Naugatuck Valley Birds and Conservation

03/19/2026

02/11/2026

The stunning iridescence of a male Wood Duck, Aix sponsa, to help brighten a February that fluctuates between a harsh winter and thoughts of spring.

I took this image in December 2018 in NYC where often birds are so used to people that they tend to not flush when a photographer wanders by. These beauties are often seen in CT waterways, you just have to carefully scan swamps, marshes, streams, and rivers. They also prefer enough vegetation that gives them places to forage for seeds, fruits, insects, and assorted plant material and also duck for cover from predators and, in season hunters.

Enjoy the magic of nature!

01/21/2026

59 days until Spring! Fingers crossed the seeds of 28 plant species requiring 60 days of cold stratification will in a few months sprout and grow into lovely plants attracting many pollinators. Nine of those are for the bog garden so we shall see how this experiment goes.

The image below is of Helenium flexuosum, Purple-headed sneezeweed, a favorite which did not return to my garden last year. It is a native southern species introduced to the northeastern states.

Our native across the country is H. autumnale, Fall sneezeweed. The difference is the much lighter yellow center instead of the purplish center. What is in a name? Not named because the live plants cause an allergic reaction but due to Native Americans making a s***f powder from dried plants as an aid for congestion or headaches sneezing.

The Ligated Furrow Bee, Halicatus ligatus, one of the sweat bee species, visits this plant that produces both pollen and nectar. Sweat bees just may land for a sip of human sweat but they are not aggressive although females may sting in self-defense.

At 36-60" tall with pretty yellow flowers from August to October is worth considering and a Halicatus ligatus is a pollinator worth attracting as they are a generalist that tends to remain in the local area.

Spring garden plans while the snow is on the ground and the temps are below 10 degrees. A great distraction for the day

01/20/2026

Finding Hope.
Thoughts of bogs, fens, swamps, and flowers. A few of my happy places. I'm so far behind on seed starting! This beauty is a good push to get moving.
Drosera filiformis, or thread-leaved sundew. So tiny, so good at attracting insects, once strapped there is no escaping. Who needs harsh man-made chemicals when you have inventions by God or evolution.
Five traits of carnivorous plants:
1. capturing or trapping prey in specialized, usually attractive, traps;
2. killing the captured prey;
3. digesting the prey;
4. absorption of metabolites (nutrients) from the killed and digested prey;
5. use of these metabolites for plant growth and development.
-- Carnivorous Plants: Physiology, Ecology, and Evolution. Edited by Aaron M. Ellison & Lubomir Adamec, 2018

(I took the images in my backyard bog garden last year.)

01/19/2026

This juvenile female Red-shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus, has been a frequent visitor to my yard in search of small mammals that may be foraging the bird seeds under the feeders.

Please let them do their rodent control job without being poisoned by dangerous rodenticides that are lethal to so many species.

For the Curious: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-shouldered_Hawk/overview

01/15/2026

From my Florilegium collection: VT 6/13/21
As I'm driving there are things that make my head spin; raptors, book stores, and wetland areas. Bogs, fens, and swamps seem to attract. The vegetation, assorted flowering shrubs, carnivorous plants, orchids, and mammals, birds, insects, and amphibians.
Water Avens, Geum rivale is one that I always stop to take at least a photo or two. Flowers are a bit unique in their red-purple shades nodding bells. The flowers produce nectar and pollen and attract bumblebees, honeybees, long-beaked Syrphid flies, and Sap beetles. There are also those thin spiderweb threads that often require close looks. Rather than rush along, this is one to sit with for a bit. Maybe bring a macro lens or a botanical hand lens.
For the Curious: https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/geum/rivale/

01/15/2026

This image was taken in the dunes of Cape Cod back in December 2026. There are some beautiful colors to be found during 'stick season' when you stop to look.

08/14/2025

08/05/2025

Common Grackle, Quiscalus quiscula, looking very pretty and pretending innocence but I know better. I have witnessed two separate murderous acts against young sparrows at my bird bath and feeders. Without camera at the ready unfortunately. Must you??? This makes me wonder if my Green Frog are disappearing from my aquatic bog because of you as I've only seen one at a time, instead of four, the past couple of days.

For the Curious: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Grackle/lifehistory

02/03/2025

Thoughts of Spring!
Despite waking to snow cover this morning thoughts wander to spring flowers. Chasing birds and flowers really is my passion and happy place. What is there not to love about damp woods, bogs, and swamps?
Early Coral-root, Corallorhiza trifida was a nice find on the edges of the woods surrounding a bog in VT mid-May of 2024. So slender and dainty as often orchids are, I would most likely have missed this one if not for the kindness of a stranger.
When times become challenging and a bit crazy with things outside our control, stepping into nature is a great place to find distractions, wonder, and peace.
For the Curious: https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/.../corall.../trifida/

12/22/2024

WEATHER ALERT DECLARED: 12/21-12/24