Month: June 2016

American Oystercatcher – Haematopus palliatus
Length:  17.5″; Wingspan: 32″; Weight: 22.4 oz.

The American Oystercatcher is a large, boldly patterned bird we see at our beach and in salt marshes. It doesn’t appear in large groups, but is often seen in solitary pairs. As indicated by it’s name, it feeds on oysters, clams, mussels and uses it bright orange-red bill like an oyster shucking knife to open it’s prey. They also probe for and stab shellfish or they carry loose shells out of the water and hammer them open with their bills.

The oystercatcher has a large black head and a large red bill. It’s back is dark brown and it’s underside is white. It has stout, dull-pink legs and a bold white stripe in it’s wings and rump when in flight. When they fly, they call loudly in a whistled “wheep.”

Oystercatchers are usually in small numbers and fairly solitary or in small family groups. Cape Romain, up the coast, has the largest wintering population of oystercatchers in the world. One winter we observed a group of 93 near the oyster beds by the Kiawah River Bridge! There are several thousand in the US and most of them breed in the Mid-Atlantic. They are an “indicator species”. This means that they can only thrive in estuaries where the water is clean. If you have a healthy population of oystercatchers, then you have oysters and the water is clean.

Oystercatchers are shy birds and sensitive to human disturbance. Their nests are a scrape in a shallow depression on the sand just above the high tide line. They line it with shells, pebbles and tide wrack and lay 1-4 eggs. Solitary pairs are known to nest at Deveaux Bank. Recently, SC DNR banded 2 young birds at Botany Bay plantation, a first at that location for the banders!

An interesting Seabrook fact is that for the past four years there has been a banded oystercatcher on our beach “U5”. We have seen him on many occasions, as have other bird watchers, and it is always fun to see that he is still around. He was banded at Little Egg Island, GA, just north of Little St Simons Island. You can observe U5 usually near the “highway” between the protected area and the cut.

If you would like to learn more about this bird visit:

• The Cornell Lab of Ornithology – All About Birders: American Oystercatcher

American Oystercatcher – Ed Konrad

American Oystercatcher U5 and mate – Ed Konrad

American Oystercatcher U5 – Ed Konrad

American Oystercatcher – Ed Konrad

A newly banded American Oystercatcher chick at Botany Bay Plantation – Photo compliments of SC-DNR

Range map of American Oystercatcher

Article submitted by:  Aija Konrad
Photographs provided by:  Ed Konrad

This blog post is part of a series SIB will publish on a regular basis to feature birds seen in the area, both migratory and permanent residents.  When possible we will use photographs taken by our members.    Please let us know if you have any special requests of birds you would like to learn more about.

Every Sunday we publish a weekly “Bird of the Week” blog.  Today we want to give you a hint to see if you can guess which bird we will profile.   We hope you can get this with the clues below:

1. This bird is frequently seen on tidal flats and the beach of Seabrook Island, generally in pairs.
2. It has a very unique bill which is a clue to this bird’s name.
3. You may be lucky to hear it’s “peeps” or its “display song.”.

Leave us a comment if you know or want to make a guess – and watch for the full article on Sunday morning!

Laughing Gull – Leucophaeus Atricilla
Length:  16.5″; Wingspan: 40″; Weight: 11 oz.

Swirling over beaches with strident calls and a distinctive, crisp black head, Laughing Gulls provide sights and sounds evocative of summer on Seabrook Island.  You’ll run across this handsome gull in large numbers at beaches, docks, and parking lots, where they wait for handouts or fill the air with their raucous (ha-ha-ha-ha-haah-haah-haah-haah-haah) calls.

Laughing Gulls are medium-sized gulls with fairly long wings and long legs that impart a graceful look when they are flying or walking. They have stout, fairly long bills.  Laughing Gulls are medium gray above and white below.  Summer adults have a crisp black hood, white arcs around the eye, and a reddish bill.  In winter, the hood becomes a blurry gray mask on a white head.  The legs are reddish black to black.  Immature Laughing Gulls are much browner and more subtly patterned than adults; they take 2-3 years to gain adult plumage.

Like most gulls, Laughing Gulls have very broad palates. They eat many invertebrates, including earthworms, insects (including flying ones), snails, crabs, and crab eggs, as well as fish, squid, berries, garbage, offal, and handouts from beachgoers. They occasionally eat eggs of other birds (though not as frequently as larger gulls do).  They often congregate in parking lots, sandy beaches, and mud bars. Listen for their nasal, strident calls in flight, while feeding, and at rest.  Laughing Gulls are a coastal species and are only occasionally seen very far inland.

