Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve

09/15/2026

See anything new at Bluff Point State Park and Coastal Reserve lately? 👀

We've fixed up the old, weathered trailhead and bluff trail signs!

Our new signs introduce visitors to Bluff Point State Park's natural features, wildlife and history, highlighting everything from the salt marshes, beaches, and geology to the remnants of the Midway Yard, summer cottages, and the Winthrop House. It also explains Bluff Point's different protected designations and how visitors can enjoy the property while protecting its sensitive habitats and wildlife.

Keep an eye out for new signs popping up at locations across the Reserve. Whether you're visiting for the first time or exploring a familiar spot, we hope you'll stop, take a look, and learn something new along the way.

09/14/2026

Been to UConn Avery Point recently and see anything new?

The three new signs on the campus overlook highlight the history of Pine Island, the diverse coastal habitats found around campus, and landmarks, islands, and lighthouses visible along the coastal horizon.

New signs are popping up throughout the Reserve! Keep an eye out for new signs at locations across the Reserve. Whether you're visiting for the first time or exploring a familiar spot, we hope you'll stop, take a look, and learn something new along the way.

09/11/2026

Calling all teachers! 🍎

Did you know the Reserve offers thematic loan kits that eduators can borrow for free?

The Eelgrass Game is an interactive game which allows students to understand real world scenarios as they take on “roles” of the individuals who interact directly or indirectly with eelgrass in the Long Island Sound watershed. Students make decisions based on their roles that impact the estuary’s water quality and health of its eelgrass beds and, throughout the Game, test the health of the Sound and its eelgrass beds. All materials needed are available through our free Loan Kit.

Learn more about this Kit and other lessons at

Loan Kits & Data Mysteries Loan Kits The Connecticut Reserve conducted a Needs Assessment in 2023 and more than half of respondents asked for thematic t ...

09/09/2026

Looking to get outside on this beatuiful day? Why not take a walk along the Discovery Path!

Located at the UConn Avery Point campus in Groton, CT, the Discovery Path gives visitors the chance to explore the beautiful sights of campus and learn more about the habitats, wildlife, history, and AP students. Keep an eye out for signs along the way and discover something new on your next visit!

Learn more at: https://www.cttrailfinder.com/trails/trail/uconn-avery-point

09/08/2026

Meet Lauren Barrett, Associate Research Scientist, here at the Reserve! Lauren has had a busy summer collecting eelgrass and preparing the holding tanks for seed-based restoration.

This project aims to restore eelgrass meadows throughout Long Island Sound by collecting and growing eelgrass seeds that will be dispered back in the Sound to replant declining meadows.

09/02/2026

Happy National Wildlife Day! Today is a chance to celebrate the incredible wildlife that call our coastal ecosystem home. From the smallest invertebrates to the birds soaring above the shoreline. Take a moment today to appreciate the wildlife around you!

08/31/2026

Happy (belated) National Beach Day (August 30)! As you enjoy the coast, remember to leave it better than you found it, and pick up any trash you see to help keep our beaches clean and healthy for everyone including the wildlife that calls the beach home!

08/28/2026

August is National Water Quality Month!

When you think about monitoring water quality, collecting a water sample probably comes to mind. But did you know that the insects living in a stream can tell us a lot about water quality, too?

The Riffle Bioassessment by Volunteers (RBV) program, let by CT DEEP, uses aquatic macroinvertebrates, or "stream bugs," to help assess the health of Connecticut's streams. Because different species respond differently to pollution and changes in habitat, the
presence (or absence) of certain species can tell us a lot about stream conditions.

For the past three years, the CTNERR Monitoring Team has joined an RBV volunteer group in Old Lyme to learn more about the program and participate in their monitoring efforts. This week, we took the next step: CTNERR monitoring lead was formally trained by
CT DEEP to become RBV coordinators!

This fall, we'll begin monitoring several Connecticut streams as a CTNERR monitoring group. Over time, our goal is to build on this experience and develop new opportunities for volunteers to participate in RBV monitoring in future seasons.

We're excited to get our boots in the water and start looking for some bugs!

08/26/2026

🌊 August is National Water Quality Month! 🌊

Water quality can change from hour to hour, day to day, and season to season. Tides, weather, and other environmental conditions all influence what is happening in an estuary. Long-term monitoring helps us put those short-term changes into context and understand what they mean over time.

The System-Wide Monitoring Program (SWMP) is the National Estuarine Research Reserve System's long-term monitoring program, measuring short-term variability and long-term changes in our nation's estuaries. By continuously collecting data on water quality, weather, and other environmental conditions, SWMP helps scientists and resource managers better understand how estuaries respond to both natural processes and human impacts.

As Connecticut continues to build its SWMP network, we're excited to contribute to this nationwide effort to better understand Long Island Sound and the environmental changes happening within it.

Take a look at some recent SWMP reconnaissance sampling as we work to ground-truth our planned Avery Point water quality station!

08/24/2026

💧 August is National Water Quality Month!

For the past four summers, CTNERR has been part of a Long Island Sound-wide effort to monitor bacteria in coastal waters.

The Pathogen Monitoring Network (PMN) is a collaborative monitoring effort coordinated by the NY Interstate Environmental Commission, Harbor Watch, and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, with monitoring partners across Connecticut and New York. Here at CTNERR, our contribution to the effort has continued to grow over the past four summers.

This season, our monitoring team is sampling 23 stations across four Connecticut water bodies every week for 15 weeks: the Lieutenant and Duck Rivers in Old Lyme, the lower Thames River, and Baker's Cove and the Poquonnock River in Groton.

Samples are analyzed for f***l coliform, E. coli, and/or enterococci. Across our four water bodies, that adds up to 975 individual bacterial analyses over the course of the season.

These data help us better understand bacteria levels in our coastal waters and provide information that can help inform decisions related to human health and water quality.

We're grateful to be one part of this larger monitoring effort and to our interns and monitoring team who put in the time each week to collect these samples!