MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Studies show the populations of most North American shorebirds are declining, but there are some success stories. Molly Duerig with Central Florida Public Media reports on the decadeslong efforts to bring back the American oystercatcher along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts.
(SOUNDBITE OF BIRDS CALLING)
MOLLY DUERIG, BYLINE: That sharp, high-pitched call is an American oystercatcher, as heard from a recording on David Hartgrove's cellphone. We were looking through his spotting scope at a young oystercatcher family on an island in the Halifax River.
DAVID HARTGROVE: Oystercatchers are just a really striking-looking bird. They have a bright, reddish-orange bill, and they have an interesting feeding technique.
DUERIG: Oystercatchers use those long, reddish-orange bills to break open the shell of their main food source - oyster.
HARTGROVE: Spread their bill out, slurp the oyster and move right on to the next oyster.
DUERIG: Hartgrove has been watching these birds for more than 20 years. He's a self-described bird fanatic and volunteers as a bird monitor with the state's Shorebird Alliance Network. Bird monitors count and track oystercatchers. The data helps scientists figure out where the birds migrate and nest. All along the East and Gulf coasts, there are more than 40 groups working together specifically on oystercatcher recovery.
JANELL BRUSH: The state of Florida can't do it without our conservation partners.
DUERIG: That's Janell Brush, a bird scientist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. She says over the past nearly two decades, those conservation partners work has been paying off. In 2008, an aerial survey revealed oystercatcher numbers were falling. 17 years later, those numbers are up 45% to nearly 15,000 American oystercatchers nationwide.
BRUSH: We watched our local population improve in Florida as part of that network, the oystercatcher working group.
DUERIG: From Maine to Florida, groups in the coalition help oystercatchers by doing things like improving their coastal habitat, restoring oyster reefs, and recruiting volunteers who help stop people from walking on nests on or near the beach. David Hartgrove knows oystercatchers are still up against some big threats - development of coastal areas, human interference and natural predators. Conservationists say it's critical to continue investing in these long-term partnerships to keep American oystercatchers thriving along the coasts.
HARTGROVE: I'm hopeful for the fact that currently, we still have a fairly good and stable population of shorebirds here in Volusia County, and that means that my grandchildren will get a chance to see them.
DUERIG: And he hopes it stays that way, so their grandchildren can see them, too.
For NPR News, I'm Molly Duerig in Orlando.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.