Spring Break Parties Attract Crowds of Wild Birds

                    

When island ponds dry up, trapped fish provide a short-lived bonanza for egrets, herons and other wading birds. The carnival atmosphere lasts until the fish are gone. Then many of the partiers move on to other venues.   

 

When the dry season is very dry, as it has been recently, and coincides with a seasonal drop in the coastal sea level, many wetlands lose all their water. In areas where ponds are connected to the bays during periods of high water, those connections can dry up and then the fish in the ponds have no way to escape. 

 

This distressing predicament for the fish provides a welcome feast for wetland birds, especially roaming groups of Great Egrets. 

                   

 

In the pond near our house, at first there was enough for everyone. The fish were easy to grab in the shallow water, and the resident Green Herons got their share along with the larger Great Egrets. 

                  

Even the secretive Clapper Rails, which usually pick up bugs and small crabs along the edge of the pond, seized this opportunity to venture into the water and drag out some fish. 

                 

 

 

But soon things got quite competitive. More Great Egrets arrived the next day, and the larger ones seemed to spend most of their time honking and pushing other birds out of pond spaces they claimed as their territory. They even chased after another egret that was having trouble swallowing a particularly feisty fish. 

                 

 

A Great Blue Heron came by on the third day to see what all the excitement was about. There wasn’t much room in the pond by then, with more egrets and less water. It grabbed a few fish and quickly moved on.  

                 

 

A couple of Little Blue Herons also made an appearance but seemed more interested in chasing each other around than actually doing any fishing. They mostly stayed in the trees and watched the action. When they did make it into the pond the other birds didn’t seem very pleased, and pressured them to go away. 

                

 

Then some Great Egrets showed up in mating plumage, apparently thinking about activities other than fishing.

  

               

 But after the fourth day, most of the food was gone and the influencers had found somewhere else to preen. I was sad to see them go.   

Gray Kingbirds Emerge as Leaders in the Annual St. John Bird Count

 

There’s been no shortage of bugs, so it’s not surprising that local insect-eaters are thriving.

 

Gray Kingbirds are known as flycatchers but will also chase bees and a variety of other flying insects. They are often seen perching on treetops, then darting out and back to snatch a bug flying by. I see them most in the morning when the sun lights up the tops of the trees, and the insects that feed up there become active. The kingbirds call attention to themselves with their screechy sounds, a bit like a police whistle. 

 

The 2020 bird count was actually held after New Year’s, on January 2, 2021. About 45 volunteers helped with the count – experienced birders and their friends and families, plus new recruits, including members of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of St. John.

 

The annual event was organized by the Virgin Islands Audubon Society, under the guidance of VI National Park Ranger Laurel Brannick. To help people prepare, and learn more about birds they might see, the Friends of the VI National Park sponsored a video presentation by Laurel Brannick, with local bird photos by Gail Karlsson. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOaFjrXDh-M&feature=youtu.be

 

Counters spread out in selected areas across the island to record how many different species and birds they could see on that day. After all the report sheets were turned in, they were compiled by Audubon Board Member Phyllis Benton. Once the results were tabulated, Phyllis submitted them to the National Audubon Society for inclusion in a broader analysis of bird numbers, migration and overall health.

 

Many birds in the Virgin Islands are still recovering from the impacts of the 2017 hurricanes, when there was widespread destruction of forests and a serious loss of food sources for wildlife. 

 

By now, though, there is much greater availability of berries, fruits and seeds for local doves and pigeons.

 

 

There are also flowers around to provide nectar for hummingbirds and bananaquits. 

 

 

Lizard-eating American Kestrels reached a high of 37 this year, compared to 12 after the storms. This was the highest number for many years. Last year at this time, pairs could be seen mating enthusiastically around the island. As a result, there are now young birds around St. John that could be ready to start their own families soon.  

 

 

This year the Gray Kingbirds topped the chart at 233. Unfortunately, this is still way less than the numbers counted in the years just before the storms. In 2014 there were 607!    

 

Looking back to the last count in December 2019, it was Brown Pelicans that were the most numerous – 332 pelicans vs. 168 kingbirds that year. This time only 52 pelicans were reported.

 

In December 2017, after the storms, the pelican count was down to 21. The next year there were 128, which was about normal (in 2014 there were 123). Then there was a big jump to 332 in 2019, so it looked like they were doing extremely well, followed by the dramatic fall this year.

 

 

What’s happening with the pelicans? 

 

It’s hard to say. Pelicans can fly around and move to places where the fish are plentiful. Maybe it’s just that the fishing was good here last year and is better somewhere else now. 

 

In any event, a one-day count is never entirely accurate. You can see the same birds all the time, and then when you want to count them, some of them are hiding out.   

 

Also, this year the count day was very windy, and the water was rough around St. John. As a result, the National Park boat was not able to go out, and there were no offshore sightings recorded. That would explain some of the drop in the pelican count.  

 

Another factor could be loss of the pelican’s customary breeding spots. A kayaker friend reported that the hurricanes mowed down the trees along the northern edges of St. John where pelicans had established nesting areas, and those nests have not been replaced. Maybe some of the pelicans moved away to find better nesting areas. 

