Whimbrels use their long, curved beaks to probe for mollusks on beaches; Least terns nest in colonies on local beaches— steer clear of their eggs or risk dive-bombing; Wilson’s plovers nest in shallow scrapes near the edge of dunes, leaving their eggs exposed; & Red knots fly one of the longest migratory routes, stopping at Kiawah and Seabrook in spring.
Rising sea levels and human disturbance on beaches are taking a toll on shorebirds
The year 2020 may not have been a good one for humans, but for the least tern population on Kiawah Island, it was a banner year. The same went for 2021, when the beach there hosted the largest nesting colony in the state. (The little shorebirds deposit their speckled eggs right on the sand, taking no pains to hide them from predators.) In 2022, however, a king tide inundated the terns’ favored nesting area, and the same happened again this year, leaving exactly zero nests of a bird already in decline. It’s a trend, says Aaron Given, the town of Kiawah’s wildlife biologist. “The beach is already dynamic, but with flooding being higher and [lasting] longer, it’s going to change at a much higher rate, causing a loss of habitat.”
Waterbirds are increasingly at risk from high tides and worse, hurricanes, which scientists agree are happening with more frequency and intensity as the planet warms. In 2017, Hurricane Irma washed away the already eroding Crab Bank, a bird sanctuary at the mouth of Shem Creek, where migratory shorebirds, such as black skimmers and American oystercatchers, have nested for some 50 years.
Then there’s beachgoers and off-leash dogs, who may—unwittingly or not—flush flocks of migratory shorebirds that need to conserve their energy for their long flights ahead. Red knots, for instance, face many threats all along their migration route, such as oil spills and hunting, says Cami Duquet, the DNR’s shorebird stewardship coordinator, “but here in South Carolina, it’s really human and dog disturbance.”
In the case of Crab Bank, however, humans have tried to make amends. Through a public-private partnership, including the DNR, Audubon South Carolina, the Coastal Conservation League, and local outfitter Coastal Expeditions, the island was restored in 2022 with dredge material from the harbor. Shorebirds are now slowly finding their way back. Last year, the DNR found eight nests made by American oystercatchers, 100 from least terns, and a whopping 237 black skimmer nests.
Tread lightly on area beaches to catch a glimpse of these shorebirds
Red knot
Calidris canutus rufa
Status: Declining
This migratory long-hauler breeds in the Arctic tundra and winters from the South Carolina coast as far south as Tierra del Fuego. The beaches of Seabrook and Kiawah are critical stopovers for the sandpiper in early spring.
Least tern
Sternula antillarum
Status: Declining
Removed from the federal endangered species list in 2021, this tiny tern remains threatened by sea-level rise and human behavior. Find colonies on local beaches, but keep your distance to avoid flushing and steer clear of its well-camouflaged eggs.
Wilson’s plover
Charadrius wilsonia
Status: Declining
Year-round residents of the coast, this plover is partial to fiddler crabs plucked from the mud or sand with its heavy bill. Pairs have been seen nesting at Folly from March through July. Watch for their eggs in shallow sand near the edges of dunes.
Black skimmer
Rynchops niger
Status: Declining
Skimmers feed in flight by dipping the bottom part of their bill in the water until they feel a fish. While habitat loss has contributed to a decline in recent decades, a bright spot is the bird’s return to nest on Crab Bank.
Whimbrel
Numenius phaeopus
Status: Declining
Experts from the DNR and Cornell Lab of Ornithology made news in 2019 when they discovered the world’s largest concentration of whimbrels roosting on Deveaux Bank, a spring stopover on their migration from South America to the Arc
WATCH as the whimbrels come to roost at Deveaux Bank
