A group of endangered birds that breed on the Atlantic coast have shrunk in numbers this year after violent storms wiped out several nests in the Queens area, conservationists said.
The piping plover - a plump, sparrow-sized, sandy-colored bird - builds its nest in the sand near the shoreline, making it vulnerable to storm tides. During the height of the mating season this summer, high swells swept several nests out to sea, leaving the number of endangered birds in Queens lower than last year.
"Productivity has been down across the board in this region," said Sarah Aucoin, director of the city's Urban Park Rangers.
Aucoin, who has been managing sites on the Rockaway peninsula for 13 years, said there had been a steady population growth over the years, but recently the numbers have declined.
"It's a very dynamic and complicated environment with a lot of different pressures on it," said Aucoin, noting other factors - including predators and human activity - also disturb the birds, which are protected under state and federal laws.
In the four preservation areas on the Rockaway peninsula, there were 19 nesting pairs and five fledged offspring in 2008, parks officials said. That's a drop from the 25 nesting pairs and 10 fledged offspring last year.
Rangers have taken steps to protect the population, such as putting up fencing and banning beachgoers from protected areas, which take up a total of 23 blocks along the shoreline.
"Once the birds are there, we don't allow any traffic through that site. There is no bathing or walking on the sand," Aucoin said.
People can unwittingly crush eggs, and too much activity near the site can cause the plovers to desert nests and expose them to predators. "When we remove human activity, we are removing a factor that directly affects the birds," Aucoin said.
The piping plover - named for its plaintive, bell-like whistle - was once abundant on the Atlantic coast, but commercial, residential and recreational development destroyed the habitats suitable for the birds to breed.
Conservationists said the new building boom on the peninsula presents a new threat.
"There is just too much development in Rockaway that poses a problem for the nesting birds," said Don Riepe, director of the northeast chapter of the American Littoral Society, a coastal conservation group.
"These are areas we shouldn't overdevelop," said Riepe. "With people come stray cats, dogs, trash and everything that will negatively impact the piping plovers."
However, some locals said having to sidestep these protected areas is frustrating.
"I'm not a fan of the birds," lifelong resident Jeanne Broder, 34, said, noting she wished the beach wasn't fenced off.
"The beach ball or umbrella that blows away - you can't go into the nesting area to get. If you do, you'll get punished for it," she said.
But other residents, like Cesar Hidalgo, 46, said they think restricting access to portions of the beach is good for both fowl and humans.
"Sometimes the beaches are overcrowded and we invade their environment," Hidalgo said. "I respect what they reserve for nature."
