Latest posts
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Help Track the Red Knots!
On March 31st, Shorebird Stewards from Seabrook Island and Kiawah Island assisted SC DNR and Georgia DNR with banding Red Knots on Kiawah. In addition to traditional numbered bands, several birds were fitted with Satellite trackers, giving scientists real-time date on their location, migration patterns and routes. We’re excited to announce that SCDNR has made…
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2021/07/11 Welcome to American Oystercatcher Chicks DY & DZ
Our American Oystercatcher chicks have flown the Nesting Area! One of the oystercatcher parents was U5, a bird that has frequented the Captain Sams Inlet for many years. Just before they could fly, they were banded to allow us to follow their progress and to contribute to what science knows about American Oystercatcher behavior and…
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2021/05/03 North Beach: New Nesting Area Signs and Nests!
Last Friday, coastal bird biologist Janet Thibault of SCDNR posted the yellow nesting area signs on North Beach and confirmed that we have nesting birds. A familiar sight for many of us, American Oystercatcher Red U5 & his mate have nested on North Beach. Janet, who did her graduate work on Oystercatchers, says that U5…
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Why You Should Become a Shorebird Steward Like Me
By Deanna Forsythe During my 30 years of teaching elementary students, one of my favorite subjects to teach was science. Whether I was teaching children about animals, trees, flowers, weather, or rocks, I always found my students excited to learn. It was the hands-on projects that taught them the most. Like me, you probably have…
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Shorebird Stewards and Fourteen Piping Plovers
A familiar sight in spring, beachgoers may be surprised to see some of our Shorebird Stewards out and about this fall. So, what’s up? As the sand renourishment project continues on North Beach, Seabrook Island Shorebird Stewards will be out on the beach each day. But it’s not about the sand renourishment. With the attraction…
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Together -Watching, Learning….PROTECTING!!
Watching, Learning……PROTECTING the three words that define the focus and mission of the Seabrook Island Birders. These past two months our programs focus has been on Protecting, starting with Stephen Schabel’s Live Birds of Prey presentation, teaching us about the mission of the Avian Conservation Center in Awendaw, SC. In February Felicia Sanders provided new…
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Did you know: Five Incredible Ways Birds Change Their Bodies for Spring and Fall Migration
After reading Moonbird, Jackie Brooks wondered if Red Knots are unique in the way their bodies are transformed for migrations. She found this fascinating article from Audubon: “Five Incredible Ways Birds Change Their Bodies for Spring and Fall Migration“. The answer is other birds also transform their bodies. “… birds radically change their bodies and their metabolism…
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Why I am a SI Shorebird Steward (and why I think you would enjoy it, too)
Like most of us, I spent much of my 40 year professional career inside, behind a computer screen. Retiring to Seabrook Island in 2020 was an epiphany for me and my husband, Doug. There is a whole world out here! There are no lions and tigers and bears, but plenty of alligators, dolphins, and, of…
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National Audubon visits Seabrook Island
On Monday May 1, 2023, Seabrook hosted several member of National Audubon’s communication team. The purpose of their visit was to see our Red Knots, learn more on about our Shorebird Steward program and our successful pet/dog ordinance. They were joined by SC Audubon members, Alyssa Zebrowski and Nolan Schillerstrom and Seabrook Stewards, Nancy Chomel,…
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Satellite Tagged Red Knots Are Headed Back From the High Canadian Arctic
On August ninth, Felicia Sanders, lead Coastal Bird Biologist with SCDNR, sent word that two of the Red Knots tagged with satellite transmitters were headed back south after spending the summer nesting in the Arctic islands of Canada’s far-north. Felicia has been sending updates with maps since early May, when the birds were first captured…