North Carolina News

Terns, Skimmers Thrive on Recently Conserved Island in North Carolina

Lea-Hutaff Island saw record numbers of Least Terns and Black Skimmers. Learn how and get a full recap of North Carolina’s coastal bird nesting season.
By Brittany Salmons
Senior Communications Associate
Published September 15, 2026
This article is from Audubon North Carolina . Find Audubon near you here.

This nesting season was a historic one on Lea-Hutaff Island, with the largest Least Tern count ever and the return of Black Skimmers, which haven’t nested successfully on the island since 2022. We also worked with partners to further American Oystercatcher banding efforts, counted colonial waterbirds, and saw thousands of baby birds fledge. 

Here’s everything that happened across our network of bird nesting sanctuaries from the Lower Cape Fear River to Pamlico Sound.

Lea-Hutaff Island, a Stronghold for Birds 

Lea-Hutaff is a 5600-acre undeveloped barrier island south of Topsail Beach that was once two separate islands, before the inlet between them closed in the 1990s. Today, it remains an ideal habitat for beach-nesting birds that nest on the sand and require expansive open areas protected from human disturbance.  

That’s why we helped protect the Hutaff side of the island in perpetuity, through a partnership with the North Carolina Coastal Land Trust, family landowners, and a private donor in 2021.  

“This was a great year for Least Terns on the island,” said Audubon Coastal Biologist Lindsay Addison. “Multiple factors go into making a really good year and the number of pairs fluctuate but remain generally high. As growth pressures continue to rise on the coast, Lea-Hutaff has only increased in importance as a nesting sanctuary.”

This year, the stars aligned when three large Least Tern colonies totaling 1,146 pairs settled in prime habitat that Audubon had posted with our traditional symbolic fencing.  For context, there are usually about 3,500 pairs in the entire state.  

In another stroke of good fortune, coyotes largely avoided the island, unlike typical recent years when predator management was required to ensure these hungry mammals wouldn’t eat their way through an egg buffet. In the end, the colonies fledged hundreds of chicks.  

Hutaff also got its first successful colony of Black Skimmers in several years when 19 pairs settled and fledged chicks. 

In addition to the birds, we work with the NC Wildlife Resources Commission to monitor sea turtle nesting. This year, we had a record-breaking 29 nests, all from loggerheads, and are still waiting for all of them to emerge. 

Oystercatchers Get New Bling 

Each year we coordinate statewide oystercatcher banding efforts to monitor the population and implement targeted management projects as needed. This summer, we worked with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission and North Carolina State Parks to train two new banders. This adds to our small but mighty fleet of biologists helping to reverse the decline of this imperiled species. 

Statewide, 173 individuals received new bands, and Audubon staff monitored over 160 pairs, including 97 on the Lower Cape Fear River, 25 on Lea-Hutaff Island, and 30 on Masonboro Island, where we partner with the NC Coastal Reserve for their bird conservation efforts.   

A Hectic Start for Royal and Sandwich Terns 

Though coyotes gave Lea-Hutaff a break, for the first time ever, a coyote was documented on a Cape Fear River bird island. Just as Royal Terns were beginning to lay eggs, trail cameras caught one exploring the shoreline of South Pelican Island.  

Spooked, the Royal and Sandwich Terns departed for Ferry Slip Island, a short distance up the Lower Cape Fear River and nested there.  

Despite the hectic start, terns nested in their normal numbers—over 3,000 pairs—and fledged hundreds of chicks. We also banded 58 Royal and 47 Sandwich Terns and continued our diet study for which we collect poop samples that are used to identify prey species from the DNA they leave behind.  

Meanwhile, the bands help us track them and learn more about the areas that our birds rely on.   

Familiar Favorites Fared Well—And Got Counted 

Brown Pelicans had large, successful colonies on two Audubon islands, Battery Island on the Lower Cape Fear River and Beacon Island near Ocracoke inlet. There was also a smaller colony on Ferry Slip Island.  

One notable absence were White Ibis, which typically nest in the thousands on Battery Island, but only a hundred or so showed up late this year, possibly due to competition for space with the larger pelicans.  

All these changes were documented by intrepid volunteers who participated in the Colonial Waterbird Census at Battery Island. While Audubon staff typically conduct counts for this statewide effort that takes place every three years, we need some extra eyes for larger sites.  

“Battery is by far our most challenging site,” Addison said. “The vegetation is so dense, it’s basically a jungle gym, so extra thanks go to those volunteers, especially the repeat volunteers who come back knowing what they are in for.”

The Battery Island shoreline continues to erode, but we’ve wrapped up the first phase of planning to restore the habitat. Now we’re working to select a design and develop more detailed plans that can be used to start the permitting process. 

Wilson’s Plovers, Common Nighthawks, and Piping Plovers also nested on Audubon sanctuaries along the coast. The success of these species shows how management efforts not only benefit target species but the entire ecosystem as well. 

Stewards Shephard Terns and Skimmers into the World 

With the help of more than 75 volunteer Wrightsville Beach Bird Stewards, Black Skimmers and Common Terns were able to fledge chicks at our most heavily visited bird-nesting sanctuary.  

“Twelve pairs of Common Terns fledged 7 chicks, which is respectable,” said Addison, “and we’re still counting the Black Skimmers because as of Labor Day, we still had a handful of unfledged chicks on the ground.”

We banded 53 Black Simmer chicks, so be on the lookout for black bands with white lettering when you’re along the coast this fall and winter and report them to the USGS Bird Banding Lab. 

The colony of Least Terns showed up late. They were probably renesters trying out a different site, but they didn’t have success at the south end either due to avian depredation. The south end of Wrightsville Beach can be a difficult place for birds to nest, but we are so grateful to stewards and mindful beachgoers who make it possible for them to thrive. 

“The overall health and success of our nesting birds depends on people respecting posted nesting sanctuaries, keeping their dogs away from nesting sites and on a leash, and being a good steward of the environment,” said Addison. “Thank you to everyone who helped us keep our favorite feathered friends safe this year.”

*Note that all banding, marking, and sampling is being conducted under a federally authorized Bird Banding Permit issued by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Lab.