Forest on May 16th for a fine morning of birding. We had to wait out the rain for about an hour or so, and it was a bit wet as we started on the trails, but it dried up eventually and we saw great birds everywhere we went. We started...

28 birders participated in the Mother’s Day bird walk at the Racebrook Tract in Orange and Woodbridge. We walked through beautiful deciduous and mixed coniferous woodlands, through the open brush of a power line cut, and along picturesque woodland streams. We were treated to fine looks at several beautiful and striking birds, including Baltimore Orioles, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, and Scarlet...

Rhode Island Coast Field Trip Report Five brave club members ventured to the RI coast on this cold and wintry day, despite the threat of an approaching storm.  Confident that there’d be time for some good birding before the snow began to fall, we met at the commuter lot in Branford at 7 am and headed northeast.  We were...

First Wednesday Walk 2/4/15 Greg Hanisek lead the walk at Hammonasset Beach State Park attended by ten enthusiastic birders.The deep snow cover was a challenge and we had to work hard for the 38 species seen by most of the group. We managed to find 12 waterfowl species on open fresh water and a relatively calm  Long Island Sound.The...

New Haven Summer Bird Count: June 7 & 8 (Sat. & Sun.) 2014 Totals: 128 species, 8,565 individual birds. Forty observers in 18 Parties spent 139 party hours in the field.   Since the Count was founded in 1991, 187 count day species have been confirmed here with the addition this year of Olive-sided Flycatcher. Weather:  6/7– daytime: N/W winds...

Lighthouse Point Park Hawk Watch, August to December The hawk flight schedule seemed to have “moved to the right”, this year. We had a record slow August, with no real cold fronts, and then the worst September since full coverage began in 1980. October totals rebounded, although the traditional peak Columbus Day weekend failed to bring huge numbers. Our...

Twelve intrepid club members braved a cold, wet day to go on a whirlwind birding tour in Milford and Stratford. We went to Milford Point first.  There were several species of waterfowl in the marsh, including Gadwall and Bufflehead.  On the sound side of the point, we saw Common Goldeneye, Long-tailed Duck, and Red-breasted Merganser.  A drake Northern Pintail...

New Haven CBC Summary On December 20th, 2014, 84 birders, most of them club members, participated in the 115th annual New Haven Christmas Bird Count.  It was a cool, calm, and gray day without precipitation.  The birding was good along the coast and inland.  A number of interesting and uncommon birds were seen.  Notable sightings included Snow Goose (in...