Tag: beach nesting bird

Assessing the damage to coastal wildlife and their habitat

By Stephanie Egger, Wildlife Biologist

As we all know Hurricane Sandy caused severe damage and devastation to New Jersey residents, homes, and their businesses, but we must not forget that wildlife can also suffer from the impacts of a hurricane.  CWFNJ’s Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager, Todd Pover, Alfred Breed, CWFNJ Field Technician, and myself, conducted wildlife/habitat assessments on beaches from Brigantine to Cape May after the storm.  Our nesting sites further north in Ocean and Monmouth Counties were still not accessible at that time to evaluate.  We assessed nesting habitat for beach nesting bird species, especially Piping Plover as well beach/inlet habitat used by migratory shorebirds, particularly American Oystercatchers.

As expected, many of our nesting sites and sites that are also used by migratory shorebirds for roosting were hit hard by Hurricane Sandy, losing a great deal of sand and suitable habitat.  However, in some locations such as Stone Harbor Point and North Brigantine Natural Area, the storm scoured out areas with too much vegetation which is good for beach nesters as they prefer sparsely vegetated areas. Sand was also pushed back into the dunes to create blowouts and overwash areas that may serve as additional habitat.  Many of the areas seem to be very low lying now from the loss of sand and might be more flood prone which could impact the beach nesters in the spring.

We also observed migratory songbirds, golden-crowned kinglets, which were taking shelter and flittering through the back dune/bayberry habitat right after the storm.  This was a good reminder of the value of New Jersey coastal habitat for songbirds as they migrate down the coast.

As part of our assessment, we conducted American Oystercatcher surveys as a significant number use New Jersey beaches for roosting during the fall and winter.  Luckily, approximately 900-1,000 American Oystercatchers were still using our southern coastal inlets after Sandy, about the same number of birds observed the week before the storm.  Thanks to funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation we were already conducting fall surveys for American Oystercatchers and in the position to compare their numbers before and after the storm.

Only time will tell if the habitat will build back up enough in time for the spring as the birds begin to arrive for the nesting season or if it will have lasting impacts on migratory bird species. We hope to conduct further assessments to gain a better understanding of the short- and long-term impacts to wildlife from Hurricane Sandy and how that may affect conservation and recovery effort for these species moving forward.

 

 

 

 

For CWFNJ’s videos of wildlife and habitat assessments click on the links below:

Wildlife Assessment Post Hurricane Sandy at North Brigantine Natural Area, NJ

Wildlife Assessment Post Hurricane Sandy at Stone Harbor Point, NJ

Wildlife Assessment Post Hurricane Sandy at Strathmere Natural Area, NJ

American Oystercatchers in our Sights

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Did you know that American oystercatchers don’t just nest in New Jersey, but that we also have the northernmost wintering population on the Atlantic Coast? Our state’s coastal inlets are also important as stopover sites for migratory oystercatchers. Yesterday, we counted a flock of over 300 oystercatchers on Champagne Island in Hereford Inlet and this morning we surveyed a smaller flock of about 75 birds in Corson’s Inlet. In addition to counting the birds, we also look for (i.e. resight) color bands during the surveys. Most of the bands are from birds that nested here, but a number of bands from other states, such as Massachusetts, are also currently being seen.  New Jersey bands are orange colored – you can see two of “ours” in the photo above.

How to Make a Plover Biologist’s Day!

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

We spend a lot of time on the beach nesting bird project discussing the love/hate relationship the public has with piping plovers. For every person that supports our conservation efforts for this highly vulnerable shorebird, there seems to be at least two people that complain the plovers take up too much of the beach or prevent dogs from being allowed on the beach.

But every once in awhile, you have one of those perfect encounters that makes all the work worthwhile, so I thought I’d share a recent one with you.

Last week I was conducting a piping plover migration and band resighting survey at Stone Harbor Point. The fact that it was an extremely warm and sunny October day – extending the illusion of summer for just a wee bit longer – alone should have been enough to make me content. Then there was the very cooperative flock of 13 piping plovers, including three with color bands that I recognized as our summer breeders. All and all, it was shaping up as a good day in the field!

