Photo: Terns on Rip Raps Island, DGIF
The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) has completed the creation of new habitat for nesting shorebirds that were displaced by construction at the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel. The South Island at the tunnel complex has for many years been home to 25,000 birds, including 80% of the state’s nesting Royal Terns and Sandwich Terns, 10% of the state-threatened Gull-billed Tern breeding population and over 10% of the Common Tern, Black Skimmer and Laughing Gull breeding populations in Virginia. That nesting area was paved over earlier this year in connection with the construction.
The American Bird Conservancy, the National Audubon Society, the Virginia Society for Ornithology and a dedicated group of local citizens advocated for a new nesting area for the birds in letters, phone calls and meetings with state officials. ASNV and its members also sent letters to state officials. Those efforts paid off, leading in February of this year to a commitment by Governor Northam to create new habitat for the birds.
DGIF has completed the creation of a new nesting area on Rip Raps Island, adjacent to the South Island, by removing trees, eradicating predators and covering the island with sand and gravel. Seven barges are positioned next to the island and filled with sand and gravel to provide additional nesting space. The National Audubon Society’s Seabird Restoration Program supported the installation of decoys and recorded bird calls to attract birds to the island. The project is a success! One of the citizen advocates reported in mid-May that the island was “mobbed with birds,” a statement that is confirmed by the photo released by DGIF. You can read more about the success of the project in the American Bird Conservancy’s press release and DGIF’s website.