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Home | Research | Birding on Bald Head | Internships | Barrier Island Study Center | Turtle Hatching Birding on Bald Head North Carolina Birding Trail The Coastal portion of the NC Birding Trail is complete! We are pleased to announce that Bald Head Island is one of 102 sites along the coastal region (areas east of I-95). A trail guide is in the developmental stages; however, you can find group maps and site information for all 102 locations by visiting: http://www.ncbirdingtrail.org/maps_coast.asp To learn more about the NC Birding Trail (the Piedmont and Mountain sections are being developed in 2007 and 2008, respectively) please visit http://www.ncbirdingtrail.org
Rare Sighting of Wood Stork on January 13, 2007!
Wood Storks are not frequent visitors to Bald Head Island, so needless to say BHI-Conservancy staff, island residents and visitors were all extremely surprised and excited when one showed up on January 13th and decided to hang around for a few days. The bird was seen feeding and resting around the 2 adjacent golf course lagoons on Stede Bonnet. These magnificent birds stand nearly 3 1/2 feet tall and have a wing span of 5 feet! Wood Storks are an endangered species, and therefore garner protection on both the state and federal levels. They are typically found in warmer climates such as South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, although there is a large nesting population (about 80 birds) in Sunset Beach, NC. It appears that the Wood Stork may be increasing it's range northward, as evidenced by the NC nesting birds and continued sightings throughtout the state. The unusually warm winter is likely part of the reason for the high number of Wood Stork sightings recorded throughout the state this month.
Audubon Annual Christmas Bird Count The 107th Christmas Bird Count took place on Sunday, December 31. Bald Head is part of the Southport/Oak Island/Bald Head count circle, and this year BHI pulled out 86 different species of birds! The total count for the entire circle mentioned above was 168 species. Typically, this count circle has the highest number of species in the entire state due to the incredible diversity of habitat. The full report of species seen on count day will be posted once the information becomes available, so please be sure to check back in with us! Many thanks to Derb Carter and Juanita Roushdy for their tireless efforts to count birds all day. For more information on the Christmas Bird Count please visit: http://www.audubon.org/bird/cbc/index.html.
Special Visitor to Bald Head Island! We were pleasantly surprised on Thursday, September 7th, when a reddish egret showed up at the south/east point. This was a juvenile bird and it spent much of the morning running around feeding in a shallow pond that had been left behind from a recent high tide. Reddish egrets are typically found in Florida, but will venture north during the summer months. They are considered a rare occurance in North Carolina and this was the first reported sighting on BHI.
Photo courtesy of Lamar Nix.
Bald Head Island is and Audubon Designated Important Birding Area. An Important Bird Area (IBA) is a site that provides essential habitat for one or more species of breeding or non-breeding birds. These are places important for birds at some time in their annual cycle, including breeding, migration and wintering. Sites are identified according to standardized, scientifically-defensible criteria that refer to numbers of birds or assemblages regularly occurring at a particular location. They include sites that support endangered, threatened or vulnerable species; sites with exceptional or rare habitat and the associated assemblage of birds; sites supporting high concentrations of birds; and sites used for long-term monitoring and research contributing to bird conservation. Total Size: 5,955.0 ha (14,708.9 acres)
Land Use: wildlife conservation, other conservation, recreation/tourism, residential development Primary Threats: residential/commercial development, recreational development/overuse, disturbance to birds, raccoon and fox predation Protection Status: 10,000 acres are protected by the North Carolina State Park system and North Carolina Division of Coastal Management. This includes all marshes, Zeke’s Island, Bluff Island and portions of Bald Head Island. The majority of Bald Head and Middle Islands is privately owned. Conservation Issues: Bald Head and Middle Islands are being developed, although tracts within both areas have been set aside for conservation. The majority of development will directly impact the maritime forest community. Raccoon and fox populations are unusually Birds: The site includes one of the state’s largest and best examples of maritime forest and significant saltmarsh (Criteria NC4). The forest supports the state’s largest population of breeding Painted Buntings and provides excellent stopover habitat for migrant songbirds. Shorebirds abound on the extensive tidal flats, marshes, and beach. Wading birds from the nearby Battery Island colony forage in the marshes, freshwater ponds, and along tidal creeks. Waterfowl numbers have declined over the past decade, but at least 12 species of ducks are common in the river, tidal creeks, bays and ponds. A few Least Terns, Black Skimmers, Willets, Wilson’s Plovers, and American Oystercatchers nest on area beaches during most seasons, but total numbers are not known. The site supports North Carolina’s largest wintering population of American Oystercatchers. Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrows, Seaside Sparrows, and Clapper Rails are abundant in area marshes. Peregrine Falcon, Merlin, American Kestrel, and Sharp-shinned Hawk are regular visitors during migration. Birds documented on Bald Head Island, as of 06/04/2007 (226 Species):
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Photo courtesy of Juanita Roushdy 
Photo courtesy of Juanita Roushdy 
Habitats: maritime forest, saltmarsh, barrier beach/dune, river, sandflat/mudflat
high and likely have a significant impact on ground-nesting birds. The southern end of the Fort Fisher spit is open to vehicles. This activity and increased recreational use of the area have contributed to declines in beach-nesting birds in recent years.
