Greg Hanisek

1 week ago | ctinsider.com | Greg Hanisek

As songbirds begin their spring surge into Connecticut, the warblers garner the most attention. Their brilliant colors, distinctive songs and numerous species overshadow other groups. Orioles and tanagers rival them in beauty, while thrushes fill the woods with ethereal music. The group attracting the least attention would have to be the vireos. Of the six species of vireos occurring in New England, five of them nest in Connecticut, and all of them spend the winter well to the south.

2 weeks ago | ctinsider.com | Greg Hanisek

Herons rely primarily on open water as a hunting ground. Their rapier bills plunge through the surface to extract fish, as well as other living prey that might be available. As a result, most of Connecticut's herons depart for the winter, when ice limits their opportunities. The primary exception is the great blue heron, a big and hardy creature that thrives in cold weather wherever open water offers a chance to catch dinner.

3 weeks ago | ctinsider.com | Greg Hanisek

As temperatures rise in spring, the pace of migration also heats up. As things build toward a May crescendo, the emphasis always tilts toward songbirds. With more than 30 species of warblers arriving or passing through Connecticut over the next month, that's not surprising. Mix in thrushes, vireos, swallows and other passerines, and many groups of birds on the move often get short shrift. Especially neglected are the shorebirds.

1 month ago | ctinsider.com | Greg Hanisek

Change has accelerated in the avian world and last weekend it washed across Connecticut in the form of new arrivals. Species with little or no presence since last fall made their seasonal return. The concentration point was Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison - not unexpected for a couple of reasons. Not only is "Hammo" the best all-around birding location in the state, it was flooded with birders drawn by an easily found rarity - a white-faced ibis.

1 month ago | ctinsider.com | Greg Hanisek

It's April and before long the delicate spring wildflowers, waited for with anticipation by nature lovers, will bloom in wooded areas, especially in picturesque stream corridors. These include beauties such as bloodroot, dutchman's breeches and rue anemone. These are attractive and rather widespread, but they are preceded, often before winter is over, by a species that nobody would call delicate or beautiful. The name suggests nothing of the kind: skunk cabbage.