Explorations - July 2007


Champagne Island: No honeymoon for Beach Nesting Birds.
Margaret O'Gorman, Executive Director

Champagne Island in Hereford Inlet has been in the newspapers recently as conservation groups have urged the state to increase protections for the colonies of rare and protected colonial beach nesting birds who use this island to breed, roost and raise their young.  Among the colonies in question, is the largest black skimmer colony in the state, with over 1600 individuals present. The black skimmer, a beautiful bird, is endangered in New Jersey. The overall population of black skimmers in the state has not been fully tallied for this breeding season. In recent years the colony within Hereford Inlet has represented as much as 75% of the state’s population, a trend which looks to be the case again this year from preliminary estimates. Another colony of note is that of the royal tern. This is the northernmost colony of royal terns known on the planet and is new to New Jersey.  Keeping company with the royal terns and the black skimmers on Champagne Island are significant numbers of breeding American oystercatchers, common terns, and several gull-billed terns.  The island, an ephemeral sand bar, provides important habitat sandwiched between Stone Harbor and Wildwood.

On Saturday, July 14th, Todd Pover, Project Manager for beach nesting birds, led a trip for Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.  On that trip we learned the reasons why this island is special, the damage that human disturbance can do to these rare and engaging species as well as the actions that can be taken to reduce human disturbance and increase nest success in the colonies.

When we arrived in Stone Harbor at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, the inlet was peaceful, the bay was calm and all forecasts suggested a perfect day. We took a small boat out to the island and were soon engrossed watching American oystercatchers in a territorial dance. A group of oystercatchers strutted in line along the sand jutting their bills out and up before dropping their heads towards the sand. Chris Vogel, who monitors the birds on Champagne Island for Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey, explained that the reason for this dance was to establish pecking order for the forthcoming winter season. American oystercatchers are unique among beach nesters in New Jersey in that some of them winter over in the state

American oystercatchers will be the subject of a forthcoming article in Explorations and we look forward to highlighting this fascinating creature. While not listed as threatened or endangered in New Jersey, the American oystercatcher is a species of conservation concern. This means that its population numbers in the state may not be healthy and that the species requires further monitoring and possibly active management.

When we arrived at Champagne Island, the black skimmers were incubating their eggs within the colony. It was not until they became active and some started to fly out over the bay that we could appreciate their unique beauty. Skimmers are elegant flyers with wings proportionally larger than their body size. They fly with a gliding action along the water as they skim for food.  While oystercatchers walk across the sands, the black skimmer is a pure flying machine with small legs rarely used for walking.  These beautiful birds contain two features unique to their species. The lower mandible or jaw of the skimmer’s bill extends beyond the upper mandible. This bill biology allows the skimmer to fly close to the surface of water with its lower jaw skimming for food.  Their other unique feature is their eyes. Their pupils have vertical slits, much like a cat’s, that allow them to feed at dark.

In the late 1990’s the black skimmers deserted Champagne Island following a number of storm events that reduced the size of the island. Today over 1,600 birds are concentrated on this small island.

Of great interest to our group was a small colony of royal terns that has become established for the first time on Champagne Island. These birds are named for their distinctive crowns of black which give them a constant look of surprise. We learned that royal terns are the second largest bird in the tern family and that they only lay one egg per pair. Each pair recognizes its own egg by the distinctive and unique pattern on it When hatched, the colony displays what is known as altruism, a collective raising of young chicks in creches, that allows some adults to feed while groups of other adults care for the young together. As a note, the first royal tern nests began hatching just a few days after our trip.

As we watched these fascinating creatures, the edge of Champagne Island began to fill with beachgoers arriving by boat and jet-ski. The colonies of birds are protected by what we call “symbolic fencing.” This fencing circles the colonies and shows people where they should not go. The island is also off limits to dogs. During the peak hours of summer days, the island becomes completely surrounded by people and boats, hampering access to the water for birds like the American oystercatcher and piping plover. The symbolic fence can also be breached easily by folks who do not understand the need for the fence or by beachgoers who ignore the dog prohibition and allow their pets to run free on the island. Furthermore, during high tide, boaters and other beachgoers are forced right up against the fence, further increasing the likelihood of disturbance.

These fences and other restrictions are not put in force to hamper boaters, jet skiers or beach users pleasure. They are placed in order to protect rare and listed species from human disturbance.  Todd pointed out a laughing gull scouting out the colonies. He explained that the gull looks for gaps in the colonies of birds and will seize these gaps as opportunities to take eggs or chicks that are not yet able to fly. Loose dogs and people inside the fence cause these gaps to occur by making the birds fly away and exposing eggs or helpless chicks to hungry and opportunistic predators. Every disturbance of a colony by human or animal provides a chance for an egg or chick to be taken.

The other result of disturbance is to weaken birds, including other shorebirds that utilize the island as they ready for migration. Every time a bird is flushed from its nest or roost, it expends precious energy needed to propel it to its wintering grounds in Texas, Florida or Mexico.  Every disturbance by human or animal affects the chances of successful migration.American Oystercatcher in flight

Todd and his colleagues monitor Champagne Island throughout the breeding season and into the fall migration. This monitoring allows them to count the birds, assess nest success and follow trends in population numbers. These counts and trends inform management strategies developed for these birds and the habitats they depend on. The beach nesting bird monitors also act as patrols, insuring the integrity of the colonies, fixing the fence, educating beach users about the fascinating creatures they are sharing the island with and, hopefully, keeping the birds free of disturbances to allow for maximum opportunity for nest success.

After many years of deploying monitors to New Jersey’s beaches to oversee beach closures or symbolic fence projects, Conserve Wildlife Foundation knows that restrictions alone don’t work but that education and outreach to beach communities and beachgoers are essential tools in protecting these birds. People who breach the fences often do so more out of lack of knowledge than intent to destruction  - the more people know what is behind these fences, the more likely they are to want to protect the integrity of the fences. But a minority of beachgoers will continue to breach the fence and ignore the dog restrictions. When that happens, the state’s Conservation Officers get involved. These officers are law enforcement for the state’s Division of Fish and Wildlife. These officers are now being deployed to Champagne Island to enforce restrictions and boundaries to protect these birds.

If we want to continue enjoying black skimmers, royal terns and American oyster-catchers in New Jersey, we must continue to protect their nesting grounds. Biologists have observed that beach nesting birds will re-nest in the same location if their nest is taken by flooding or some other natural event, but they are more likely to move to a new nesting location if their nest is destroyed by predation. Efforts to protect these birds require little from us beach users but provide great benefits for our beach nesters.

More photos from our visit to Champagne Island
<Make sure you click on "Slideshow" to see photos & captions>

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