- Falkner Island Unit
Rocky shores, shrublands, and grasses cover five-acre Falkner Island, located three miles off the coast of Guilford. Each year during the breeding season, the island is home to over 2,500 pairs of nesting common terns. The island also hosts Connecticut’s only breeding colony of roseate terns, a federally-listed endangered species. There are usually about 25-30 roseate tern pairs in addition to the common terns. In total that’s more than 5,000 terns breeding on a very small island!
Every summer, refuge staff closely monitor the tern colony for population information, breeding pairs and nesting success. PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE ISLAND IS CLOSED year-round to protect wildlife habitat. The refuge and its partners sometimes host public "Open House" events, which usually occur in September.
