Turtle Journal

American Oystercatcher, Stewarts Island, Sippican Harbor

American oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus) with bright orange beaks and penetrating golden eyes offer an exquisite contrast to the browns and grays and greens of the coastal New England landscape.  Nearly driven to extinction in the Northeast due to poaching and hunting, the species began to return to Massachusetts waters under the protection of the Migratory Bird Treaty, but populations remain uncomfortably low.  Not covered by the federal Endangered Species Act, American oystercatchers depend on the protection of individual states, many of which list them as a species of special concern because of dwindling populations.  Unfortunately, Massachusetts is not one of these states.

Banded Oystercatcher Pair, Gravel Island, Sippican Harbor

Massachusetts Audubon Society, through its Coastal Waterbird Program, monitors American oystercatchers, and Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary director Bob Prescott (rprescott@massaudubon.org) has taken a special interest in protecting these beautiful coastal birds.  When nesting pairs are identified and located, Mass Audubon has installed symbolic fencing to protect the pair from unintended disturbance.  Turtle Journal has observed breeding pairs on the Outer Cape and on the SouthCoast and notes that parents are extremely dedicated to and protective of their nests and their young.

Banded American Oystercatcher “W5″ on Gravel Island

Turtle Journal has documented American oystercatchers on the SouthCoast for the last seven years coincident with our diamondback terrapin studies from Mount Hope Bay on the Rhode Island/Massachusetts border to the Cape Cod Canal.  This summer, Sue Wieber Nourse discovered a breeding pair, including banded oystercatcher “W5″ above, on rocky, salt marsh Gravel Island in Marion’s Sippican Harbor.

Four Oystercatchers, Stewarts Island, Sippican Harbor

A couple of weeks later, Sue found oystercatcher “W5″ and three others foraging the tidal flats 1.75 miles to the south on Stewarts Island in Sippican Harbor.

Oystercatcher Juveniles with Parents, West Island

In August 2007, Turtle Journal’s Don Lewis (Don_Lewis@post.harvard.edu)  documented two juvenile American oystercatchers with parents on the north shore of West Island in Fairhaven.

Oystercatcher Pair on Aucoot Cove Barrier Strip

Turtle Journal found another breeding pair of American oystercatchers on Aucoot Cove’s barrier strip in July 2007.

Oystercatcher Parents with Juvenile (Left), Aucoot Cove

Then, later in the summer, Turtle Journal discovered the oystercatcher parents foraging along the shoreline of Aucoot Cove with a juvenile.

American Oystercatchers Fly through Sippican Harbor

Sippican Harbor in Marion is an active sailing center with hundreds of yachts moored at anchor between Head of Harbor to the north and Ram Island in the south.  Luckily, there are a number of small, gravelly marsh islands scattered through the estuary where pairs of osytercatchers can secret themselves away from the noise and the flutter of summer busy-ness.  And while the SouthCoast can’t rival the Outer Cape for isolation, there remain a few spots like the north shoreline of West Island in Fairhaven where humans have trouble frequenting.

American Oystercatcher in Flight, Buzzards Bay

If you’d like to help restore American oystercatcher populations in coastal Massachusetts, let Turtle Journal know if you discover a breeding pair or have a sighting of these magnificent shorebirds.  Our 24/7 hotline remains open at 508-274-5108.  Of course, Massachusetts Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary welcomes information on potential nesting sites and can be reached at 508-349-2615.

Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) 

During Saturday’s terrapin sampling on Outer Cape Cod, Turtle Journal encountered an active piping plover (Charadrius melodus) nest that has been protected by symbolic fencing and a nest exclosure by Mass Audubon.  These tiny birds have been pushed to the brink of extinction by pressure from human activities in their nesting zones.  Summer cottages, off road vehicles, dog walking, nature hikes and all manner of recreational and commercial activities that occur within the fragile shoreline that plovers must use for nesting each year create enormous challenges for these tiny creatures. 

Four Perfect Piping Plover Eggs

Even without the added pressure of humans, piping plovers have a tough time.  Eggs are exposed to the elements in shallow scrapes bare and uncovered by anything except a protective plover parent.  When parents are disturbed from the nest because of human activites, the eggs can … depending on temperature … be lost or delayed in development.  Spring tides overwash nests with regularity, especially in areas that have been sand-starved because of human development along the coastline.  Predators relish plover eggs and these tiny birds are helpless to ward off animals that dominate them in size and power.  Plover parents courageously feign a wounded wing or do whatever they can to tempt the predator to pursue them rather than find the vulnerable eggs.

Piping Plover Guarding Protected Nest

Because plovers must nest in our cherished summer recreational spots, they become the object of anger when they interfere with human sport or enterprise.  “Plovers taste like chicken” has become the mantra of frustrated individuals and groups who have been affected by restrictions to protect threatened plovers.  The dynamics are not pretty.  Beyond inconvenience, plover regulations can cut into revenues and for towns that depend overwhelmingly on summer tourism, losing weeks of spring and summer to plovers can create a huge economic impact.  All sides have valid arguments and complaints, yet for the plovers, the situation is literally life or death.

