Volunteers needed for Shorebird Stewardship Program
The community is invited to take part in the Shorebird Stewards Program to help provide a safe environment for those birds – black skimmers, least terns, snowy plovers and wilson plovers – during their nesting season.
Audubon of the Western Everglades Southwest Florida Policy Associate and Stewardship Program Facilitator Brad Cornell said they have held the Shorebird Stewardship Program since 2010, the year the BP oil spill occurred in the Gulf of Mexico. He said they have recognized that coastal birds are declining even without the oil spill, due to human development on coastal areas.
“These birds are having a hard time everywhere,” Cornell said of the black skimmers, least terns and snowy plovers.
They hire a staff member and a biologist to walk Marco Island and Fort Myers Beach every weekend during the summer, as well as during such long holiday weekends as Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, to make sure no harm comes to the birds.
Although the population of the shorebirds is holding pretty steady, last year was a tough year for them because of red tide.
“It had an impact on these birds because of the impact on the fish that they eat. Every year is different,” Cornell said, adding that the species also face predator problems.
He said they work with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to make sure the birds get what they need in terms of law enforcement and biology to learn about the species.
One of the most important areas in Southwest Florida is Big Marco Pass Critical Wildlife Area and Second Chance CWA, where often the most black skimmer fledgling in Florida, as well as many least terns, are found.
The snowy plover and wilson plover have made Fort Myers Beach their home for many of their fledglings. Cornell said the birds nest on Little Estero Island, as well in front of Castle Beach Condos on a private beach in front of Matanzas Pass. He said there are eight to 10 snowy plovers in that area every year.
“We are looking for volunteers to get trained on how to monitor these birds. Most importantly to share information of why the beaches are roped off where they nest,” he said.
The areas are roped off to let beachgoers know there are nests in the area, so the eggs and chicks are not stepped on. The message also expresses why dogs on beaches cause a big problem where the birds are found nesting.
Another important message, do not feed the birds or leave trash behind.
“Trash brings predators. People on the weekend have a picnic and throw an apple core and bag of potato chips (on the beach) and it ends up bringing in predators and destroys the colonies,” Cornell said. “The volunteers help us spread that message.”
The Audubon Florida Anchor Steward for the Fort Myers Beach colony, who is also a biologist, is Andrea Centolla. Those who are interested, but cannot make the training at Lovers Key State Park can reach Centolla at LeeShorebirdSteward@gmail.com.
“We will train them on the job. Andrea Centolla will train everybody that doesn’t have training,” he said.
Cornell said the Shorebird Stewardship Program is a volunteer job based on the beach. He said they have a shade tent, biologist and staff members on the beach, who have a spotting scope and binoculars.
“The nest are little depressions in the sand,” Cornell said.
He said the program is a lot of fun.
“People don’t realize that these nesting are going on right on our beach. This is added value that shows how special Southwest Florida beaches really are,” he said. “Nature has a really big place here, too. That kind of message is what we are really sharing with the public.”
Southwest Florida partners include: Audubon Florida, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Rookery Bay Estuarine Reserve, Town of Fort Myers Beach, Friends of Tigertail Beach, Friends of Barefoot Beach, Turtle Time, Audubon Western Everglades, Audubon of SW Florida, Conservancy of SW Fla.