Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Resource Management Field Summary for July 22– July 28, 2010 

(Bodie, Hatteras and Ocracoke Districts)

 

Piping Plover (PIPL) Observations:

 

 

Monitoring for breeding behavior has ceased. Monitoring for migratory PIPL and other migrant avian species is being conducted weekly.

 

Final PIPL Breeding Summary: 

 

Total Nests to Date	Active Nests	Total Nests Hatched	Total Nests Lost	Total Eggs Hatched	Unfledged Chicks	Lost Chicks	Fledged Chicks
16*	0	11	5	31	0	16	15

* This counts the three egg nest on Ocracoke, found 6/29, as a separate nest, although it is believed that this nest may be a clutch continuation from Nest #15, which was predated by ghost crabs 6/23.

 

American Oystercatchers (AMOY):  

 

Location	Total Nests to Date	Active Nests	Nests Hatched	Nests Lost	Total Chicks Hatched	Unfledged Chicks	Chicks Lost	Fledged Chicks
Green Island	3	0	2	1	6	0	2	4
Bodie District	2	0	1	1	1	0	1	0
Bodie/Hatteras District	5	0	4	1	10	1	5	4
Hatteras District	12	0	9	3	22	0	4	18
Ocracoke District	6	0	5	1	9	1	6	2
CAHA TOTALS	28	0	21	7	48	2	18	28

 

2010 AMOY Breeding Pairs:  Twenty-three confirmed breeding pairs of AMOYs have been documented this year. 

 

Bodie District:

• Green Island:  The southern brood has 2 fledged chicks and the northern brood has 2 fledged chicks. On 7/27, one adult from the southern pair was observed with 1 banded fledgling and 1 unbanded fledgling, even though we banded 2 chicks from this pair. So there may be 3 total fledglings for this pair as 1 of 3 may have been with the other adult elsewhere.
• Bodie Island:  No AMOY breeding behavior was observed this week.   
• Bodie/Hatteras District (Rodanthe to Ramp 30):  One pair has one unfledged chick that hatched on 6/26 and was banded on 7/21.  Two other pairs have fledged a total of four chicks.

 

Hatteras District:  All AMOY breeding activity has ended.  11 pair fledged 18 chicks.

 

Ocracoke District:  

• North Ocracoke:  One pair has one fledged chick.  
• Other Beaches (Ramp 59-Ramp 72):  The northern-most pair has fledged one chick.  A second pair lost their chicks on or before 7/1.
• South Point:  One pair hatched one chick on Friday 7/16. The 13-day-old chick has been observed daily along the Ocracoke Inlet shoreline.

 

Colonial Waterbirds (CWB):

            Bodie District:  

Colony BIC01- 0.8 mi S of Ramp 4 active with LETE scrapes, chicks and fledglings. Also, on 7/28, BLSK adults and scrapes were observed.

 

Green Island:

Colony GIC01- N, W, and S end of Green Island active with COTE scrapes, nests and chicks.

Bodie Hatteras District:

Colony BHC01- 0.3 mi N of Ramp 23 to 0.3 mi S of Ramp 23 active with LETE nests, chicks and fledglings.

Colony BHC02- 0.2 mi S of Ramp 27 active with LETE chicks and fledglings.

 

Hatteras District:  

Colony HIC01 - 1.5 mi S of Ramp 38 to 2.4 mi S of Ramp 38 active with LETE nests, chicks and fledglings.

Colony HIC02 - 0.1 mi W of Ramp 45 active with LETE chicks and fledglings.

Colony HIC03 - 0.1 mi E of Salt Pond Road is active with LETE chicks and fledglings.

 

Ocracoke District:  

Colony OIC01- 0.9 mi S of Ramp 72 no activity.

Colony OIC02- 0.1 mi N of Ramp 59 active with two LETE incubating nests.

Colony OIC02-A- 0.8 mi N of Ramp 59 no activity as of 7/27.

 

 

Sea Turtle Nests (New Nests this Week):

Bodie District Nests:

7/27 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.1 mi S of Ramp 2.

 

Bodie District False Crawls:

None this week.

 

Bodie Hatteras District Nests:

7/23 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.1 mi S of Ramp 23.

 

Bodie Hatteras District False Crawls:

None this week.

