Sandy/Morse Points fencing is up

A big thank you to the handful of volunteers who were able to join us at Sandy/Morse Points in West Haven on a gorgeous Wednesday morning as we assisted the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protecting in erecting string fencing for Piping Plovers and American Oystercatchers and eventually hopefully many Least Terns and a few Common Terns. We were able to see a couple of pairs of Piping Plover and American Oystercatcher. There were certainly two of each and probably three of Piping Plover. We also noted some cool migrants birds while we worked including three raptors - a Merlin, an American Kestrel, and a Broad-winged Hawk - heading up the beach and moving north during the cooperative flight conditions. Barn and Tree Swallows zipped around us and we saw groups of Double-crested Cormorant migrating, too.

Here are some photos from the day...

 Volunteers and staff head down the beach with stakes in hand

 Audubon Connecticut Director of Bird Conservation Patrick Comins on left handing off stakes to Connecticut Audubon Society Senior Director of Science and Conservation Milan Bull on right

 

 Fencing going up all the way out to the tip of Morse Point

Volunteers hard at work

Soon to be waterbird technician once again but for now volunteer Sean Graesser working the string

 Audubon Connecticut American Oystercatcher Coordinator Michael Brooks with CT DEEP's Erica Morgan

 CT DEEP's Rebecca Foster talking with volunteers and managing the operation

 American Oystercatchers!

 Love these signs done by Audubon Connecticut's Bridgeport Wildlife Guards with Bridgeport elementary school students as part of their Toyota Together Green funded project

 Just about done!

Piping Plover feeding between the points

 

Please help us if you can at Long Beach in Stratford on Friday, 4/19, at 10:30AM. We will meet in the parking lot and we will need all the help we can get on the extremely long barrier beach that is often filled with birds.

Thanks again to our volunteers!

Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds, Audubon Connecticut and the Connecticut Audubon Society partnering to improve conditions for coastal waterbirds in Connecticut.