Summary of Big January, 2026
From Sarah Faulkner
Our tenth annual Hartford County Big January of Birding challenge was a success once again, but birding this year was particularly difficult due to extremely cold weather, frozen ponds/lakes/streams, and snow! This yearly quest to see the most wild bird species in January in Hartford County brought lots of joy to those who were able to participate. A number of folks wrote to say that they enjoyed searching but just could not make the minimum number for a certificate. A few commented on the challenges of keeping on gloves, suffering the wind, and difficulties walking… yup, a nasty January! It should be noted that finding even 50 species in Hartford County in January is no easy feat, especially this year. Those able to see many species had to work hard for them! But in the end, it’s not the final number that matters, but the fun we had in the hunt.
Our 2025 winners are listed below. HAS awards certificates in these categories: Youth (ages 4-10): 25 species; Teen (ages 11-17): 35 species; Weekend Warrior Adults (ages 18+ whose day jobs ironically interfere with birding): 50 species, and Adult (ages 18+ who can get outdoors during the week): 60 species. All winners will receive a certificate from HAS at the May Annual Meeting or mailed afterward if you cannot attend to receive it in person. The adult with the most species will be celebrated at the HAS Annual meeting in May, along with the birder who found the most notable bird – our coveted “Golden Grebe” award. Special congratulations go to Jacob Gransinger, age 16, with an impressive count of 67 in the Teen category, and to Connor Hogan for winning the adult category with 102 species. The Golden Grebe award winner will be kept secret until May!
Adults Categories
Sandra Alyssa
Logan Barnes
Laura and Bob Bengtson
Christine Chinni
Sarah Faulkner
Barry Fasciano
Jeff Fengler
David Funke
Jack Halibozek
Joan Heffernan
Thomas Heffernan
Bruce Ho
Connor Hogan
Dennis Johnston
Jay Kaplan
William Kelly
David Lawton
Lisa Lukawicz
Barry Marsh
Jamie Meyers
Annette Pasek
Maryann Passalacqua
Maggie Peretto
Gillian Smits
Audrey Staropoli
Brian Toal
Sandra Van Vooren
Shori Velles
John Weeks
Alison Wilcox
Chris Wilcox
Blair Wlochowski
Joseph Wojtanowski
Sara Zagorski
Teen Category (ages 11-17)
Jacob Gransinger, age 16, 67 species (wow!)
