Jennifer Ahrens

4 days ago | ctpublic.org | Jennifer Ahrens

Published June 3, 2025 at 4:05 PM EDT The nation's top public health agency posted new recommendations that say healthy children and pregnant women may get COVID-19 vaccinations, removing stronger language that those groups should get the shots. The change comes days after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that COVID-19 vaccines will no longer be recommended for healthy children and pregnant women.

1 week ago | ctpublic.org | Jennifer Ahrens

Published May 27, 2025 at 12:05 PM EDT Before peonies bloom in spring their unopened flower buds produce a nectar that feeds a tiny wasp called a Spring Tiphia. These shiny, black, solitary wasps are about half an inch long and are harmless to humans, but deadly to grass-killing Japanese beetle larvae, commonly called grubs. After feeding on nectar in May and early June and then mating, the female wasp burrows into the ground in search of grubs to lay her eggs on.

1 month ago | nhpr.org | Jennifer Ahrens

State environmental officials said black bears entered at least 67 homes last year, setting a state record. “A decade ago, we had less than 10, so bears have learned very, very quickly that people are a source of food and that's not a good thing,” said Jenny Dickson, Wildlife Division director for the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. DEEP is urging Connecticut residents to take down bird feeders and secure garbage to prevent attracting bears to their yards.

2 months ago | nhpr.org | Jennifer Ahrens

As the weather warms and daylight hours grow, you might be tempted to get outside and start cleaning up your lawn. But raking or mowing last year’s leaves too soon in the spring can kill a key group of creatures in Connecticut’s food web. "Insects still have yet to come out of hibernation – or fulfill their life cycle – and most of them are going to be in leaf matter or in hollow stems of our perennials or shrubs," said Stefan Martin, the conservation manager for the Connecticut Audubon Society.

Feb 7, 2025 | nhpr.org | Jennifer Ahrens

The Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) H5N1 is being found in many wild birds in many different areas of Connecticut according to the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Waterfowl are particularly at risk. “If you're seeing dead geese, if you're seeing dead ducks, if it's near open water, the odds are likely it probably is avian influenza,” DEEP Wildlife Division Director Jenny Dickson said.