Connecticut River Conservancy Launches Study to Investigate Reports of the Connecticut River Serpent
- Alix Kaplan
- Apr 1
- 2 min read
[Middletown, CT – April 1, 2025] – This spring, the Connecticut River Conservancy (CRC) will initiate an investigation of recent reports of the legendary Connecticut River Serpent, known as Connie. This initiative follows a series of credible sightings reported to Rhea Drozdenko, River Steward in Connecticut.
For centuries, Connie has intrigued anglers, boaters, and historians alike, with early documented sightings appearing in The Boston Herald, The Hartford Courant, and the New York Times in the late 19th century. Though modern accounts have been scarce, a recent surge in reports has prompted renewed interest in understanding the behavior of the enigmatic Connie. Some eye-witnesses speculate that the Connecticut River serpent now spends her time in the dark underground tunnels of the Park River, a tributary of the Connecticut River in Hartford. “The ninja turtles loved dark underground areas, why not Connie?” posited an amateur cryptid investigator who has requested to remain anonymous to avoid receiving “bogus intel” that will disrupt their hours tracking down sightings.
“I was out on RiverQuest looking for eagles when a shadow crossed the bow of our boat,” recalled Captain Dan Thompson from the Connecticut River Museum. “No more than twenty feet away, there it was—its head emerging from the water, with a long, winding body trailing behind.”
Identifying elusive aquatic species presents significant challenges, but emerging technologies offer non-invasive and highly effective methods of detection. CRC has successfully utilized environmental DNA (eDNA) testing to confirm the presence of endangered shortnose sturgeon above the Turners Falls Dam in Massachusetts, as far north as Bellows Falls, VT. Given these recent studies, CRC’s ecologists are confident in applying this and other technologies to further explore the mystery of Connie.
CRC will be adding drone footage during hypothesized peak river serpent breeding season, hiring a team of specialized cave divers to explore the Park River tunnels, and installing combined sonar and camera systems on boats like the RiverQuest to increase the chances of getting hi-definition photographs of Connie along with eDNA analyses of water samples to establish presence and narrow down river serpent habitat usage.
"There are many challenges posed by this effort" says Dr. Kate Buckman, the Connecticut River Conservancy's Aquatic Ecologist, "since cryptids are known to be mysterious organisms and there is little known about their behavior to guide our sampling efforts. However, with at least five sightings over the past few centuries we are compelled to investigate this scientific curiosity to see where it may lead. The Holy Grail of course would be to tag Connie and track her movements with acoustic telemetry, but we have to start small."
This research will help to inform the creation of a potential Cryptid Protection Program at the Connecticut River Conservancy in 2025 and beyond.
For questions about this announcement:
Rhea Drozdenko
River Steward in Connecticut
Connecticut River Conservancy
(860) 929-8021 rdrozdenko@ctriver.org
For general inquiries:
Diana Chaplin
Communications Director
Connecticut River Conservancy
(413) 834-0079 dchaplin@ctriver.org
If you have read this far and are wondering whether this is real, the answer is no! This is a lighthearted April Fool's joke, but we hope you enjoyed it and hope you'll learn more about Connie the Connecticut River cryptid at the Connecticut River Museum in Essex, CT.