by Dr. Lisa Ferguson, Director of Research and Conservation
They bark. They merp. They hang out in large groups by the water in the summer heat, and when they lift and swirl as a flock they can catch your breath. In a unique approach to fishing, they glide over still waters of the slack tide with the lower, longer bill scraping the surface, tracing lines as they search by feel for food. Their large eyes with cat-like pupils and long, slender wings equip them to work the waters under dim light when the fish make their vertical migration, putting them within reach of that skimming bill.
We are lucky to showcase a colony of Black Skimmers at the end of Stone Harbor Point – one of only a few spots in New Jersey where this state-endangered seabird nests. In fact, Stone Harbor Point hosted over a third of the 2,341 skimmers nesting in New Jersey in 2024. Skimmers tend to seek locations far from the crowds that might disturb them as they warm eggs, guard chicks, and catch rest on the shorelines. But if the conditions are right, they will nest on busy beaches and in the marsh grasses too. Their nest is a simple shallow scrape dug by foot, making the 3 – 4 eggs they so carefully tend vulnerable to flooding from storms, tidal surges, land and aerial predators, and many of the activities we love the beach for as well. In 2024, there were only three active colonies in the state, the lowest number on record since 1976, which speaks to just how important it is to protect these sites.
Since 2015, Black Skimmers have been a focus of the Research and Conservation team’s work at The Wetlands Institute (TWI). Each summer, in partnership with the Borough of Stone Harbor, our stewards keep a protective eye on the skimmers and their beach-nesting neighbors like Piping Plovers, American Oystercatchers, and Common Terns. The stewards educate beach-goers and direct people to routes less disruptive to the birds that are simply trying to raise their young in a crowded world. This mission gets increasingly challenging as the young hatch and test their legs on the open beach, often seeking out the water’s edge where the sand and updrafts are cooler. It gets hot on the upper beach – sometimes lethally so – which is why giving skimmers and other beach-nesting birds the space to protect their nests and raise young is so critical.
If you take a close look at a lineup of skimmers, you might see some touting a brightly colored leg band. Since 2017, our trained staff has been banding skimmers (under our federal and state permits) with a white three-character code engraved in a blue band – New Jersey’s color in a system of band colors coordinated by state. We work in concert with New Jersey Fish and Wildlife (NJFW) on this project so we can better understand the travels, habits, and survival of this species. Adult skimmers often return to the same colony where they spent their days as chicks; skimmers banded as chicks in New Jersey regularly return here to nest and raise their young.
We exchange information about the banded skimmers we see with the US Geological Survey’s Bird Banding Laboratory and a network of partners and volunteers up and down the coast. We now have observations of 70% of the 364 skimmers banded in New Jersey. The vast majority have been spotted along the east coast of the United States, but we have reports from as far away as Mexico, Cuba, and Nova Scotia. We are learning which beaches New Jersey skimmers prefer for rest during our winter months (turns out Florida), which rich marsh systems they feed in on their journeys north and south, and what threats they might be exposed to along the way. When hurricanes strike the coast of Florida, we worry about our New Jersey skimmers.
With backing from NJFW and philanthropic supporters of TWI, we have deployed lightweight GPS transmitters on twenty skimmers to study where they go in greater detail. These tracking devices are giving us insights into foraging locations, nocturnal roosts, and movements of individuals between colonies.
These studies are helping to protect this species in New Jersey and across their range. The choices you make are helping too. What more can you do?
- Walk around flocks of birds.
- If your movement disturbs their movement, you are too close.
- Exercise your dogs away from areas where protected species nest and rest.
- Look for and report bands. It’s a fun and rewarding way to spend your time and help science! Plus you’ll learn the details of the birds you report.
- Be mindful of your wake when piloting through the back bays and along coastlines. Vulnerable chicks and nests might be out of sight but not out of reach of your wake.