Bullfrog Bill wrote:
A baby Oystercatcher died of starvation and concern has risen about the well-being of shorebirds there.
August 16, 2021 — For the good of the shorebirds feeding and resting now at Milford Point, Connecticut Audubon has decided to schedule no group walks to the point's sandbar for the rest of August.
We are also asking for your help in giving the shorebirds room to feed and rest when you visit on your own.
On a morning two weeks ago, four photographers carried their equipment out to the sandbar.
To make sure they were close enough to get the photos they wanted, they settled onto the sand within 50 feet of two American Oystercatchers and their baby.
The baby oystercatcher was too young to fly and the parents were too attached to leave it on its own. Connecticut Audubon’s coastal ranger asked the photographers to please move farther away.
But they stayed. The birds were on high alert and distracted from resting, feeding and keeping cool in the midday heat.
By 1:30, shortly after the photographers’ four-hour stakeout, the baby American Oystercatcher was dead.
A necropsy showed that it starved to death.
Oystercatchers at Milford Point attempted 20 nests during the 2021 season.
Only one baby has survived.
This was just the latest example this summer of seemingly well-meaning visitors ignoring the warning signs, string fencing, and requests of Connecticut Audubon staff to birds on the sandbar the room they need to survive.
Walking, birding, and taking photos on the sandbar can unnecessarily disturb the shorebirds there.
A baby Oystercatcher died of starvation and concer... (
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As a wildlife photographer I too have witnessed atrocities beyond the scope of human understanding. My group in Florida do not publish the locations of rare birds we photograph, we as a group know their whereabouts but keep the locations private.
If we come across a situation where a photographer or photographers are threatening wildlife we have the number of game officials on speed dial, the officers know us and our group and appreciate our information.
We also, when we post, remind the public on proper wildlife behavior and a general respect for it.
We also post the dangers wildlife face due to population infringement.
I have gotten in front of bad photographers and told them the dangers the wildlife face due to their actions, and I would say 99% of them back off because they lacked the knowledge to know the dangers of what they were doing.
We are polite and firm, if they insist we inform them that we have the numbers of wildlife officers who will support our desires and would it not be better for everyone involved to back off.
Like I said, most photographers do not realize how their actions impact the life of the wildlife they are photographing. And like I said, most of the time it ends up very well and most photographers thank us for informing them of the impact of what they are doing.
And our group continues to educate the public, and that's a big part of it. But their will always be those who feel they are above the need for caution.
In your case I would have reported them to the wildlife officers, and I would also have taken down their license numbers.
And further, I would have found out what their address was and sent them the dead bird in a box thanking them for killing it.
But that's just lovable me talking.