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10/03/2018 12:00 AMOn Saturday, Oct. 13, Branford Open Space Authority will honor the legacy of renowned naturalist and resident, the late Noble S. Proctor, Ph.D., by dedicating a bench of Stony Creek granite at a Supply Pond trail.
The dedication will be held Saturday, Oct. 13, 10:30 – 11 a.m. beside Supply Pond's Orange Trail. Information shared by Branford Land Trust on the event reads, "...amidst the flora and fauna of Supply Ponds, a bench of Stony Creek granite will be dedicated to the memory of Noble Proctor, Branford resident, professor emeritus of biology at Southern Connecticut State University, author and noted ornithologist. The ceremony will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, October 13, along the Orange Trail beyond the old foundation. If needed, rain date is October 14. All are invited to attend and encouraged to share this information with others."
The Orange Trail can be accessed from the Supply Pond parking area (from Route 1 take either Mill Plain Rd. to Short Rocks Rd. or Chestnut St. north to the parking area).
Shortly after his passing in May of 2015, an article in Connecticut Wildlife magazine (see related article) noted Proctor amassed a lifelong birding list of over 6,000 species worldwide and had written and co-authored 10 books on birds and wildlife, among a lifetime of other accomplishments in his fields of interest.
Comments gathered by Connecticut Wildlife from Connecticut Audubon Society's Miley Bull for the magazine's May/June 2015 article including Bull's statement that, "...I was always amazed, when birding in other countries from Africa to Antartica, when a local scientist or government official would ask me if I knew Nobel Proctor. He was, indeed, a world-wide legend."
Together with other notable Connecticut conservationists, Proctor's efforts led to Public Act 86-370 to establish the Conservation Program for Nonharvested Wildlife in the state. He served on the Citizens Advisory Board for that program. Proctor also served on the Avian Species Advisory Board (through the 2015 listing period) for the state's program for the Protection of Endangered and Threatened Species. Additionally, Proctor dedicated many years to scouting Lake Gaillard and Lake Saltonstall for the state's Midwinter Bald Eagle Survey. He also reported the first eagle pair nesting in Guilford in 2012. As a biologist, Proctor also contributed several herpetological records to the state's Wildlife Division.