As I was almost wrapping up my survey I noticed a birdwatching couple a little further down the beach gazing off into the distance through a scope. On the off-chance they had noticed some plovers I had missed I approached them to see what they were looking at.

“Seeing anything interesting?” I inquired.

“A flock of royal and caspian terns, but no, nothing much really,” the man replied. And then out of the blue he added, “No piping plovers.”

This was a surprising comment since I hadn’t prompted him and October isn’t exactly prime time for piping plover viewing in New Jersey (or anywhere on the breeding grounds for that matter). I proceeded to strike up a conversation with the couple. It turned out they were from Holland, this was their first trip to the U.S., and they were on a birding/nature trip that was starting in the Cape May area.

We talked a little about the work I did and then, naturally, I mentioned to them that there actually was a group of piping plovers just 50 yards away from them on the beach. Given their pale sand color, even more so in non-breeding plumage, I wasn’t surprised the couple had walked right past the plovers.

The man’s eyes widened and he said, “Really?”

Of course, I led them back to the plovers. As we approached the plovers and they came into clear view, the man stopped and turned to me and said, “I have been dreaming of seeing a piping plover for years.”

It isn’t too often you get to make someone’s dream come true. And it is nice to know someone else is dreaming of plovers other than me.

Determining flight movements and patterns of piping plovers

By Sarah Scheffer, CWFNJ Seasonal Field Technician

This year’s chapter of the Beach Nesting Bird Project brought with it many unique opportunities, particularly with the placement of color bands on nearly 30 of our piping plovers at two locations along the New Jersey coastline. Nesting adults and four chicks from Stone Harbor Point and Avalon were given bands, which we have been using to conduct resight surveys to understand how adults and juveniles move about before migrating. In the long term, these bands can be used to determine if birds return to the same breeding grounds or natal sites, and where they overwinter. The banding was carried out by two researchers from the State University of New York, Emily Heiser and Christy Weaver, as part of a project to determine flight movements and patterns of piping plovers in order to be able to minimize risks to these threatened shorebirds when assessing the placement of wind turbines. Luckily, some of the CWFNJ team, including myself, was able to provide assistance and help with the banding!

Being able to band the piping plovers was a truly special experience. Nesting adults were captured by manipulating the predator exclosures (wire cages) placed over their nests to create only one entrance and one exit into a netted tunnel. Once captured the plovers were then carefully measured and weighed to determine crucial information such as body mass, wing length, and beak size. Using a small specialized tool, brightly colored plastic bands were placed on the legs of each bird to give them their own unique combination. Banding schemes can vary depending on who performs the banding and can include small flags and metal or plastic bands placed on the legs. At our two New Jersey sites, birds were given four bands, two on the upper portion of each leg. Piping plovers at Stone Harbor Point sport a green band on the top of each leg, while those at Avalon wear blue bands.

 

These bands have made it much easier to identify individual birds and to observe their habits. Along with the band combinations, we decided to give the plovers nicknames as well! Although the nicknames are definitely something that adds a little bit of fun to identification, they are actually quite practical as well. The nicknames helped to streamline communication about what was happening at each nesting site. For example, it is much easier to say that Bruce (Springsteen) was observed incubating his nest, than to say the bird with green gray, green yellow (band combinations are read from top to bottom, from left to right) was seen incubating.

During the summer piping plover breeding season, our duties included checking the breeding sites and the individual nests or broods every day. As the season progressed, resight surveys were also performed. A section of beach was regularly traversed and the number, location, and activities of the banded piping plovers were noted. These surveys give us crucial information about the site and the movements of the plovers, as well as when they depart to migrate. After her nest was lost in a flood tide, a banded female nicknamed Ivana was observed to have begun her migration and was spotted soon after in Virginia! As most staff check on the same sites every day, we became well acquainted with each bird and their particular idiosyncrasies. The increased ease of identification of these birds has helped turn up some surprising information. The banding project has resulted in a wealth of knowledge and the possibility to further understand the New Jersey population.