Signs Alert Public to Sensitive Plover Nesting Areas 

Mass Audubon, among other environmental and conservation organizations, assist state and federal authorities in protecting plover nests.  They post signs to alert the public to nesting pairs, they erect symbolic fencing to keep humans (and pets) from intruding into nesting grounds, and they install nest excluders over the eggs.  These excluders allow the plover parents to reach the eggs, but keep out larger predators.  Still, the symbolic fencing and excluders cannot keep out flood tides nor can they prevent powerful and aggressive predators from overwhelming these defenses.

Find the Piping Plover

Plovers are so small and camouflaged that they are extremely elusive and difficult to spot.  (Click on the photograph above to find the plover.)  Their eggs, too, blend in naturally with the beach surroundings.  While these facts help protect plovers and their eggs from predators, we can easily stumble into a new plover nesting zone without signage to warn us.  If you do spot a nest that has not been marked, call Mass Audubon at the numbers listed on the sign above to alert them and to protect the plovers.

Tiny Piping Plovers Need Our Help to Survive

Plovers need our help to survive.  Despite inconvenience, plovers are an important element of the native Cape Cod habitat and experience.  They deserve our respect and protection.

Baby Mute Swan Cygnets Newly Hatched

Turtle Journal ventured to Spragues Cove in Marion on Buzzards Bay this morning to check the status of a mute swan nest that we have been following since April 4th.  See Egg Hunt: Who Needs Bunnies When You Have Swans? for the initial story of this nest and a look at a perfect mute swan egg that one of these babies had occupied.

Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) Adult on Nest

As we approached, one of the adults was patiently sitting on the nest.  Everything seemed as it has been for the last nearly six weeks, except when we got close.

Adult Swan Rises to Expose Baby Cynets

The adult reared up, exposing four perfect baby cygnets, and began hissing in our direction.  Once the adult realized our cameras were no threat, it calmed a bit and allowed the cygnets to enjoy exposure to the warm mid-60 degree breeze.

Four Baby Cygnets with Adult Mute Swan

The baby cygnets seemed amused by this brief moment of freedom.  They squirmed around and looked hither and yon under the watchful eye of the adult that stood sentry above them.

Four Adorable Baby Cygnets (Cygnus olor)

They were truly adorable white fuzz balls with black beaks rather than the characteristic orange beaks of adult mute swans.

“So, this is what they call sunshine.”

With longer exposure came more adventurous exploration as they waddled around the nest looking for the best exposure to the warming sun.

“Okay, we’ve seen enough.  You can sit now, Mom.”

Soon, though, they settled back down as if realizing that this brief moment in the sun had run its course.

“Thanks, Mom.” Mute Swam Resumes Sitting Nest

The adult re-sat on the nest, carefully tucking the adorable baby cygnets under her feathers.  And Turtle Journal withdrew for another adventure of discovery.

Brief Visit to Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

Blue Bird of Happiness?  You’ve Gotta Be Kidding

Okay, it was a tough day.  The forecast said warm and sunny.  The weather delivered chilly and overcast with stiff northwesterly winds.  So, it was the perfect spring day we had been promised.  So, not a single diamondback terrapin woke from burrowed slumber underneath the oozy bottom of Wellfleet Bay.  So, mating horseshoe crabs had plowed under layers of muck to stay warm.  Still, is that any reason for the blue bird of happiness to have a chip on its shoulder?

One Really Grouchy Blue Bird

After a really frustrating couple of hours surveying Chipman’s Cove for terrapins, Turtle Journal headed for Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary for a few minutes of decompression.  As soon as we arrived, we heard that a cold-stunned diamondback terrapin had washed ashore on Sunken Meadow Beach!  We searched for Eastern box turtles that might have emerged from brumation, but with no success.  Then we visited the butterfly garden to see what amusing, happy critters might be found and this blue bird of happiness (sic) greeted us.  Not exactly what we were looking for.

Painted Turtles Basking in the Shallow Pond

We moved on to the shallow pond at the entrance to the walking trails and spied four painted turtles basking in the filtered sunlight.  No question; we were moving in the right direction on the happiness compass.  These critters were almost smiling; well, as close as a turtle in stupor comes to smiling, anyway.

Red-Winged Blackbird

Above the quartet of sleeping turtles sat a red-winged blackbird in alert sentry.  We moved down the path to the Silver Spring trail where one can always find something to ogle.

Delicately Balanced Painted Turtle

In Silver Spring we encountered another sleeping painted turtle clearly auditioning for Cirqe du Soleil.  She had managed to delicately balance herself on a set of reeds with only her left rear foot to provide support.  She let me approach within a few feet for the photograph without so much as ackowledging my presence.  Like any self-respecting turtle, had she actually acknowledged my presence as a threat, she would have had to plop down from the reeds … and then laboriously climb back again after I departed.  What a drag!  So, she ignored me, instead.

Thumper!

We did find one critter that seemed to enjoy this day at the Sanctuary:  Thumper!

What’s Up, Doc?

Now, that’s a contented rabbit.  “Maybe humans call it a butterfly garden, but I call it Supper!”