[CT Birds] Birds Then and Now

[Carrier Graphics]

Birds Then and Now

    While observing two adult Great Black-backed Gulls at the Bristol Reservoir #7 today, I got to thinking. . . 
    A mere 50 years ago, this large Gull was not often seen inland in Connecticut, and for that mater, was not a common bird at the shoreline either .

    This thought brought me to a question; What other birds have changed their numbers, plus or minus, during the past 50 years here in Connecticut? 

My first recolection was seeing my lifer Northern Cardinal back in 1954 in a vacant lot in West Hartford while walking to school. (Yes, back then we actually did walk to school.) Cardinals had just started to be seen here in CT back then. Likewise, the Titmouse I saw for the first time at my feeder in 1956, was also a new resident bird for CT. Both these species had just entered CT as breeders from the south.
And how about this one. On a 1955 winter school science field trip to someones bird feeders in Rocky Hill, we encountered over 200 Evening Grosbeaks! The owner said she had been getting this many Grosbeaks at her feeders regularly for many years! They sure arn’t regular here anymore.

 Amazing how quickly certain bird species can increase or decrease within such a short time span. 
Be it from natural or man made causes, our fauna and flora is always in a constent state of change. Do any other examples of bird changes for you in Connecticut come to mind? 

Paul Carrier