A HAPPY ENDING TO A TOUGH YEAR

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

There is no way to sugar coat it – this has not been a stellar year for piping plovers in New Jersey. Due to a number of ill-timed severe storms, high tides, and heat waves, chick productivity was low this year. There was some comfort in knowing that these events were largely out of our control, so at least it wasn’t something we could have prevented. At the same time, there is a nagging feeling that years such as this are the new “normal” as we enter an era of climate change where more extreme weather is predicted.

While there were a number of tough moments throughout the season, one incident was especially frustrating for the staff. Several days after a piping plover chick reached its fledge (flying) date at Cape May Point State Park, where it had battled marauding crows for over a month, CWFNJ field technician Sarah Scheffer discovered the fledgling dragging its wing. This is never a good sign – usually it indicates a broken wing. Fortunately, because we monitor the site daily, we caught the problem immediately. Continue reading “PIPING PLOVER BREEDING UPDATE”

A Beach Nester Scrapbook

Compiled by Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager 

The Beach Nesting Bird Project is one of our major initiatives here at the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey. During the spring and summer months, we employ several field technicians to help us carry out our mission of monitoring and protecting endangered piping plovers, least terns, and black skimmers, as well as American oystercatchers. We also help oversee the seasonal staff from the state’s Endangered and Nongame Species Program on this project.

As a slight change of pace for a blog, I thought it would be both fun and insightful to hear a little bit of their perspective from the field. So, I asked everyone from the joint beachnester crew to submit a short entry about what they like and dislike most about the project, as well as a favorite or unique photo. I will kick it off with my thoughts…Because the main goal of the project is to recover at-risk species, obviously the most satisfying aspect of the project is when the birds have a successful year. But that isn’t always the case, so my personal favorite thing is finding the first piping plover nests of the season. Aside from the challenge of actually locating the well-camouflaged nests, those first eggs embody the eternal hope of each new season. Early in the season, before spring tides wash away eggs, predators discover helpless chicks, and the crush of beachgoers squeezes out colonies, you still believe every nest will successfully produce young.We interact with the public on a daily basis on this project and for the most part we meet nice people. But we also deal with our share of people who do not support the effort. Our motto is “share the shore” and, in fact, only a small percentage of our state’s coastline is protected for beach nesting birds and many of the restriction put in place to help the birds are seasonal in nature. Nonetheless, the “plover fence” brings out the worst in some people, and when that anger is directed at you personally it can be pretty unpleasant and frustrating.

Continue reading “Viewpoint from the Field”

By Stephanie Egger, Wildlife Biologist

Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ (CWFNJ) and the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife – Endangered and Nongame Species Program (ENSP) assisted in the banding of American oystercatchers chicks and adults this week.  Oystercatchers in New Jersey are banded as part of a long-term mark recapture research project by Dr. Tom Virzi of Rutgers University in collaboration with CWFNJ and ENSP.  One breeding adult that was recaptured yesterday was originally banded over a winter in Georgia!  Data collected included band color and combination, sex, age, weight, other physical measurements (wing, head, culmen, nares, leg) and a feather sample for DNA purposes.  Check out our video from that day!

Over the last few years, widespread mark recapture efforts along the Atlantic coast have revealed connections between breeding and wintering sites and information of the complexity of patterns of movement and dispersal.  For more information on the New Jersey data and other state efforts please see the American Oystercatcher Working Group website.

TRACKING THEIR PATH AS THEY HEAD SOUTH FOR THE WINTER

By Allison Anholt, Field Technician, (NJDFW) and Emily Heiser, Field Technician, (CWFNJ)

Throughout the fall, there is a remarkable sight to see along New Jersey’s coastline.  Thousands of shorebirds group together in huge flocks, using our state’s coastline as a migration stopover point to rest and feed.  One particularly interesting shorebird is the American oystercatcher, which is listed as a species of special concern in New Jersey.   At the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey, we work with biologists from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife to survey these birds throughout the fall season.

