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Message Piping Plover Season Wrap-up Productivity is Back on TrackCoastal Birds 2024NewsletterDespite severe winter storm damage on the beaches, Piping Plovers arrived in Maine right on schedule, starting to arrive in mid-March with many in time for the early April snowstorm and solar eclipse. Hardy little birds, the Piping Plovers weathered the storm and started staking out their nesting territories by mid-April. Although some of the beaches and nesting habitat were altered, we saw birds choose creative nesting locations and scope out some newer sites this season. For the past seven breeding seasons, Maine’s Piping Plover numbers have been on the rise, breaking records year after year. After seeing a record high of 157 pairs in 2023, in 2024 we had 143 breeding pairs. Maine edged 237 chicks for a productivity rate of 1.66 chicks per pair which surpasses the state’s recovery goals of 1.5. This is compared to 2023, when plovers edged 201 chicks for a productivity rate of 1.28, the lowest recorded since 2007. Knowing that our productivity numbers are back on track is reassuring, even with fewer breeding pairs. Many of those edged chicks will return to beaches and help grow our breeding population for future years. We had plovers nest at yet another new site this season: Timber Point, Biddeford. The rst report came from Susan Kline, Wells Plover Monitor. The nest was unsuccessful but the expansion to new nesting sites over the past two seasons bodes well for the species. Plovers returned to Chebeague and Long Island for their second season, and we had plovers nest both at Hunnewell and Indian Point for their second consecutive year since 2002. Three beaches in Scarborough edged the most chicks since monitoring began: Pine Point with eight, Scarborough Beach State Park with ten, and Western with 27. Over the years, we have seen predator and dog pressures in these areas, but with continued community awareness and rising support, we were able to get a lot of chicks o the ground. Nine beaches along the coast, on average, edged more than two chicks per pair including Wells, Goose Rocks, Goosefare Brook, Pine Point, Scarborough Beach State Park, the Hook, Popham Beach State Park, Hunnewell, and Indian Point. The success of the plovers would not be possible without our amazing volunteer coordinators, volunteers, landowners, and government partners. Partnerships with town, state, and federal employees like town managers, state park rangers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife biologists and wardens, town lifeguards, and beach association members have been essential for the growth of the Piping Plover population in Maine.For more information, including Maine Endangered Piping Plovers and Least Terns brochure, visit maineaudubon.org/ploversPhoto: Susan KlineYour wildlife community

2Coastal Resiliency Depends on DunesIn the spring, we saw the eorts of homeowners, town ocials, and community members blossom to help protect and restore essential dune habitats in Maine. Winter and spring storms hit the coasts hard, and beaches were no exception. Many beaches lost a lot of sand, and some of the gradual sloping dunes were transformed into steep cli-like features which were unstable and easily collapsible. Areas with non-native vegetation like Rugosa rose or Asiatic Bittersweet were particularly vulnerable to destabilization. Some dunes will disappear entirely, exposing hidden seawalls, while others will diminish, leading to ooding on the roads and houses they currently protect. Permitted and appropriate dune restoration is essential to aid in the protection of plovers, combat rising sea levels, and ensure the safety of beach residents. Rebuilding and replanting eorts require permits and coordination with multiple Maine agencies to ensure that the work is done in a way that benets the beach, wildlife, and property alike. We’ve seen this type of dune restoration in action with newly planted American beachgrass at Goose Rocks Beach (Kennebunkport) and Fortunes Rocks Beach (Biddeford). The beachgrass helps stabilize the sand and extend the dunes. Also, in January 2024, state ocials asked Mainers to donate their Christmas trees to Popham Beach State Park in Phippsburg. The park sta lined up the trees on either side of the entrance to help build dunes back up in front of the bathhouse, parking lot, and walkway. Over time, the trees collect sand during high winds which helps to rebuild the attened dunes, slow erosion, and increase protection to the surrounding infrastructure. Toward the end of the season, we saw the signs of success of the dune grass planting as the American beachgrass continued to grow and establish roots in the dune. So, how do all these eorts aect the Piping Plovers? They have adapted! The plovers made their homes in Maine for the breeding season and successfully used the available habitat to lay their eggs and raise their chicks. Despite the changes, the birds found creative spots to nest, like on top of a 12-foot dune or nuzzled behind the dangling dune grass roots. Plovers are small, but they are mighty and resilient! Top photo: In late May, before homeowners had returned for the summer beach season, plovers on Wells Beach found a well hidden and shaded nest location under this staircase.Middle photo: Many plovers on Ogunquit Beach nested under and behind dangling roots.Bottom photo: A well-camouflaged nest on Wells Beach is hidden throughout the cobble.Wildlife Biologist Laura Williams at Littlefield footbridge on Ogunquit Beach in mid-April

