Bird Key-Stono Seabird Sanctuary Almost Complete Just In Time For Nesting Season

Bird Key-Stono Seabird Sanctuary Almost Complete Just In Time For Nesting Season

In Folly Beach, South Carolina, a critical project is nearing completion to provide much-needed respite for a population of birds experiencing rapid decline. The Bird Key-Stono Seabird Sanctuary, under the meticulous management of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Charleston District, is having its final dredging and construction work attended to.

Located in the Stono Inlet, the sanctuary is an island of approximately 35 acres within Charleston County. Despite its creation years ago for the protection of sea and shorebirds, the preserve has not undergone renovations in six years. This current revamp is a part of the Folly Beach renourishment project where dredged sediments, debris, and sands from the Folly River are dumped onto the sanctuary.

Aiding Habitat Construction and Shoreline Protection

The procedure of extracting sediment from the Folly River and transferring it to the Bird Key-Stono Sanctuary has a dual purpose. Alan Shirey, an Environmental Engineer from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, explained that the dredged material has to go somewhere, and luckily, the quality sand amounts to ideal conditions for the nesting and seabirds. Approximately 40,000 cubic yards of material, the equivalent of 4,000 dump trucks, are dumped on the sanctuary to shape an ideal habitat.

Securing Bird Population Amid Climate Challenges

The timing for the completion of the sanctuary couldn’t be more crucial. The nesting season for the seabirds and shorebirds begins on March 15 and lasts until October 15, during which the sanctuary remains strictly off-limits.

Speaking to HERE News, Cami Duquet, a member of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Coastal Bird Program, declared the sanctuary’s importance in relation to rapidly declining species. With the frequency of storms and extreme tides on the rise, natural habitats are becoming less suitable for birds. Raising the height of the sand enables the birds to find shelter from extreme tides and storm surges, offering a much-needed habitat for this crucial period.

In her words, “Our coastal birds are in trouble; they’re declining rapidly, both our colonial seabirds and shorebirds. They need to have a suitable nesting habitat to be able to lay their eggs, raise their chicks and have those chicks contribute to their population.”

Ready for Nesting Season

The sanctuary’s construction phase is expected to be finalized by March 15, offering a safe haven for the birds to begin their nesting. This will provide a significant boost for the bird populations in the area that have witnessed rapid degradation in recent years.