More Than Ever, Geaorgia’s Beach-Nesting Birds Need Their Space

By Ammoland Editor Joe Evans

BRUNSWICK, Ga. -(Ammoland.com)- Nesting season is on for Georgia’s beach-nesting birds, and the loss of key sites to Hurricane Matthew last year has increased the need for people to avoid areas these birds and fellow migrants use to nest and forage.

There is a bright spot, however: On St. Simons Island’s East Beach and Pelican Spit off Sea Island, the Beach Stewards Program will be there to help, said Tim Keyes of the state Department of Natural Resources.

“That’s a great resource for the public to engage with the wildlife at these sites. The guidance is needed. When Matthew hit in October, the storm destroyed or diminished most of Georgia’s offshore bars that serve as nest sites largely free of predators and human disturbance. These shoals of sand, such as St. Catherines and Ogeechee bars, “have been drivers in productivity for shorebird and seabirds,” said Keyes, who works with the DNR’s Nongame Conservation Section.

With some bars gone and others smaller and more susceptible to being washed over, nesting stakes are higher on beaches where birds and vacationers mix, including Jekyll, St. Simons and Little Tybee islands.

Beach-nesting birds such as American oystercatchers, black skimmers and …Read the Rest

Source:: AmmoLand