3Least Terns Show Progress in 2024Least Terns settled across eight Maine nesting sites in 2024: Wells, Laudholm, a beach in Kennebunk, Parsons, Western, Stratton Island, Seawall, and Reid State Park. A total of 191 nesting pairs were counted in June, although it is suspected some pairs had yet to nest. This is four more pairs than last year’s 187, making it the third lowest pair count in the past ten years.Despite a low number of nesting pairs, 125 chicks edged for a statewide productivity of 0.65 edglings per pair. This is the second highest productivity and the third most edged in the past ten years. Getting an accurate count on the number of nesting pairs and edglings can be a challenge and as with years past, this is likely a low estimate. Least Terns go through cycles of renesting, adults changing nesting sites, and chicks edging at dierent times.Nesting sites changed over the winter due to the severe storms the coast experienced. Habitat was degraded and lost at some sites, improved and created at others. Least Terns typically change sites throughout the years as habitat changes, success varies at sites, or predators increase, and this year was no exception. As a result, terns nested on beaches like Wells and Western that have not seen recent activity. Wells, Laudholm, Parsons, Western, and Stratton Island produced edglings with Western having a high of 45 chicks edged. As always, challenges included predation from foxes, coyotes, and a Black-crowned Night Heron as well as human disturbance from beachgoers walking too close to or through nesting colonies. With biologists, land managers, and landowners working together and being exible based on the birds’ needs and changing landscape, the state endangered Least Terns will continue to have the opportunity to rebound. Photo: Susan Kline

Lily BennMount Holyoke College ’24Biology & Environmental StudiesQ:James FolenoBates College ’28What are your big takeaways from your time work-ing with plovers? Has this experience changed your perspective of the world/the environment?In the past few months, I have witnessed the many threats that Piping Plovers face. On the Fourth of July, I was stationed outside a nest in Old Orchard Beach. I watched countless reworks explode near me, followed by frantic peeps. I began to develop some cynicism about humans and their role in the environment. However, I was struck by the devotion my colleagues, town volunteers, and many beachgoers have for the birds. While one of my observations from this internship is the severity of what plovers undergo each summer, it is not my only takeaway. I am leaving this experience with restored hope that humanity will continue to ght for the environment. Clark BegleyUniversity of New Hampshire ‘24Recreation Management & PolicyA:What surprised you most about this job?I had initially thought that wildlife conservation meant we worked solely with animals, but I was wrong. The plovers were our main priority but working with volunteers and educating beachgoers is equally important for conservation eorts. The success of the Coastal Birds Project comes not only from the crew, but also from the eorts of everybody who enjoys the beach. Working alongside volunteers and doing education on the beach was a shock coming in but became very rewarding. The project is bigger than just the seasonal crew, as conservation eorts require all of us to care.What assumptions did you have coming in that were dispelled?Sometimes it is easy to assume that new job environments with more experienced people will be dicult and the people and tasks are intimidating. However, even on an internship position, I didn’t feel any “less-than” from the other eld crew. My skills and wants to learn and participate were immediately encouraged and accepted, and opportunities to take on dicult tasks were plenty. I am always nervous to begin working in a new place. But working with the Maine Audubon Coastal Birds eld crew was a wonderful and happy experience for me. Meeting new people can be hard but everyone in the crew this year was so friendly, cheerful, and extremely willing to share their knowledge, skills, and friendship with me. Question & Answer An Intern’s PerspectiveQ:Q:A:A:4

Wrack Rocks!Take a walk on any of the beautiful Maine beaches and you might notice a dark line stretching across the sand. This wrack, which is mostly seaweed but also contains other natural materials, sea grass, shells, and vegetation, washes up onto the beach at high tide and provides resources to organisms on the shore. Acting as a primary source of nutrients and the foundation of the shoreline food chain, the wrack line is often the preferred foraging habitat for coastal birds like Piping Plovers and other migratory shorebirds. This natural debris serves the beach and the whole coastal community. It provides coverage for wildlife to hide from predators, catches windblown sand that helps build dunes, and helps to fertilize beach vegetation that stabilizes the dunes and protects coastal communities against storm damage.However, it’s not unusual to nd a wrack line that contains human-made debris, trash, or plastic pollution. Sometimes the organic components can have a smell that is o-putting to beachgoers, or may contain invasive seaweed species. To deal with this, some towns rely on raking the beach with mechanical equipment. While this is an eective way to clear the sand of any unwanted elements, it can be detrimental to the biodiversity and success of shoreline wildlife. This raking decreases the amount of food available to shoreline species, disrupting the coastal food chain through the removal of vital microorganisms, and uproots developing vegetation.Maine beaches are treasured for their natural beauty and wildlife. Beach raking creates an unnatural (albeit perhaps less stinky) environment for all, from beachgoers to the Piping Plovers that rely on wrack to forage. Many of the benets of mechanical beach cleaning can be accomplished through beach clean-ups by hand, strengthening coastal communities to improve the places we all love. Next time you visit one of the beautiful shoreline areas, notice the wrack and all the small organisms that might utilize it—maybe as shelter, or perhaps as a food source. The beach is a dynamic, complex environment, and we are lucky to enjoy it in Maine. Photo: Missy MansPhoto: Apalacian Dreamer/Flckr5

