Seas & Shores
Hit the Beach With A Shorebird Biologist
Shelby Casas braves sun, bugs, and storms to protect endangered birds.
Coastal Stewardship
You can help make beaches safer for birds.
Iconic coastal birds like terns, plovers, and pelicans rely on our beaches and barrier islands around the country to rest and nest, but they're vulnerable to disturbances like human development and sea-level rise.
Boaters and beachgoers, unaware that birds are nesting at these sites, may get too close, flushing parents from their eggs and chicks. Without the protection of their parents, well-camouflaged chicks and eggs can be crushed underfoot, overheat in the sun without shade from their parents, or succumb to opportunistic predators like crows and gulls.
Audubon's Coastal Bird Stewardship Program trains volunteers to protect our coastal nesting birds through long-term monitoring, signage and fencing, beachgoer education, and working with coastal communities.
Do you love spending time on the beach or the water? Share the love with our coastal birds by giving them the space they need to nest, rest, and feed.
How to keep coastal birds safe
- Keep your group, vehicle, and pets a respectful distance—and encourage others to do the same. Be aware of rules, signage and fencing, and always clean up trash.
- Volunteer for a local coastal stewardship program or connect with a an Audubon chapter.
- See a need for better stewardship on your beach? Download Audubon’s toolkit, a guide to engaging in advocacy, organizing volunteers, and being proactive in your community.
Stewardship Across the Flyways
Coasts
Black Skimmers Successfully Nest on Louisiana Mainland for First Time in a Decade
These seabirds capitalized on a restored beach in southwest Louisiana this year after several hurricanes.
Coasts
New Funding to Help Gulf Coast Beachgoers Share the Shore with Birds
Audubon leads a new collaborative effort to design more effective coastal stewardship and management plans for the Gulf of Mexico.
Coasts
New Science Reveals the Big Impact Stewardship Has on Coastal Birds
Birds like terns and plovers that are vulnerable to human disturbance need active stewardship to thrive.
Coasts
Black Skimmers Show That Protecting One Beach Is Not Enough
In its first five years, Audubon’s coastal banding programs reveal the importance of conservation across the bird’s range.
Coasts
How to Become a Bird-friendly Beachgoer
Going to the beach is great, but people aren’t the only ones who enjoy it. Here’s how you can protect shorebirds while soaking up the sun.
Together, we can share the shore.
Birds We Steward
Least Tern
Latin:
Sternula antillarum
Black Skimmer
Latin:
Rynchops niger
Snowy Plover
Latin:
Charadrius nivosus
Piping Plover
Latin:
Charadrius melodus
American Oystercatcher
Latin:
Haematopus palliatus
Wilson's Plover
Latin:
Charadrius wilsonia
Royal Tern
Latin:
Thalasseus maximus
Black Oystercatcher
Latin:
Haematopus bachmani
