Wednesday, May 21, 2003
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Wednesday, May 21, 2003 |
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Give the birds a chance DNR reminds Georgians to leave their dogs at home when visiting beaches
With summer just around the corner, many Georgians and traveling visitors are preparing for days of fun and relaxation spent with family and friends at the beach. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resource Division encourages travelers to give the birds a chance by leaving their dog at home when visiting any of Georgia's coastal beaches, especially Williamson Island. This is especially important during the summer months of April, May, June and July, which are the breeding months for Georgia's native beach-nesting birds. "Nesting birds are faced with the added stress and challenge of rearing their young when a beach becomes popular with people for recreational use," said Brad Winn, a biologist with WRD Nongame Endangered Wildlife Program. "In addition to the potential threat of nests and young being trampled, human presence alone can scare the birds off their nests, exposing them to the heat of the sun and predation from other animals. When dogs are included, it increases the risk. Dogs are able to find nests and track down young birds hiding in the grass." Georgia's beach-nesting birds prefer to nest above the high-tide level on wide expanses of flat beach or in the dunes. They lay eggs directly on the beach in shallow scrapes in the sand. After hatching, the chicks hide on the beach or in the grass. The nests and hiding chicks are very hard to see. Disturbance by humans and pets can cause abandonment of the nests and young chicks exposing them to predatory animals and excessive heat from the sun, both often resulting in their death within a matter of minutes. Not only are Georgia's beaches important for nesting, they also serve as key wintering and stopover points for several seabird and shorebird species. Among these are several protected species such as the red knot, piping plover, black skimmer, American oystercatcher, brown pelican and royal tern. Birds from as far away as the Arctic region come through Georgia as they follow migration routes to South America. "Georgia Board Rule 391-4-7 actually prohibits dogs on several protected barrier islands because they can destroy nests and kill the young chicks," said WRD Law Enforcement Captain Homer Bryson. "Due to dog-related incidents in the past, we will be making a concerted effort to increase the enforcement of this law. It's important to understand that this is necessary to ensure the protection of these rare birds, especially during their nesting season." According to WRD, those islands protected by Georgia Board Rule 391-4-7 are Williamson Island, St. Catherines Island Bar, Little Egg Island Bar, Pelican Spit and Satilla River Marsh Island. The rules protecting Georgia's "Bird Islands" were based on recommendations made to the Department of Natural Resources by the Bird Island Advisory Committee, an 8-member panel of coastal resident appointed by DNR Commissioner Lonice Barrett. This committee was developed to study the options for protection of rare shorebird habitat on the barrier islands. Formal recommendations were made to GDNR and the rules were adopted in April 1998. In order to share the beaches with the native birds that nest on them so that future generations of Georgian's can enjoy seeing these beautiful creatures, there are steps you can take. Nests and chicks are very sensitive to human presence. So please: 1. Leave your dog at home. They destroy nests and chase young birds. 1. Hang out with the crowd, and avoid remote stretches of beach where birds may be nesting. 2. Walk or drive below the last high tide line to avoid injuring chicks or eggs. 3. Learn to recognize Georgia's coastal birds, be aware of their nesting areas from March through August, and teach others to appreciate Georgia's native beach-nesting birds. Georgians can support the conservation and protection of Georgia's nesting and migratory birds and their habitat by purchasing a wildlife license plate for their vehicles, or by donating to the "Give Wildlife a Chance" State Income Tax Checkoff. Since 1997, more than 900,000 wildlife license plates have been sold in Georgia, raising over $12 million for wildlife conservation, recreation and education projects. The primary source of funding for the Nongame Wildlife and Natural Heritage Section, the 1997 plate depicts a Northern bobwhite (quail) in flight through longleaf pine habitat one of Georgia's most at-risk ecosystems.
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