The oystercatcher is an especially easy bird to survey during fall migration due to its distinct features. Not only do they stand apart from other shorebird species with their unique orange bill and striking coloration, but color bands help us determine individuals as well.  Banding efforts have been underway in New Jersey since 2004 in order to give insight to researchers regarding the
oystercatcher’s breeding habits, pair behavior, and migration patterns. About 300 oystercatchers have been banded in New Jersey to date, including a significant percentage of the state’s estimated 400 breeding pairs. Continue reading “AMERICAN OYSTERCATCHERS TAGGED AND READY FOR MIGRATION”

New Jersey’s Black Skimmers Survive Hurricane Irene

By Todd Pover, CWFNJ Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Hurricanes and other severe weather can be a matter of life or death for nesting birds. Young chicks are particularly vulnerable, but even adults are at risk in the most extreme storms. Although most of our state’s beach nesting birds have completed the breeding cycle for the season, the majority of the Atlantic coast population of piping plovers and many least terns are in the midst of migration and would have been in the path of Hurricane Irene. We have no way of knowing for sure what impact the storm had on them, but long distance migration is tough on birds in the best of circumstances. Survival of young during their first year is typically very low so this was not a good start to the post breeding season.

We had two active nesting colonies remaining in New Jersey heading into the storm – a least tern colony at Townsend’s Inlet (Cape May County) and a black skimmer colony at Seaview Harbor Marina (Atlantic County). Residents in this area had a mandatory evacuation order, but our birds didn’t have that option. Today I completed an assessment of our beaches and nesting birds in the southern portion of the coast and I am happy to report that both the skimmer and tern colony escaped the storm largely unscathed.

Going into the storm, the tern colony was almost done for the season anyhow so any losses there would have been minimal. The skimmer colony, on the other hand, still had a number of chicks remaining and about 800 just fledged (able to fly) young. And over 1800 adults! This is the state’s only major skimmer colony representing nearly the entire state breeding population. So you can imagine it was a big relief when I walked out on the beach and heard thousands of raucous skimmers and saw there was no visible reduction in the colony’s size. Like our homes and loved ones, Irene appears to have spared our beachnesters.

New Staff Member Introduction

By Stephanie Egger, CWF Wildlife Biologist

 As a new staff member of the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey (CWF) a blog entry seemed like a good way to introduce myself.  So here goes.  “The wheel has come full circle,” meaning to go full circle, complete an entire cycle or to return to an original position, is an old adage thought to originate from Shakespeare in King Lear 5:3.  Apparently there is some truth to this expression.  I really didn’t see it coming though, especially not to my career, my passion, which has focused on endangered species, namely the piping plover, for the last five years.

I actually started working with piping plovers as a monitor for the Beach Nesting Bird Program in 2006.  Fresh out of grad school, looking to get my foot in the door, I came across an opening to manage piping plovers on the Jersey shore.  Perfect I thought!  I can work on my tan while I’m working!  Totally kidding!  I have to admit at that point in my life I had never even heard of the infamous piping plover (I know, I still can’t believe it myself).  How did I miss a bird that’s been protected under the Endangered Species Act since 1986 and nesting on the very same NJ beaches that I spent every summer vacationing since I was a toddler?  My previous two years were consumed researching northern diamondback terrapins for my Master’s degree, but this opportunity seemed to be calling me.  My then supervisor (CWF’s own Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Program Manager), took a chance on me and little did I know it would set the stage for the next five years of my career and the beginning of that circle.

My job as a plover monitor did not last long, only a few short months, when I had to bid farewell to my life in the field with the birds as a new adventure began for me with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, New Jersey Field Office (USFWS).  As luck would have it, the job also focused on plovers.  Not so much on the ground, getting down and dirty with plovers, but managing the plovers by helping implement conservation measures to increase their survival and recovery, and minimize or eliminate adverse impacts of numerous beach related projects on the birds.  How does one begin to achieve this?  Partnering. Continue reading “From Plovers to Partners and Back Again – Coming Full Circle”