Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve

Home
United States
Groton, CT
Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve

Learn more at https://estuarineresearchreserve.center.uconn.edu/

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!

08/19/2026

A beautiful morning on the water with the Thames River Heritage Park for an educational eelgrass boat tour led by Dr. Jamie Vaudrey. Participants learned about the importance of eelgrass habitat in Long Island Sound, challenges it faces, restoration activities, and how people can help. A great opportunity to be on the water and learn about these valuable underwater habitats!

08/18/2026

Last week we hosted our third annual Teachers on the Estuary workshop, which focused on one of our favorite habitats at the Reserve - EELGRASS! We explored, played, and paddled to learn more about why eelgrass is so important and how it is managed, protected, and restored. Thank you to all of our educators for being so engaged and to our staff for the fun presentations and hands-on learning activities.

If you’re interested in joining in on the fun, be sure to sign up for our educator updates:
https://estuarineresearchreserve.center.uconn.edu/stay-connected/

08/17/2026

Back out at Ram Island with Project Oeanology, CT Sea Grant and Sixpenny Oyster for another morning on the water! Campers had the opportunity to learn directly from oyster farmers about what it takes to grow oysters, explore the internal anatomy of an oyster,
and measure shells at different stages of growth.

08/14/2026

Our interns joined Project Oceanology aboard their vessel for an afternoon of fishing and hands-on learning. We trawled, pulled up the net as a team (because teamwork really does make the dream work), and got our hands wet identifying the species we caught. A great opportunity for learning, collaboration, and field experience!

08/12/2026

Help Shape the Future of Rocky Neck State Park!

Have you visited Rocky Neck State Park recently—or even in the past? We'd love to hear about your experiences.
The Nature Conservancy, in partnership with CT DEEP, the Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve, and other partners, is conducting a recreation study to better understand
how people use and experience Rocky Neck State Park. Your feedback will help inform future recreation, conservation, and restoration planning.

The survey takes about 10 minutes to complete, and your responses are voluntary and confidential.
Take the survey here: https://bit.ly/FutureRNSP

Thank you for helping us better understand what makes Rocky Neck special!

08/10/2026

A wonderful morning at our Inclusive Story time at UConn Avery Point! Families gathered for a reading of The Quest for the Cockle Implant in both spoken English and ASL, followed by crafts and a critter corner with local critters. Thank you to everyone who joined us and a special thank you to our partners, the HELLO Lab and UConn Library Avery Point for making this event possible!

Address

1084 Shennecossett Road
Groton, CT
06340

Telephone

+18604059126

Website

https://estuarineresearchreserve.center.uconn.edu/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve:

Want your organization to be the top-listed Government Service in Groton?