PreserVInG ParadIse

florida Winter Shorebird Survey takes place on islands

L a s t m o n t h , S a n i b e l - C a p t i v a C o n s e r v a t i o n Foundation staff and volunteers participated in the 15th annual Florida Winter Shorebird Survey, documenting nearly 3,000 shorebirds and seabirds over two days

A collaborative effort of the Florida Shorebird Alliance, the survey of shorebirds and seabirds in Florida aims to gain a better understanding of their winter distributions, the SCCF reported. It and island partners have participated in the count since 2010

“Data collected from this survey will be useful in determining important wintering sites and assessing long-term trends in wintering populations and distributions,” shorebird technician Aaron White said “This information will also help guide current and future conservation strategies, especially for threatened species in our state ”

In addition to the islands, the SCCF coordinates with partners to survey routes at the nearby Bunche Beach in Fort Myers, which offers critical tidal flat habitat for thousands of shorebirds. The SCCF reported that species that use the beach include federally threatened piping plovers and red knots

“Among the many birds counted, staff were happy to find some regular winter resident piping plovers, including one individual from the endangered Great L a k e s p o p u l a t i o n , ” s h o r e b i r d b i o l o g i s t A u d r e y Albrecht said. “Known as 'Big' by the researchers who banded her, this bird hatched in 2017 at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and winters each year at Bunche Beach She was spotted with another regular wintering plover, 'Green Flag N6V,' who was banded as an adult in 2019 at Cape Hatteras National Seashore in North Carolina ”

In total, the SCCF shorebird team counted 2,851 birds across Sanibel and Captiva

Top five species this year:

∫ Laughing gull

∫ Royal tern

∫ Ring-billed gull

∫ Brown pelican

∫ Turkey vulture

Top five species of past 1 0 years:

∫ Laughing gull

∫ Sanderling

Royal tern

∫ Ring-billed gull

SCCf seeks debris sightings on preserve lands

The Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation is asking island residents and businesses to report any debris on SCCF preserve land that is adjacent to their property Many areas with debris are not visible from the street or from the interior and can only be seen from residential privately-owned lots

“We appreciate the help in identifying areas where contractors will come to remove debris from SCCF land,” W i l d l i f e & H a b i t a t M a n a g e m e n t D i r e c t o r C h r i s

Lechowicz said “Debris on private property is the responsibility of the property owner. We are only seeking sightings of debris on SCCF land ”

SCCF owns nearly 1,400 acres on Sanibel and over 2,200 acres total in or around the Pine Island Sound It reported that as with most properties on the island, large amounts of debris from homes and businesses were scattered on conservation lands, primarily from the storm surge

SCCF reported that the water rising to unprecedented levels, at least in recent years, resulted in large amounts of construction and demolition (C&D) debris being pushed to the interior and then either settling or being pulled partially back which left a mess that most, if not all, residents can relate with

“There has been significant progress on the clean-up of C&D debris on SCCF conservation lands so far, but there is a long road ahead in getting to all SCCF properties,” Lechowicz said

See DEBRIS SIGHTINGS, page 13