The BiodiversityWorks field staff returned to the beach this month to begin monitoring and protecting five beach-nesting bird species (piping plover, least tern, common tern, American oystercatcher, and black skimmer) across 24 sites for the 2026 breeding season. Early season visits are primarily focused on posting areas of habitat and installing predator deterrents like low predator fencing at our busiest sites, but we weren’t waiting long for nesting to start. The first American oystercatcher nest of the season was found on April 9th! Since then plenty of other pairs have followed suit, and as this blog was being finalized, we had already found 14 oystercatcher nests and 11 piping plover nests, making for a particularly busy first month of the season. For comparison, by the end of April last year we had only found eight oystercatcher nests and seven plover nests.
Use the arrow keys at the side of the image to click through some of the highlights from the early season. All pictures of the nests and birds were taken by our multi-talented seasonal bird technician, Samantha Bryn.
Now that there are nesting birds on the Vineyard beaches, it seems like a great time to review how to be “beach bird aware” when walking on the beach.
- Respect posted areas.
- The first and most important rule is to stay out of any areas on the beach posted with string and signs (symbolic fencing), even if you do not see any birds. The beach birds we monitor all nest on the ground and lay eggs that are camouflaged to look like rocks. Our staff (as well as the staff from all the other monitoring organizations on the island) are specially trained to recognize tracks and signs that indicate pre-nesting activity and nests. We protect nests with a buffer of symbolic fencing to give the birds space where they feel safe from people when sitting on their nests.
2. Leash your dogs and keep them far away from nesting areas.
- Imagine you are resting with your family at home when all of a sudden a giant fanged predator rushes into your living room. You rush out in front of your family to distract it and lead it away. You survive the first encounter, but then another predator bursts in once you’ve finally settled down. If this happened enough, you might think about moving, right? This is the reality for a piping plover nesting on a beach with lots of off-leash dogs. Piping plovers perceive dogs as natural predators, and prolonged and repeated exposure to these stressors can quickly lead to nest abandonment. It also increases incubation time and limits feeding time, both of which are factors that can reduce breeding success. Keeping your dog on a leash keeps it close to you and less of a threat for these nesting birds. But it is kinder still to keep your dog at least 150 yards away from nesting areas. So please consider walking or exercising your dog off the beach during the breeding season.
3. Utilize the inter-tidal zone.
- When our staff are monitoring a beach, we spend as much time as possible on the wet sand in the intertidal zone. Beach-nesting birds know not to nest in this area, where they would quickly have their nest overwashed. Staying in this zone keeps you farther from active nesting areas, reducing disturbance of the birds and eliminating any risk of stepping on a camouflaged nest.
Graphic: Bird Studies Canada
4. Pay attention to the birds
- While we do our best to find every nest quickly after it's laid and protect it with fencing, we monitor a lot of beaches and cannot visit every site every day. Sometimes birds surprise us and nest outside of posted areas, or in areas they have never used before. So don’t assume just because there is no fencing there are no nests. Fortunately, the birds know where their nests are and will often tell you if you’re too close. If you hear a plover peeping or experience a tern diving at your head, you are likely near a nest or chicks. Watch your step and walk carefully back to the wet sand in the intertidal zone until the behavior stops.
Adult piping plovers will feign having a broken wing to draw potential predators away from their nest. If you see this behavior, stop and walk carefully back to the wet sand in the intertidal zone until the behavior stops. Photo: Samantha Bryn
Want more details? I discuss all of these "beach bird aware" behaviors in this video from a couple years ago and go into a little more depth about the life history and protection behaviors of the species we monitor.
