Entering our 25th year of business this year, The Audubon Shop is the original birding store in Connecticut. Owned and operated by Janet and Jerry Connolly, we are located in a historic home on the Post Road in Madison, a town situated on Long Island Sound.  A stone's throw east of us is Hammonassett State Park, one of the best birding sites in the state and one of the most significant breeding and migratory bird stopover areas on the Atlantic Coast.  The Connollys are avid birders, leading weekly local field trips as well as trips far a-field including: Costa Rica, Belize, Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad, Tobago, and Africa.

     The Audubon Shop is widely known by birders throughout the state and the country as THE place for optical equipment, international travel and field guides, and expert advice.  Jerry has given optics talks for CT Audubon, CT Ornithological Association, The Linnaean Society of NY and numerous nature centers and bird clubs.

     Since moving into our new "digs" in 2002, with twice the square footage, we have been able to expand our lines of international travel guides, maps and field guides, birdfeeders, seed, artwork, and nature gifts.

     In 1995, Jerry was invited to join Swarovski Optik's 12 person Birding Advisory Council. He was the sole retailer in an elite group of ornithologists, authors, and tour leaders.  The council met with an Austrian design team to test and evaluate all of the current binoculars and spotting scopes and to brainstorm ideas for new products.  The gathering of that association resulted in the "EL" series, widely regarded as the world's finest series of binoculars.