Laughing Gull numbers were seriously depleted during the 19th century by hunting for feather trade.  They recovered well in the early 20th century, then faced some decline at northern colonies owing to competition with larger gulls. Currently some colonies face threats, but overall, the population is abundant and widespread.

They have a slow flight with deep wing beats.  Because of their opportunistic feeding, many people associate them most with their begging behavior.

These gulls are monogamous, and pairs often stay together for several breeding seasons.  They breed in colonies, sometimes with thousands of nests; sometimes associated with other species of gulls or terns. Nest site is on the ground among grass or bushes.  Nests may be among denser growth, under shrubs or vines, perhaps for protection from sun.  The nest (built by both sexes) may be a scrape in ground with sparse lining, or may be shallow cup of grass, sticks, debris, lined with finer grass.   Nests usually contain 3 olive-brown eggs with dark blotches.  Adults may continue adding to nest during incubation.  They nest, often in large numbers, on islands near the shore but safely isolated from terrestrial predators making Deveaux Bank a large nesting area.

A group of gulls has many collective nouns, including a “flotilla”, “gullery”, “screech”, “scavenging”, and “squabble” of gulls.

Laughing gulls can be seen all over Seabrook Island but especially along our beaches and begging for food at Pelican Nest Restaurant.  Although they are common sight in summer, they are an unusual sight in winter.

(See the range map following the photographs below.)

If you would like to learn more about this bird visit:

• The Cornell Lab of Ornithology – All About Bird: Laughing Gull
• Whatbird – Field Guide to birds of North America: Laughing Gull

Laughing Gull looking for some dropsies from a Brown Pelican – Ed Konrad

Laughing Gull in breeding (summer) plumage – Ed Konrad

Laughing Gull in non-breeding plumage (Winter) – Ed Konrad

Range map of the Laughing Gull

Article submitted by:  Judy Morr
Photographs provided by:  Ed Konrad

This blog post is part of a series SIB will publish on a regular basis to feature birds seen in the area, both migratory and permanent residents.  When possible we will use photographs taken by our members.    Please let us know if you have any special requests of birds you would like to learn more about.

Every Sunday we publish a weekly “Bird of the Week” blog.  Today we want to give you a hint to see if you can guess which bird we will profile.   We think you can get this with only two clues:

1. This bird can be seen all over Seabrook Island but especially along our beaches and begging for food at Pelican Nest Restaurant.  Although they are common sight in summer, they are an unusual sight in winter.
2. It sounds like this.

Leave us a comment if you know or want to make a guess – and watch for the full article on Sunday morning!

Black Skimmer – Rynchops niger
Length: 18″; Wingspan: 44″; Weight: 11 oz.

We are among a lucky few to have the Black Skimmer along our beaches. As you can see from the map below, this dramatic and beautiful bird populates only a very small portion of the United States.

Aside from its striking black and white plumage, the Black Skimmer is memorable because of its eating style. It is the only bird in America with a longer lower beak than upper. It’s this special feature that enables it to skim the top of the water with its mouth open and the lower bill slightly submerged, feeling for small fish. When one is encountered, the upper bill snaps shut to capture its prey. Because the skimmer uses its sense of touch to hunt, it can successfully forage in all types of light, and even in the dark. That’s an advantage for us human observers since we can watch at any time of day and wonder at the skimmer’s incredible ability to remain a constant distance above the water, alternately gliding and propelling itself along.

Interestingly, the newborn skimmer chick does not have the extended lower mandible. However, after only four weeks, it is visibly longer.

You will be able to pick out the skimmers on the beach in several ways. They are fairly large – 16-20″. They have a very long, low profile because of their short legs and long wings. Their wings actually extend beyond their tail feathers when they are on the ground and account for their relatively large wing span when flying. The sharp contrast of their black and white coloration and their bright red and black beaks also make them easily identifiable.

Probably one of the reasons Seabrookers can see so many skimmers is that there is a large breeding group on Deveaux Bank. As with all the seabirds, they build their nests in colonies, scratching out a shallow depression in the sand. This makes them very vulnerable in areas where beaches are heavily populated by humans. It’s to our benefit that the Deveaux rookery is so nearby.

Don’t miss seeing these unique birds – even if you have to make a special trip to the North Beach.