 

Over a period of years, we can sometimes discern clear trends, and sometimes there are just unexplained differences. It will be interesting to see how many pelicans are counted next year.  

 

Some of the same types of factors may have affected the Brown Booby count this year, which was down by about half from last year. Only 18 were counted this time, compared to 34 in December 2019. 

 

 

Although bird lovers can’t realistically provide fish and nests to support water birds, we can become more educated about protecting bird habitats, including mangrove areas that serve as nurseries for fish as well as birds. For land-based birds, we can protect and propagate native plants (and insects) that are important for feeding birds and their babies, as we learn more about the complex ecosystems we live in. 

 

Sea Grape and Buttonwood Trees Favored for St. John Coastal Restoration

The 2017 hurricanes not only caused massive destruction of homes, infrastructure and livelihoods, but also did tremendous damage to Virgin Islands beaches and shorelines. The powerful winds and storm surges uprooted coastal trees, drove seawater inland, and swept away much of the sand and vegetation. Now they are getting some targeted assistance for long-term recovery.  

For beachgoers, the most noticeable change after the storms was the loss of shade from trees growing along the beaches. The tropical sun can be brutal, and shelter is essential. 

 

 

But trees do more than provide welcome shade. They also stabilize the shoreline, so the beaches are not washed away entirely, leaving bare, rocky shorelines. And they also support local birds, bees and animals.  

 

In April 2019, the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of St. John sponsored an assessment of the impacts of the storms on the island’s trees, landscapes and wildlife, which recommended replanting the most severely hit coastal areas using native trees. https://stjohnsource.com/2019/04/24/report-outlines-what-to-plant-in-the-wake-of-a-hurricane/?doing_wp_cron=1609768544.1809489727020263671875

 

One of the authors of that assessment, local horticulturalist Eleanor Gibney, quickly began propagating salt-tolerant native trees suitable for beach areas. She is currently collaborating with the Virgin Islands National Park on a multi-year replanting project, with funding from the Friends of the Virgin Island National Park. 

 

The need for stabilizing tree roots has become more critical as sea levels are rising and storms are becoming more intense due to increased ocean temperatures. At the same time, coral reefs are being degraded due to the warmer water (which can lead to the death of the tiny organisms living inside the hard structures we see). Coral reefs also face additional threats from pollution, diseases, and invasive species. 

 

As a result of coral damage, the reefs along the beaches are providing less protection from battering waves and storm surges. In some areas beach erosion has already led to losses of historical structures and artifacts along the shorelines, and special care has to be taken during the replanting process to protect remaining archeological materials.    

 

A life-long St. John resident living on a beachfront, Eleanor Gibney was deeply impacted by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. As she wrote in the 2019 assessment report: “…the natural environment, once so seemingly permanent, dramatically changed overnight…landslides, beach erosion and the loss of the extensive coconut groves are starkly apparent and may seem like open wounds…. 

 

Many coconut palm trees planted by Eleanor Gibney’s parents were among the ones washed away by the storms. However, she concluded that those are not the best trees to replant in order to stabilize the beaches. Their root systems are dense and compact, and do not extend very far beyond the tree trunks. As a result, they are easily toppled as the sandy soil is shifted around them. Another reason not to plant them right on the beach is that their dense root balls can cause problems for turtles trying to dig nests in the sand near the trees. 

 

Native sea grape trees (Coccoloba uvifera) are a better choice for coastal restoration. They are durable, salt-tolerant, fast-growing and drought-resistant. They put down some deeper roots as well as lateral ones, and large sea grape trees can also provide desirable shade. 

 

 

The newly planted trees need some protection, though. Unfortunately, deer and donkeys like to munch on the seedlings. In addition, they have to contend with invasive pests, like stem borers, brought in on landscaping trees imported from South Florida nurseries. 

 

Sea grapes are not commonly viewed as good for eating but are quite tasty if you get ones that are fully ripe, just as they are ready to fall off the tree. At that point they are a deep purple color. Before they are ripe, they have a sharp tannic taste. 

 

 

Buttonwoods (Conocarpus erectus) are other tenacious native trees that can grow successfully in salty areas. They are usually found along shorelines or in brackish mangrove wetlands. They can grow tall, and their trunks often look tough and sinewy when they are subjected to constant coastal winds. 

 

 

Buttonwood trees produce clusters that look like brownish raspberries but are actually dry and hard, and not edible. 

 

 

Although the sea grape and buttonwood trees are best for planting in the sand, the project expects to add other native trees behind them, a bit further back from the shoreline.  

 

Many people miss the rows of lovely coconut palms along the beaches. They are not being replanted in the VI National Park because they are not native, although over the years they have become naturalized here. For the most part they do not fit into the romantic narrative of being carried naturally across the ocean by wind and tides to wash up on these shores. Most were brought by people and deliberately planted – because they are fun and attractive, and coconuts are good to eat.   

 

It would be great for people to also plant more coconut palm trees, but it is best if they are placed further back from the beach, where they are more protected from storm surges and shifting sands, and don’t deter the nesting turtles.    

Birds to Look for on St. John During the Christmas Bird Count