Snakes, Butterflies, Lady's Slippers

Snakes, Albino Gray Squirrel, Butterfly, Lady's Slippers

Northern Watersnakes mating, Little Pond, White Memorial, Litchfield CT 5/23/17

Northern Watersnakes mating, Little Pond, White Memorial, Litchfield CT 5/23/17

Northern Watersnakes mating, Little Pond, White Memorial, Litchfield CT 5/23/17

Lucky, albino Gray Squirrel, 5/28/17 

Lucky, albino Gray Squirrel, 5/28/17

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, 5/28/17

Lady's Slipper, CT 5/21/17

Lady's Slipper, CT 5/21/17

Northern Watersnakes mating, Little Pond, White Memorial, Litchfield CT 5/23/17

Little Wood Satyr, Turkey Hill, Orange CT 5/27/17

singing Marsh Wren and Yellow Warbler, Litchfield CT 5/23/17

singing Marsh Wren and Yellow Warbler,  Little Pond, in White Memorial Foundation, Litchfield CT 5/23/17.

March Wren 5/23/17

Swainson's Thrush 5/17/17

Ovenbird, 5/17/17

Stratford, CT Cattle Egret, breeding plumage

Stratford, CT, photographed in shallow center field on Deluca Field after having been seen in the adjacent marsh behind the city pound by Stefan Martin and Frank Mantlik. Cattle Egrets are found in CT, but it's still a rare sighting in CT, only a few each year, even though the species has spread around the world,  This one is in full breeding plumage.

Cattle Egret, Stratford CT 5/18/17

Cattle Egret, Stratford CT 5/18/17

Cattle Egret, Stratford CT 5/18/17

Cattle Egret, Stratford CT 5/18/17

Silver-spooted Skipper FOS

Black Skimmers, Milford Point FOS

Dunlin,  Milford Point

White-rumped, Least, Semipalmated Sandpipers; Mfd Pt, Green Heron, turtle Walker's Pond May 17

brief video 3 peeps: White-rumped, Least, Semipalmated Sandpipers; Mfd Pt, 5/18/17; video of Green Heronsharing log with Eastern Painted Turtle, Walker's Pond 15 May 2017.

 

WRSP, LESA, SESA

Green Heron, Eastern Painted Turtle

Mating Tree Swallows, preening Least Sandpiper, Mfd Pt; Spicebush Swallowtail

5/16/17: Mating Tree Swallows, preening Least Sandpiper, Mfd Pt; Spicebush Swallowtail; Northern Waterthrush

Spicebush Swallowtail male, East Rock Park, New Haven 5/16/17

Northern Waterthrush, Walker's Pond, Milford CT 5/16/17

courting Tree Swallows, Milford Point, 5/16/17

courting Tree Swallows, Milford Point, 5/16/17

Least Sandpiper, Milford Point, 5/16/17

Goldeneye, Milford CT Harbor, 5/15/17

A late, and unusual, Goldeneye found near Wilcox Park, Milford, CT on 5/15/17.  First seen in waters of Milford Harbor, it pulled itself onto mudflat.  While the loral spot make it seem clearly a male, its maroon head and other plumage details suggest a molting bird, but there's the possibility that it's a hybrid Common Goldeneye X Barrow's goldeneye.

King Eider Hen, Boat-tailed Grackle, Stratford 5/14/17

King Eider Hen, Boat-tailed Grackle, Stratford 5/14/17.  Both birds courtesy of Frank Mantlik.  The Boat-tailed Grackle colony doing well this year.  The King Eider possible a return from last year.

hen King Eider, Long Beach, Stratford, CT 5/14/17

hen King Eider, Long Beach, Stratford, CT 5/14/17

hen King Eider, Long Beach, Stratford, CT 5/14/17

hen King Eider, Long Beach, Stratford, CT 5/14/17

hen King Eider, Long Beach, Stratford, CT 5/14/17

Boat-tailed Grackle,  female, Warehouse Pond, Stratford, 5/14/17

Boat-tailed Grackle, male, Warehouse Pond, Stratford, 5/14/17

Hen King Eider with Brant Geese, Long Beach, Stratford, CT 5/14/17

Eisenhower Park, Blue-winged WA, E Phoebe, RB Grosbeak; Wilcox REVI

Eisenhower Park, Blue-winged WA, E Phoebe, Rose-breasted Grosbeak; Wilcox Red-eyed Vireo.  A few of the current birds all around Milford in Mid-May.

Northern Flicker bathing, 5/10/17, Silver Sands SP, Milford CT

A short video of a male Northern Flicker (Taiga/Eastern) bathing, 5/10/17, Silver Sands SP, Milford CT.