If you would like to learn more about this bird visit:

• The Cornell Lab of Ornithology – All About Birders: Black Skimmer

Black Skimmer – Ed Konrad

Black Skimmer – Ed Konrad

Black Skimmer – Ed Konrad

Black Skimmer feeding its young – Ed Konrad

Black Skimmer – Ed Konrad

Black Skimmer – Ed Konrad

Black Skimmer surrounded by Red Knots- Ed Konrad

Juvenile Black Skimmers – Ed Konrad

Article submitted by:  Marcia Hider
Photographs provided by:  Ed Konrad

This blog post is part of a series SIB will publish on a regular basis to feature birds seen in the area, both migratory and permanent residents.  When possible we will use photographs taken by our members.    Please let us know if you have any special requests of birds you would like to learn more about.

Every Sunday we publish a weekly “Bird of the Week” blog.  Today we want to give you a hint to see if you can guess which bird we will profile.   Here are  four clues:

1. This bird is frequently seen on Seabrook Island at the beach and along ponds near the beach.
2. This is the only bird in America whose lower mandible is longer than the top mandible.
3. Makes short barking “yip” notes like this.
4. And finally, the silhouette is below.

Leave us a comment if you know or want to make a guess – and watch for the full article on Sunday morning!

Brown Pelican – Pelecanus occidentalis
Length:  51″; Wingspan: 79″; Weight: 131.2 oz.

Brown Pelicans are a very common site on Seabrook Island all year long. This large bird is commonly found on our island flying over the dunes and beaches in V-formations or single file, flapping and gliding in unison. Sometimes you even see them coasting just inches above the water. While in flight, pelicans hold their heads drawn back on their shoulders. Have you ever seen them feed? It is a fabulous site! They drop from the air sometimes as high as 60 feet and plunge dive head first into the water and scoop and trap their prey in their extended pouch. Then they drain the water out the sides of their bill and now are left with a tasty catch of fish usually either herring, sheepshead, mullet, pigfish, minnows or pinfish. Adult Brown Pelicans consume as much as four pounds of fish per day. Ever wonder why the pelican doesn’t get hurt during these plunges? Well, air sacs beneath the skin on their breasts act like cushions to protect them during impact. They also rotate their body ever so slightly to the left. This helps to avoid injury to their esophagus and trachea which are located on their right side.

The Brown Pelican adult has a gray-brown body with white and pale yellow head and a long bill (11-13 inches) and an expandable throat pouch that can carry nearly 3 gallons of water and/or fish. The back of the neck turns chestnut in breeding season. Males and females look similar in color however males are slightly larger. Pelican bodies are large and heavy, they have short legs and webbed feet. Their wings are long and broad. Juveniles are all brown at first then change gradually to adult plumage.

Brown Pelicans are very gregarious birds. Both males and females live in flocks throughout the year. They are exceptionally buoyant due to internal air sacks beneath their skin and in their bones.

Their nests are large and flat and made of grass, straw and sticks and built in a tree or if on the ground the nest consists of a shallow scrape lined with feathers and a rim of soil. They lay 2-4 white eggs and incubation ranges from 28-30 days and is carried out by both parents. They incubate their eggs by covering them with their webbed feet. Brown pelicans are monogamous (have only one partner) throughout the breeding season and nest in large colonies.

They breed in large numbers on Deveaux Bank, a 215 acre seabird sanctuary, located between Edisto Island and Seabrook Island. This Brown Pelican colony is the largest one in South Carolina and is responsible for 67% of all Brown Pelicans nesting in South Carolina and 25% of the Brown Pelican’s nesting on the Atlantic coast.

The oldest brown pelican on record was 43 years of age.

A group of Pelicans has many collective nouns, including a “brief”, “pod”, “rush”, “pouch”, “scoop” and “squadron” of Pelicans.

The Crab Bank Pelicam, just off Mount Pleasant in Charleston Harbor, brings you live video of nesting pelicans.  You will also hear the low grunts typical in a colony.

If you would like to learn more about this bird visit:

• The Cornell Lab of Ornithology – All About Birders: Brown Pelican

Brown Pelican flying – Ed Konrad

Brown Pelican in fight – Ed Konrad

Brown Pelican coming in for a landing – Ed Konrad

Brown Pelican having a bite to eat while the gulls wait for the extra – Ed Konrad

Brown Pelican with Laughing Gull – Ed Konrad

Brown Pelican with his mouth full and a Laughing Gull waiting for dropsies – Ed Konrad

Brown Pelican eating – Ed Konrad

Brown Pelican enjoying the leftovers after the dolphin strand feeding!

Brown Pelican range map

Submitted by Flo Foley and Photographs by Ed Konrad

This blog post is part of a series SIB will publish on a regular basis to feature birds seen in the area, both migratory and permanent residents.  When possible we will use photographs taken by our members.    Please let us know if you have any special requests of birds you would like to learn more about.