 

Hatteras District Nests:

7/22 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.7 miles W of Ramp 45

7/22 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.6 mi E of Ramp 49

7/22 -- A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.6 mi W of Ramp 49

7/24 -- A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.1mi W of Ramp 45

7/24 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 2.0 mi NE of Ramp 55

7/24 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.6 mi NE of Ramp 55

7/26 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.4 mi N of Ramp 55

7/27 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.8 mi E of Ramp 49

7/27 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.4 mi N of Ramp 38

7/28 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 2.8 mi N of Ramp 38

7/28 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.7 mi N of Ramp 34

7/28 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 0.4 mi S of Ramp 34

7/28 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 1.0 mi S of Ramp 30

 

Hatteras District False Crawls:

7/22 -- A loggerhead sea turtle false crawl was found 0.6 mi E of Ramp 49

7/23 -- A loggerhead sea turtle false crawl was found 2.3 mi SE of Ramp 49

7/23 -- A loggerhead sea turtle false crawl was found 3.6 mi SE of Ramp 49

7/24 – A loggerhead sea turtle false crawl was found 2.25 mi NE of Ramp 55

7/28 – A loggerhead sea turtle false crawl was found 1 mi N of Ramp 43

 

Ocracoke District Nests:

7/22 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found .35 mi S of Ramp 68

7/22 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found 2.7 mi N of Ramp 68

7/25 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found .47 mi N of Ramp 70

7/26 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found .13 mi N of Ramp 72

7/26 – A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found .56 mi S of Ramp 70

7/27 - A loggerhead sea turtle nest was found .3 mi N of Ramp 70

 

Ocracoke District False Crawl:

7/26 – A loggerhead sea turtle false crawl was found 1.19 mi S of Ramp 59

7/27 – A loggerhead sea turtle false crawl was found 3.87 mi N of Ramp 67

 

New nests this week: 21

Total nests to date:  122*

New false crawls this week: 6

Total false crawls to date:  87

Nests hatched this week: 1

Total nests hatched to date: 1

 

*The most nests ever documented on the seashore

 

Sea Turtle Strandings:

 

Bodie District:

            None this week

Hatteras District:

7/23 – An dead adult loggerhead sea turtle was found 0.4 mi W Ramp 45. The sea turtle was discovered without a head or front flippers. A necropsy revealed shark bites on the sea turtle and no visible signs of human interaction.

Ocracoke District:

None this week

 

Marine Mammals:

 

Bodie District:

7/23 – A dead Bottlenose dolphin was found 2.1 mi S of Ramp 2.

 

Hatteras District:

None this week.

 

Ocracoke District:

None this week.

 

Closures – additions/modifications/removals:

 

Closure #	Location	Species	Date Installed or Removed
Bodie District
BH10-004-D	2.6 mi N of Ramp 27	LETE	7/23/2010
Hatteras District
HI10-002-L	South Beach/Ramp 45	PIPL, AMOY, LETE	7/23/2010
Ocracoke District
OI10-002-J	0.7 mi SW of Ramp 72	AMOY, WIPL	7/23/2010

 

Closure intrusions:

 

Bodie District:

7/22 – Six pedestrians observed walking on the beach inside the resource closure at Ramp 23.

7/22   - Two sets of pedestrian tracks and 1 set of dog tracks entered the resource closure; Ramp 23.

7/22 - 21 pedestrians observed at or below the high-tide line inside the resource closure at Ramp 27. Pedestrians were contacted by LE.

7/27 - One set of bare footprints were observed along the water 0.2 mi South of Ramp 27.

7/27 - One person was walking along the water inside the closure at Ramp 23.

 

Hatteras District:

7/23 – Three sets of footprints documented inside the LETE closure 1.5 mi S of Ramp 38.

7/23 – A jogger was observed in the LETE closure 1.7 mi S of Ramp 38.

7/28 – Pedestrian tracks observed in the sea turtle nest closure 1.9 mi N of Ramp 55.

7/28 – Pedestrian and dog tracks were observed in the sea turtle nest closure 2 mi N of Ramp 55. The closure string was broken.

7/28 – Pedestrian and dog tracks were observed in the sea turtle nest closure 2.2 mi W of Ramp 49.

7/28 – One set of pedestrian tracks were observed in the sea turtle nest closure 0.1 mi W of Ramp 49.

7/28 – Five sets of pedestrian tracks were observed in the expanded sea turtle nest closure just E of Ramp 49.

                                                                                            

Ocracoke District:

7/28 – Two individuals landed a boat on the sound-side shoreline of South Point, but left before contact could be made.