6Dredging is a common practice used to reshape channels and harbors in order to help boats safely navigate coastal waterways that have lled in with sediment. In Maine, dredging is only permitted from November to April to protect sh, lobster, and wildlife populations. Marine ecosystems are impacted by dredging, since it can lead to the release of toxic material into sediment, erosion, and/or the displacement of habitat for aquatic life. That is why dredging is strictly regulated by both the Army Corps of Engineers and Maine Department of Environmental Protection, under the Clean Water Act and Maine’s Natural Resource Protection Act, to ensure it is done only when the benets outweigh the costs. If done thoughtfully and properly, dredging can help with ood control, beach ecosystem nourishment, and water quality improvement. The Scarborough River Federal Navigation Project dredged from November 2023 to February 2024. Around 130,000 cubic tons of sediment were placed on Western Beach in Scarborough. Although the eect of the dredge on the marine ecosystem has not yet been assessed, the sandy beach was larger as a result, which greatly beneted the beach ecosystem. This likely contributed to the most successful year for Piping Plovers and Least Terns at Western Beach, oering more habitat to use for nesting. An all-time high of 14 pairs of Piping Plovers edged 27 chicks.Dredging on Western BeachIn MemoriamMary Ross1937–2023When we think about Ogunquit Beach, the Ross ladies immediately come to mind. Longtime Ogunquit resident Mary Ross was a plover lover who cared deeply for the natural world and was a positive force for good. For decades, the Maine Audubon plover crew has loved seeing her and her daughter Kirsten on the beach and talking about plovers. Mary is, and will continue to be, missed. Least Terns had not nested at Western Beach since 2019, had not edged chicks there since 2017, and the record number of Least Terns edged from the beach was 25, set way back in 1978. This year, though, 45 Least Terns have edged! It appears that the amount of sandy beach habitat available played a positive role for both these endangered species this season. Photos: Town of Scarborough

2024 PIPING PLOVER NESTING DATA 7TownBeachPairsFledglingsNest AttemptsOgunquitWellsKennebunkTotals 143 174 237KennebunkportBiddefordSacoOld Orchard BeachScarboroughCape ElizabethPhippsburgGeorgetown*SP = State ParkCasco BayOgunquit 14 16 21Moody 2 2 3Wells 17 19 37Drakes Island 2 2 3Laudholm Farm 3 3 3All Beaches 11 15 16Marshall Point 1 1 0Goose Rocks 12 17 28Fortunes Rocks 7 8 12Hills 3 3 2Timber Point 1 1 0Ferry 2 3 2Goosefare Brook 1 2 2Ocean Park 0 0 0Old Orchard 4 9 1Pine Point 4 5 8Western/Ferry 14 14 27Scarborough SP* 3 3 10Higgins 6 7 10Ram Island 2 3 1Crescent SP* 3 4 0Long Island 1 1 0Chebeague Island 1 1 3Seawall 15 20 20Popham SP* 8 8 17Hunnewell 1 1 4Indian Point 1 1 2Reid SP*-Mile 1 1 0Reid SP*-Half Mile 3 4 57

20 Gilsland Farm Rd.Falmouth, ME 04105maineaudubon.orgPrinted on 100% recycled paper.The 2024 Coastal Birds Team: (Back row, left to right): Christie Hull, Thea Kastelic, Sophie Garland-Doré, Erin Campbell, Greer Lowenstein, Laura Williams, Laura Minich Zitske(Front row, left to right): Lily Benn, Clark Begley, James FolenoThe Coastal Birds newsletter is published annually by Maine Audubon in partnership with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife and Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge.Maine Audubon has worked for more than 40 years to restore Maine’s Piping Plover and Least Tern populations with help from our partners, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS); populations have increased substantially in that time. The project is funded by MDIFW, USFWS, with additional funding from the Phineas W. Sprague Memorial Foundation.FirstName LastNameAddressLine1AddressLine2City, State Country PostalCodee Coastal Birds ProjectPhoto: Susan Kline