AAfCW 2025 Field Update #2

Welcome to the second Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds 2025 field update! Shorebird nesting activity has greatly increased over the past two weeks. Several of the first piping plover and American oystercatcher nests that appeared across the state will begin hatching in the upcoming weeks. For other piping plovers and American oystercatchers who had a failed or predated nest early in the season, many are now starting their second nesting attempts. As primary nesting locations (places like Long Beach, Milford Point, and Sandy Point) fill up, some birds will likely move to beaches that have less nesting activity. Please keep a close eye on beaches that did not previously have high bird activity. That could change very quickly!

As a reminder, there are now several other species of shorebird popping up along the shoreline! Many of these birds will continue moving northward to their arctic and subarctic breeding grounds. Check out CT DEEP's guide to common shorebirds of Connecticut HERE. 

There are some shorebird species that are commonly confused with piping plovers. For a comparison between piping plovers, semipalmated plovers, and killdeer, please click on the graphic below:

Additionally, both least terns and common terns have made their way back to the Connecticut shoreline! Colonies have started forming on offshore islands across the state. Remember that least terns and common terns may initially look similar, but there are several key differences that you can use to tell the two species apart from one another:

Thank you all for your continued participation and support of this project. As always, if you have any comments, questions, or concerns please contact ctwaterbirds@gmail.com. 

---

Here is a summary of all volunteer-collected data submitted between April 28th and May 12th, 2025.

• Number of volunteer reports submitted: 87
• Total volunteer monitoring hours: 138
• Number of beachgoers engaged in conversations about birds/conservation: 147

Piping Plover. Photo: Katherine Sayn Wittgenstein/Audubon Photography Awards

Piping Plover Data Summaries:

**Please note: Each graph displays the range of the number of birds observed by volunteers at major monitoring sites across the state. These ranges are based on the minimum and maximum number of birds reported at each site in our online data submission form. Click on each graph to view a higher resolution image.

Unpaired (Individual Adult) Piping Plover Observations

There were individual adult piping plover observed at Compo Beach, Pleasure Beach, Long Beach, Milford Point, Sandy Point, Hammonasset, Griswold Point, and Bluff Point between April 28th and May 12th

Piping Plover Pair Observations

There were piping plover pairs observed at Long Beach, Milford Point, Sandy Point, Griswold Point, and Bluff Point between April 28th and May 12th. 

Sites with piping plover nests:

Site	Piping Plover Nests
Compo Beach - Westport	0
Sherwood Island - Westport	0
Pleasure Beach - Bridgeport	0
Long Beach - Stratford	10
Russian Beach - Stratford	0
Short Beach - Stratford	0
Milford Point - Milford	14
Silver Sands State Park - Milford	0
Sandy Point Bird Sanctuary - West Haven	7
Hammonasset - Madison	0
Griswold Point - Old Lyme	1
Waterford Town Beach - Waterford	0
Bluff Point - Groton	3

American Oystercatcher. Photo: Walker Golder

American Oystercatcher Data Summaries:

Unpaired (Individual Adult) American Oystercatcher Observations

There were individual adult American oystercatcher observed at Long Beach, Short Beach, Milford Point, Sandy Point, Griswold Point, Waterford Town Beach, and Bluff Point between April 28th and May 12th.

American Oystercatcher Pair Observations

There were American oystercatcher pairs observed at Compo Beach, Pleasure Beach, Long Beach, Milford Point, Silver Sands State Park, Sandy Point, Hammonasset, Griswold Point, and Bluff Point between April 28th and May 12th.

Sites with American oystercatcher nests:

Site	American Oystercatcher Nests
Compo Beach - Westport	1
Sherwood Island - Westport	0
Pleasure Beach - Bridgeport	0
Long Beach - Stratford	2
Russian Beach - Stratford	0
Short Beach - Stratford	0
Milford Point - Milford	3
Silver Sands State Park - Milford	0
Sandy Point Bird Sanctuary - West Haven	1
Hammonasset - Madison	0
Griswold Point - Old Lyme	0
Waterford Town Beach - Waterford	0
Bluff Point - Groton	0

Common Tern. Photo: Nick Palmieri/Audubon Photography Awards

Common Tern Data Summary:

Common terns very rarely nest on mainland beaches in Connecticut, but it is possible! Although there are not nests present on mainland beaches yet, please do keep a close eye out for potential nesting activity.

Adult Common Tern Observations

There were adult common terns observed at Sherwood Island, Russian Beach, Short Beach, Milford Point, Sandy Point, Hammonasset, and Waterford Town Beach between April 28th and May 12th.

Least Tern. Photo: William Dix/Audubon Photography Awards

Least Tern Data Summary:

Least terns do often nest in colonies on Connecticut's larger beaches. Although there are not any nests on mainland beaches yet, some will likely begin to pop up over the next few weeks.

Adult Least Tern Observations

There were adult least terns observed at Long Beach, Milford Point, Sandy Point, Griswold Point, Waterford Town Beach, and Bluff Point between April 28th and May 12th.

---

One final note:

As the weather warms up, human disturbance along the shoreline also inevitably increases. Memorial Day weekend is traditionally the first busy beach weekend of the year, and it typically coincides with the first hatching of piping plover and American oystercatcher chicks. Please be on the lookout next week for an email from ctwaterbirds@gmail.com containing important information about Memorial Day Weekend monitoring.

Thank you again for all of your hard work!

Marissa

Audubon CT Volunteer Coordinator