Volunteers Needed for the 2010 Midwinter Bald Eagle Survey

The Wildlife Division of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection is looking for volunteers to assist with the 2010 Midwinter Bald Eagle Survey in Connecticut. The 2010 survey period target date is Saturday January 9, from 7:00 -11:00 AM.
Bald eagles migrate south from the northern states during winter to areas of open water where they are able to catch fish, their main food item. Cold weather conditions, which keep most waterways to the north covered with ice, mean that higher numbers of eagles will be counted in Connecticut.
If you would like to participate in the 2010 survey, please contact Wild- life Division biologist Julie Victoria by email only (julie.victoria@ct.gov) and provide your name and mailing address.

Pre-storm Hammonasset Bird Walk

A small group of hearty Menunkatuck members and friends braved the cold and wind ahead of the snow storm to bird Hammonasset Beach State Park on Saturday. The trip took us from the Nature Center parking lot to the jetty, the overlook and on to the moraine trail.
The list: Red-throated Loon, Common Loon, Canada Goose, American Black Duck, Mallard, Common Eider, Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Northern Gannet, Great Cormorant, Northern Harrier, Cooper’s Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Ruddy Turnstone, Sanderling, Dunlin, Ring-billed Gull, Mourning Dove, Northern Flicker, American Crow, Horned Lark, House Wren, European Starling, American Robin, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Brown-headed Cowbird, House Finch.

Dennis, Nina (trip leader), Kelvin, Ray from California

Brumby

Missing: John

Dennis, Nina, Ann, Ray

Brumby, Daisy

Guilford Salt Meadow Sanctuary Osprey Platform

On October 25, 2009, a group of Menunkatuck members and friends installed an osprey platform in the marsh at the Guilford Salt Meadow Sanctuary. The platform was constructed by Guilford High School students Ryan and Megan as part of their capstone project.

Public Invited to Tour Former Griswold Airport Property

From the Town of Madison Board of Selectmen:

MADISON, CONN., October 12, 2009 - The Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national land conservation nonprofit, recently announced that it had reached agreement to purchase 42 acres of land known as the Griswold Airport Property from Madison Landing Company, LLC, a subsidiary of Leyland Alliance, LLC. Town officials and TPL invite Madison residents to the first of two site tours of the property, to be held this Sunday, October 18th, from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. The second tour of the property is scheduled for Saturday, November 7th, from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

The tour will be structured as an "open house," with two guided walks offered at 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. The walks will be guided by Patrick Comins, Audubon Connecticut's Director of Bird Conservation, and Heather Crawford, a member of the Madison Conservation Commission.

The 42-acre property, located on the Boston Post Road, is adjacent to Hammonasset State Park and includes prime wetland habitat, upland forest, and significant frontage along the Hammonasset River. The former airport property was sold to LeylandAlliance in 2007 and permits to construct 127 units of housing on the land were subsequently granted.

The conservation goals for the property are to maintain the land as natural open space with walking trails and viewing areas along the river, with the potential to restore a portion of the grasslands to accommodate a variety of birds. On the front portion of the property, closest to the Post Road, Town officials potentially envision several recreational fields for use by Town families and possibly a small area reserved for future commercial use compatible with a park.

"TPL is delighted to bring this opportunity to the voters of Madison, and we encourage families to come out and see all that this land has to offer. Conservation experts will be on hand to discuss the conservation values of this unique property," said Alicia Betty, Project Manager for The Trust for Public Land.

Under the terms of the agreement, the property would be purchased for $9.7 million, with a closing scheduled for April 1, 2010. Also under the agreement, the town has forty-five days to decide whether or not to offer Madison voters a referendum to authorize a bond to cover $8 million of the purchase price. The Town will likely add as much as $1 million to the $8 million bond to cover demolition and renovation costs which would fund the initial conversion of the airport into a park. Such a referendum is expected later this fall.

The Trust for Public Land (TPL) is a national nonprofit organization which works with others to conserve land for people to enjoy as working landscapes, parks, gardens, and natural areas, ensuring livable communities for generations to come. TPL has protected over 6,000 acres of open space, watershed land, working farms and forestland, and historic resources in 40 communities across the state. For more information, please visit www.tpl.org/connecticut.

Other sources for more information are Stop Griswold OverDevelopment and the Save The Griswold Airport Property Facebook Group.

Photos from Save The Griswold Airport Property.

Sandy Point Bird Walk

Saturday, September 19, was a perfect day for a morning bird walk at Sandy Point in West Haven. With a cloudless sky and light winds a group of Menunkatuck members joined Nina Levenduski for a leisurely three hour walk.

Twenty-four species were seen:

Common Loon, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, American Black Duck, Mallard, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Peregrine Falcon, Black-billed Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Ring-billed Gull, Herring Gull, Great Black Backed Gull, Rock Dove, Monk Parakeet, Belted Kingfisher, European Starling, Savannah Sparrow, House Sparrow

Kestrel and Bat Houses at Hammonasset

Tom Sayers and John Picard met on Labor Day to install the two new kestrel boxes at Hammonasset Beach State Park. One kestrel box is near the reclaimed salt marsh and the other is near Pavilion #1. These two boxes will be monitored for use in the Spring, we will let you know what happens.

They also installed the new bat house on a pole that Park personnel had installed for us. The new bat pole is more than sturdy and should last for years.

Death of Tree Swallows

John Picard reports that three of the 31 tree swallow nest boxes at Hammonasset Beach State Park were repeatedly raided by house sparrows and the resident swallows killed.

House sparrows are attracted to the same sort of cavity that tree swallows are. And house sparrows are very aggressive.

John has been able to keep the deaths to a minimum with constant monitoring of the boxes. And the results over the last four year have shown increased fledge rates as shown in this spreadsheet.

As to the deaths this year, John has posted posted some pictures of the carnage. Warning: they are graphic.