News

June 16, 2025—Mountainfilm on Tour comes to Cinestudio at Trinity College, Hartford, on Sunday, June 29, at 1 p.m. for a special 10-film showing to benefit the environmental education work of Connecticut Audubon’s Greater Hartford program. Cinestudio’s high quality, single-screen theater is ideal for the immersive Mountainfilm experience. 

May 29, 2025—Connecticut is just a step away from banning the use of neonicotinoid pesticides on 300,000 acres of lawns, golf courses, and other areas of turf grass. Yesterday, the State House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 9, an important climate change, pesticides and rodenticides bill. The Senate passed it two weeks ago. It will now go to Governor Ned Lamont.

May 23, 2025 — Senate Bill 9 has passed the State Senate by a vote of 28–8 — a significant step forward, though not a complete victory. It now heads to the House. If passed there, it will move on to the Governor’s desk for final approval.

April 30, 2025—There’s good news about the work being done to enact a stronger pesticide law in Hartford, but also a serious concern. It is important for you to contact your legislators as soon as you can.

April 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. 

April 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.

March 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.

February 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.

February 10, 2025—It’s always a shock and a little sickening to hear a bird smash into a window. But there are solutions. And because a least 400 million birds die each year in the U.S. when they crash into windows in houses and other small buildings, we can all make a difference in solving this big problem. Kaitlyn Parkins, the glass collisions program coordinator for American Bird Conservancy, discussed the problem and the solutions on Wednesday, February 5, as part of Connecticut Audubon’s Young, Gifted and Wild About Birds series.

February 23, 2025—People throughout Connecticut are becoming more concerned with avian flu. The information here is what we’ve learned from government agencies and other organizations. It’s subject to change as the situation changes. 

Join us for a February 5 matinee presentation of Young, Gifted and Wild About Birds. Well over 1 billion birds die each year in the U.S. because of building collisions. That estimate comes from a study published in 2024 and it was eye-opening because it was much higher than previous estimates. One of the study’s authors, Kaitlyn Parkins of American Bird Conservancy, will show us which techniques actually work to reduce window crashes and which don’t. This is news you can use for those trying to make a difference for bird conservation.

January 16, 2025 — Connecticut Audubon’s Young, Gifted, and Wild About Birds series starts its 2025 season with a January 23 Zoom presentation by UCLA professor Morgan Tingley, Ph.D., about the Los Angeles fires and the effects of climate change-induced wildfire on bird populations. Tingley, a former University of Connecticut professor, lives and works in the heart of the area being devastated by wildfires. He’s been studying the effects of fire and smoke on birds and will also have an up-to-date report on the situation in the Los Angeles area.

November 18, 2024—Ospreys in Connecticut flourished in 2024. The successful nesting season shows that the local revival of these previously imperiled hawks continues, although with concerns about a more difficult season to the south.

October 27, 2024—The Connecticut Audubon Society recognized the long and effective work of Board member Christina Clayton by presenting her with the 2024 Dave Engelman Volunteer Benchmark Award, at the organization’s annual meeting on Saturday, October 26, at the Roger Tory Peterson Estuary Center in Old Lyme.