UNITED STATES - June 2023: Beacon Island, a small marshy island near Ocracoke Inlet. Surrounding it are seagrass flats, shallow waters, and oyster bar
UNITED STATES - June 2023: Beacon Island, a small marshy island near Ocracoke Inlet. Surrounding it are seagrass flats, shallow waters, and oyster bars. Its now 2 acres down from 22 acres since 2017 because of the increase of severe storms and tidal surges due to climate change. The little island has been a rich habitat for nesting birds such as Brown Pelican, American Oystercatcher, Laughing Gull, and Forster’s Tern. It will most likely disappear over the next decade, if not sooner. The island’s claim to fame lies with its pelicans. It was on Beacon Island that Brown Pelicans were first recorded breeding in North Carolina in 1928. The population ran into trouble with the widespread use of DDT and other pesticides, and the species was placed on the Endangered Species List in 1970. Some chemicals caused direct mortality, while DDT caused many bird species’ numbers to plummet by accumulating in their fatty tissue and causing their eggshells to be too thin to support the weight of the incubating parents. Following the ban of DDT in 1972, pelicans began to do better, and Beacon Island was the site of their first comeback in North Carolina. Now, as many as 900 pairs of Brown Pelicans may nest on the tiny Island. The pelicans on Beacon Island have been so successful because it meets their simple requirements for nesting habitat. (Photo By Douglas Graham)
Size: 9000px × 5988px
Photo credit: © William Graham / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 10, airquality, albus, area, articles, atlantic, bird, birds, carolina, change, clean, climate, common, communityjournalism, definition, effects, eudocimus, evidence, examples, feeders, feeding, global, ibis, island, marsh, nest, nesting, news, north, ocean, ocracoke, photojournalism, portsmouth, rookiery, salt, shore, tern, types, warming, watching, water, white, wildlife
