. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. PROVIDING SAFE haven for nesting waterbirds. White ibises sun themselves on Carrot Island near Beaufort, By Kathy Hart Approach one of the small, bare estuarine islands that dots North Carolina's brackish waters on a May day, and you'll create mayhem. A massive cloud of squawking terns will rise off the sandy substrate and billow into the sky, careening and crying out a chorus of "stay ; Below the hovering mass of anxious birds lie hundreds of speckled eggs spaced inches apart in an equ
. Coast watch. Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology. PROVIDING SAFE haven for nesting waterbirds. White ibises sun themselves on Carrot Island near Beaufort, By Kathy Hart Approach one of the small, bare estuarine islands that dots North Carolina's brackish waters on a May day, and you'll create mayhem. A massive cloud of squawking terns will rise off the sandy substrate and billow into the sky, careening and crying out a chorus of "stay ; Below the hovering mass of anxious birds lie hundreds of speckled eggs spaced inches apart in an equidistant geometric formation that defies the usual random patterns of Mother Nature. The bare, sandy island is a hatcheiy for a nesting colony of royal terns — one of 25 species of waterbirds that nest en masse along the Tar Heel coast. Colonial waterbirds — gulls, terns, skimmers, herons, egrets, ibises and pelicans — are as much a part of the coastal panorama as sea oats, crashing waves and fiddler crabs. And they're an important part too, says Walker Golder, manager of the National Audubon Society's Coastal Island Sanctuary System. "These birds are important to the coastal food chain," Golder says. "They provide energetic pathways in wetlands. They're pretty to look at. And they are excellent indicators of environmental ; In fact, these waterbirds are thought to be so vital to our coastal ecosystem as to require management of their nesting and feeding habitat. In what is considered a unique agreement, state and federal resource management agencies and private organizations have banded together to manage the habitat needs of colonial waterbirds in North Carolina. The Wildlife Resources Commis- sion acts as the lead agency for this interagency coordinating committee that includes the Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the Division of Parks and Recreation, the Department of Administration, the Ar
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookcollectionunclibra, booksubjectoceanography
