April 24, 2025—Was it E.F. Schumacher, author of the influential 1970s-era book Small is Beautiful: A Study of Economics as If People Mattered, who, when asked what is the most important thing one person can do to make a difference, answered, “Plant a tree”? Tree planting and forest management are the subjects of the fourth day of our series of Earth Week stories about important local environmental initiatives in Connecticut.
Blog – 2018
For Earth Week, trees — planting them along the road, managing them as part of a forest
Thursday, April 24th, 2025For Earth Week, a conventional lawn in Madison is transformed into a family’s nature preserve
Wednesday, April 23rd, 2025April 23, 2025—People love pollinator gardens, and with good reason — they’re colorful, full of life, ever-changing, and a delight to look at and listen to. On the third day of our Earth Week series, we’re featuring a tale of how one family in Madison transformed their typical lawn-dominated yard into a biodiversity showplace.
Postponed: Mountainfilm on Tour
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2025April 22, 2025—April 22, 2025—Mountainfilm on Tour comes to Cinestudio on the campus of Trinity College, Hartford, this week, for a special 10-film showing to benefit the environmental education work of Connecticut Audubon’s Greater Hartford program. Here’s information about the 10 films you’ll see.
For Earth Week, tales of environmental projects that are making a difference: a pollinator garden in downtown Bridgeport; a close look at rising temperatures, globally and at home
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2025April 22, 2025 — On the second day of our Earth Week series, we’re featuring a project in downtown Bridgeport and another from the atmosphere above Connecticut. The former started as a way to ease the heat island effect in a city; the other is based on a wish by two scientists to understand just how hot it has gotten, and how quickly it has happened.
Homegrown Habitat, April 2025: Wild Geranium
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2025April 22, 2025—At this time of year copious flowers invite us outside, proclaiming a joyful end to the late-winter blues. Wild geranium is a valuable member of this spring bloomers club; it is easy to grow in the garden, a pleasure to behold, and offers many benefits to birds and pollinators.
For Earth Day, tales of environmental projects that are making a difference, locally and beyond: West Virginia White Butterflies
Monday, April 21st, 2025April 21, 2025—We’re celebrating Earth Day 2025 by publishing stories from around Connecticut of important, small-scale environmental projects — and their creators — from around Connecticut. First up: restoring rare butterfly habitat in New Milford.
Protecting birds from building collisions during spring migration
Thursday, April 17th, 2025April 17, 2025—Bird migration is underway and the forecast is for the first big night of spring, tomorrow, Friday, April 18. Birds migrate at night so please help them by turning out your outdoor lights.
News Release: Connecticut Audubon Society Welcomes Bird Enthusiasts to Migration Magic 2025
Thursday, April 17th, 2025April 17, 2025—Connecticut Audubon invites people from across the state to participate in Migration Magic 2025, a month-long celebration of bird migration taking place throughout May. May is the peak month for spring bird migration. On some days, more than half a million birds migrate into and over Connecticut, many of them staying to rest, feed and look for places to nest. It is an ideal time to experience this amazing annual phenomenon, and Migration Magic is designed to help you enjoy it in dozens of ways.
Launch party! “The Naturalists’ Guide to Migration Magic 2025” — a free Zoom program
Thursday, April 10th, 2025April 10, 2025—You’re invited to a special free Zoom presentation to help you get the most enjoyment out of spring migration and help us launch Migration Magic 2025. It’s called “The Naturalists’ Guide to Migration Magic 2025,” and it’s scheduled for Wednesday, April 16, 7 p.m.
Volunteer for Connecticut Audubon’s Osprey Nation project and help monitor and protect the state’s Osprey population! (We especially need people with boats.)
Monday, April 7th, 2025April 7, 2025—Volunteers choose or are assigned a nest, which they visit at least twice a month, from April until late in summer. They take and submit notes on their observations, especially the number of young Ospreys in the nest, the number who successfully leave the nest, and the dates on which that happens. It’s an enjoyable task, and many volunteers have continued on for several years or more.
CT Audubon members, join us on Zoom for a “Flyway of Life” discussion
Monday, April 7th, 2025April 7, 2024—Join us on April 9 for a members-only preview of the new documentary feature film “Flyway of Life, ” featuring the film’s producer and Connecticut Audubon Board member Tomas Koeck in conversation with Executive Director Joyce Leiz.
