Well, it's happening. In one week, I will be moving to northern Ohio and leaving Connecticut behind, probably forever. I was in Connecticut because of graduate school, and now that's done, and it's on to new professional endeavors in new places. Ohio is in fact a temporary location for us -- my job there is just a one-year position -- but the change is a good one. I'm very, very excited about all the new things we'll see, the place where we'll be living (much more on that later), and the job. But, of course, I'll miss many things about Connecticut, which has been my home for the past six years.
I'll be doing a few wrapping-up posts over the next week to properly say goodbye to Connecticut. (Don't worry, the blog is coming with me to Ohio.) One part of Connecticut that I will definitely miss is the shore. So during my final visits to Silver Sands State Park this morning and last Thursday, I was sure to thoroughly appreciate the creatures that I'm not likely to see again for quite a while.
It always feels special to see Clapper Rails in these marshes, and I was very happy to see one preening itself out in the open this morning. I don't know if I will ever again be in a place with Clapper Rails as bold and readily visible as those at Silver Sands State Park, and I will miss these birds for sure:
Snowy Egrets are very common here, and I took the time to admire these gorgeous birds this morning:
As a special shorebird bonus, a couple of American Oystercatchers lit up the shoreline this morning with their flamboyant beaks:
And a lovely Spotted Sandpiper scrambled over rocks at the water's edge last week:
The Piping Plover family has dispersed from their nesting area by now, and I was lucky enough to come across one of the juveniles in this park last week. I know it's one of the fledglings from the nest I was monitoring because of that distinctive injured leg:
This bird was moving and foraging well on just the one leg, and it flew away just fine. I have no idea what happened to this bird when it was a baby, but I'm heartened to know that it's made it this far. The more Piping Plovers surviving out there, the better. Fare well, lovely little bird, and best of luck!
A couple of Killdeer were running around on the beach this morning. I thought these birds might have also been this season's grown hatchlings, withthose brownish (rather than pristine white) bands on their breasts, but I don't know for sure:
A plump Groundhog was munching away in the flower-filled grass last week:
And this marvelous Blue Dasher dragonfly (Pachydiplax longipennis) posed for a picture:
This morning's insect highlight was a supremely blue damselfly (I'm not certain of the species):
I couldn't have asked for better sights on my final visits to the Connecticut shore!
Silver Sands State Park yesterday morning was the busiest I've seen it so far this year. Not people-busy, but extremely active with creatures all over the place, flying or romping or being in love. The sort of weird breeding-time behavior I saw in the woods earlier this week is showing up at the beach, too.
The highlight of the trip was a pair of American Oystercatchers who just could not contain their feelings for each other. These two birds would stand near each other on the beach, prodding the sand with those crazy flaming-poker beaks, and acting pretty normal:
And then all of a sudden, both birds would burst into the air and fly together all up and down the shoreline in close synchronization, calling loudly the entire time:
These birds did this several times while I was there, and it was so extravagant and very entertaining to watch. Plus, it just looked like they were having a ton of fun:
OK, you two, there are some nice stretches of sand here just waiting for a nest. Maybe there will be some oystercatcher eggs someday soon?
A couple of Herring Gulls were acting a little love-struck, too, tossing their heads and touching beaks -- much more subdued behavior than the oystercatchers' antics:
The terns are back in Connecticut now, and I saw two Common Terns resting on some rocks at low tide (just look at those long, long wings):
I had a great time watching several Least Terns zooming around, too. These birds make such amazingly elegant shapes in the air with their perfectly pointed wings and tail:
A Merlin was also haunting the area (not a common bird at this time of year), until it got chased off by some very annoyed Barn Swallows:
Later, the Merlin flew over my head, and I got to admire its speedy falcon shape and the very pretty pattern under its wings:
Snowy Egrets are a constant fixture in this park in the spring and summer, and it's always worth stopping to watch these awesome birds for a bit. This one was snatching little fish from the ocean shallows, looking very dramatic against those dark rocks:
Here's something I'd never seen on these beaches before -- a washed-up jellyfish:
I think this is a Lion's Mane Jellyfish (Cyanea capillata); I'm basing that guess on similar pictures that came up when I searched for "jellyfish in Connecticut." This creature was several inches across, which seemed pretty big to me, but apparently this species can grow to several feet across, and Wikipedia says that makes it the largest known species of jellyfish. So that's pretty crazy and cool!
Finally, White-tailed Deer thrive in this park, and I'm almost guaranteed to see some on any given visit. This time, a herd of several individuals (including a couple males with just-emerging antlers) was grazing in a field above the road, making for a peaceful picture:
May is such an active month, with so many changes in plant and animal life. I'm already itching to get back out into the woods again! But the beach is always a great place to visit, too.
Happy May! Today was yet another gorgeous spring day (keep 'em coming!) and I was happy to spend the morning wandering the beaches of Silver Sands State Park, where I volunteer once a week to monitor for Piping Plovers and other shorebirds. I didn't see any plovers today -- none of these little birds nested at this beach last year, so we'll have to wait and see if this year will be any different -- but I did see another bird that is of special conservation concern in Connecticut: an American Oystercatcher.
What a fancy bird! I love that impressive orange beak -- both pretty and useful, great for stabbing oysters, mussels, and other bivalves -- and it looks especially cool back-lit as it is in the above picture (it's practically glowing). American Oystercatchers are listed as threatened in Connecticut, and they're running into some of the same problems around here as Piping Plovers: These birds nest on nice sandy beaches, which, first, are getting harder to come by, and, second, happen to be where people like to hang out, too, so well-camouflaged eggs and chicks get accidentally disturbed and trampled. If I find a plover or oystercatcher nest on my monitoring rounds, it'll get a protective fence and watchful eyes to help give the babies a greater chance of survival.
No sign of a mate or a nest for this morning's oystercatcher, but I had fun watching him or her prowling the low-tide sands:
I caught up with this bird again later, when it had settled down among some sun-warmed rocks to rest. I have to say, this shorebird is quite startling in color and shape, but I think it's very handsome overall:
Stick around for a while, fancy oystercatcher. If you find a mate and settle down here, I'll help protect your babies!
Later during my walk, I had way too much fun trying to take pictures of the Barn Swallows zipping by only a foot or so above the sand:
I love that super-pointy swallow-tail, both on the bird and on its shadow:
Thanks, spring, for bringing all these cool creatures back here again!
+dragonfly.JPG)
