I went early this morning to walk the loop at Rockport Beach to see how the birds had fared high waters from the hurricane. Going to my left toward the tower everything looked pretty good. This is gull territory. In some places baby gulls by the dozens were all huddled together, having been driven from the grass by high water. I didn't see very many dead chicks, however.
It was a different story as I came to the Black Skimmer nesting place near the channel and Key Allegro. There were young chicks lying everywhere on the paved road, having been crushed by vehicles. The birds had been driven to high ground and careless or mean drivers had gunned them down. I counted thirty-seven dead chicks in the road. Only one adult. That could well be a third of the entire hatch for this summer. It was devastating to see. The road is NOW blocked off. Whether it will stay that way is up to the city. I think it should remain closed for the week-end or until the water is gone from their haunts. If not, there will be few if any chicks left.
The Black Skimmer is one of our more unusual guests. It is black and white and has an enormously long lower mandible that it gently dips or skims in the water while in flight. It picks up the tiny fish and foods in this way. Rockport having skimmers so easily seen is a real treat. Having their newly-hatched little ones scattered along the roadway is an inexcusable massacre.