Homegrown Habitat guide to the native plants that will help the birds in your yard this spring (and beyond)
Tuesday, April 8th, 2025April 8, 2025—It’s relatively easy to make your yard and surrounding property better for birds. Small changes over time add up to big improvements. And what’s good for birds tends to be good for bees, butterflies, moths and other kinds of insects. Now that it’s spring, Sarah Middeleer, who writes Connecticut Audubon’s Homegrown Habitat feature, has picked two trees, two shrubs, and two perennials for you to consider planting.
You know a good environmental project when you see one. We’d like you to tell us about it.
Tuesday, April 8th, 2025April 5, 2025—How much good, important environmental work is being done in Connecticut? The New York Times wants to know, and so do we. Send us your best example.
Early spring is a good time of year to not do too much in your yard. Birds will benefit.
Wednesday, March 26th, 2025March 26, 2025—To make your yard better for birds, start by doing nothing. At least for a while. That’s the advice from Connecticut Audubon and a University of Connecticut expert, summed up in this recent story from Connecticut Public Radio. “ … raking or mowing last year’s leaves too soon in the spring can kill a key group of creatures in Connecticut’s food web.
Action Alert: Send an email today to help get an important pesticide law passed
Tuesday, March 25th, 2025March 25, 2025—An important bird protection bill is on the brink of moving forward in Hartford. But it needs your help. A simple email will do it. The bill number is HB 6916. It’s called An Act Concerning the Use of Neonicotinoids — insecticides also known as neonics. Please email your State Senator and State House member. Ask them to speak to the co-chairs of the Environment Committee, Senator Rick Lopes and Rep. John-Michael Parker, and to urge the co-chairs to let the committee vote on the bill.
Homegrown Habitat: March 2025 — Pinxterbloom
Friday, March 21st, 2025March 21, 2025 — The rhododendron genus is large, its best-known plants the broad-leaf evergreens such as Rosebay (R. maximum) and countless non-native hybrids and cultivars. But there is a group of delightful native, deciduous azaleas that are also rhododendrons. Pinxterbloom azalea (Rhododendron periclymenoides) is a member of this club and is well worth getting to know.
Young, Gifted and Wild About Birds: March 13 — Equity in Birdwatching
Monday, March 10th, 2025March 10, 2025 — For conservation to be truly effective, communities must feel a deep connection to their local environment. This connection often grows through partnerships between scientific institutions and underrepresented groups. The Equity in Birdwatching initiative emphasizes inclusivity, social justice, and community-driven conservation, demonstrating how diverse perspectives help us better understand challenges and find meaningful solutions.
Homegrown Habitat, February 2025: Little Bluestem
Monday, March 10th, 2025March 10, 2025—It may seem odd to write about a grass in winter. But the striking fall and winter beauty of little bluestem is actually why this highly ornamental native grass is featured this month. Also called prairie beardgrass, little bluestem is native to much of the United States, including Connecticut, and was once one of the dominant species in both the shortgrass and tallgrass prairies of the midwest. It has long been one of my favorite grasses both in the wild and in the garden, but of course it wouldn’t appear here unless it had high ecological value as well.
Young, Gifted and Wild About Birds: March 6, Hannah Clipp, Ph.D., on the effects of climate change on forest birds of eastern North America
Sunday, February 23rd, 2025Global climate change threatens biodiversity and bird populations, and predicting future impacts is challenging but necessary. Hannah Clipp, Ph.D., will describe three of her research projects in New England and the Appalachians. The projects are designed to improve understanding of how climate change affects forest bird populations, and how those birds are affected by other landscape changes and habitat associations. She’ll explain the role of land cover and tree species distributions and they relate to the forest bird communities of New England.
“Neonics: High Harm and Low Benefit,” a presentation at the Newtown library about the hazards of insecticides
Friday, February 14th, 2025February 14, 2024 — Community advocates interested in the problems caused by widely-used neonicotinoid pesticides and what can be done to reduce their use are invited to a special free presentation, “Neonics: High Harm and Low Benefit,” in Newtown on Sunday, February 23.
