Banded Shorebirds and Berm All Patched Up

The American Oystercatcher is a very eye-catching shorebird with its blazing orange bill and is a photographer’s favorite. Yet for beach walkers, it is easy to walk right by them as they forage for food by the wrack line. They are often seen alone or in a pair. Still, it is a good rule of thumb to maintain a respectful distance to avoid disturbing their natural behavior.

According to FWC, the markings on an American Oystercatcher are unmistakable:

Blaze orange bill – specialized for prying bivalves apart.

Solid black head and neck – contrasting with a clean white belly and brown back.

Pink legs and slightly clunky.

Best time of day to see them – they are tidal creatures and forage at low tide.

Experts say you hear them before you see them with their shrill, high-pitched call.  Brittany Piersma, biologist for the Audubon of the Western Everglades, assured me that I’ve most likely heard it on the beach. She added, “This time of the year, our shorebird stewards and volunteers are searching for bands on this and other species to track the individual migrations and movements and report to the scientists and banders. For the American Oystercatchers, they have an excellent working group with a website dedicated to the research of these iconic shorebirds.” While beach walking by a resting flock, look at their legs for colored bands; take a quick photo and let the shorebird stewards know. Or report your findings to: http://www.amoywg.org/.

The berm is all patched up post Hurricane Isaias. Humiston and Moore presented a scope of work to the City of Marco Island for professional services for the maintenance repairs of the overwash area on Sand Dollar Island. It included contracting with Earth Tech Enterprise for four to six days of repair work using an excavator and one bulldozer; total project cost: $44,145.

At the November 2 City Council meeting, a proposal was on the agenda from Hideaway Beach Taxing District seeking approval for “City Manager to direct City Staff and City’s Consultants to coordinate with Collier County regarding Funding and Planning for the Tigertail Lagoon/Sand Dollar Ecosystem Five-Year Maintenance Cycle Restoration,” scheduled for 2027.

First, some background: The Tigertail berm project has operated under a joint permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) as follows: FDEP Permit # 0401778-001-JC/USACE SAJ-2007-04224, issued to the City of Marco Island on February 11, 2022, valid until February 11, 2037 (The City of Marco Island is the Permit holder with 11 years more to go). It was titled “Ecosystem Restoration.” The Tigertail Lagoon/Sand Dollar Island Lagoon Ecosystem Restoration Project was to “restore tidal exchange and improve water quality within the lagoon system.”

The project is entering its fifth year and Hideaway Beach Taxing District is seeking approval and funding for a fifth year of dredging-repair-maintenance-restoration. The threatened birds have not nested since 2022; sea turtles are failing to nest successfully; the dredging of the lagoon has reduced the habitat for the local wading birds; and yearly erosion of sand into the lagoon has also killed the mangroves on the east side of the lagoon, and water quality for nitrogen and phosphorus data, according to Turrell Hall, shows that over a three-year period, has exceeded the state-mandated threshold, establishing an “impaired status.” The report attributes the water quality impairment to bird colonies returning, yet there were no substantial colonies on Sand Dollar Island at any time of the year since 2022.