Down the Shore

After a 4:oo a.m. departure from school on a cool October morning, the Environmental Science class arrived at the North Brigantine Natural Area at the Jersey Shore with the task of documenting shorebird species and doing clean-up. There were copious amounts of gnats, but still, a beautiful sunrise greeted the team and the students were quickly introduced to the reality of ecological fieldwork. Teacher Ryan Black shares, “They persevered and despite very low numbers along most of our three-mile survey, we were treated to a large abundance of shorebirds at the northern point. Approximately 20 endangered red knots, 198 American Oystercatchers (a New Jersey species of concern), and 220 Black-bellied Plovers were the highlight of the survey. The students helped count 1,657 shorebirds in total and identified nine different shorebird species after only seeing 50 sanderlings for the first three miles of our journey. It was a sight to behold! They removed 229 pieces of waste (mostly plastic debris) on the three-mile walk back.”