Shore Life

July 9. 2020_nest and eggs (1)

Shorebirds Wildlife Highlight

  1. Shorebirds Wildlife Highlight

We have many Shorebirds in Greenwich. With this Wildlife Highlight, you will read about characteristics, see a video, and play a game!

Coastal Cleanups

  1. Fact Sheet: Links to learn more about coastal cleanups
FINAL COASTAL

Coastal cleanups are one way we can be stewards to our environment. Environmental stewardship is an actionable way for an individual to care for the natural world around them. Conservation efforts of stewardship, such as coastal cleanups, help us to maintain and in some cases enhance the area for ecosystem resilience. September is international coastal cleanup month: Click HERE to sign up.

Coastal Resiliency Assessment

  1. GREENWICH COASTAL RESILIENCY ASSESSMENT
  2. Reslience_Assessment_Appendix A
  3. Reslience_Assessment_Appendix B
  4. Reslience_Assessment_Appendix C
  5. Reslience_Assessment_Appendix D
Greenwich Harbor

Greenwich has 27 miles of shoreline, 30 islands, and 8 harbors along Long Island Sound. The expansive shoreline and coastal habitat is part of what creates the unique biodiversity in Greenwich. The coastal Resiliency Assessment aims to overview vulnerabilities and provide a look into mitigation, adaptation, and protection of the coastline.

Great Captain Island

Great Captain Island, also known more familiarly as "Great Captain's Island," is an island off the coast of Greenwich, Connecticut. The 17-acre island is the largest of a three-island group that also includes Little Captain and Wee Captain. The island is a remnant of a glacial moraine and has a large glacial erratic (deposit) on the southern side, the island's east and west sides are connected by a tombolo (sand spit). The island has had several owners, but has been owned in whole by the Town of Greenwich since 1973. The island is home to the Great Captain Island Light, a 19th-century lighthouse that was restored in 2009 and relit as a non-navigational aid in 2012. Great Captain Island is one of the state's 26 "important bird areas" according to the Connecticut Audubon Society.

Ornithological Summary

Great Captains Island is currently the site of the largest heron and egret rookery in Connecticut, with over 300 nesting pairs of nesting egrets and night-herons. There is also a large colony of Herring and Great Black-backed Gulls on the island. Species nesting on the island include: Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, Black crowned Night-Heron, American Oystercatcher, and two gull species. Islands have been shown to be important migratory stopover areas for central and south American migrant land birds.

Nest 5 Great Captains Island2020 4