Since the American Oystercatchers and their chicks were so fun to watch on Wednesday off to the Meadows I went again today to see if they were hanging out. I thought by timing my visit pretty early in the morning I would have a chance to see Mom and Dad feeding the chicks at the water's edge. At first they were up in the protected shorebird areas in an area of dune grass but now there were 3 chicks instead of 2. While I was sitting on the beach the parents lead the chicks down to the water's edge to feed. Initially, they were 50 feet away but as they fed they worked their way down towards the area where I was sitting keeping very still. At times they were only 15 feet from me and so close I couldn't even fit them all in the view of the camera. It was fun to watch the adults catch the sand crabs and break them apart for the chicks. Sometimes the chicks would take the snack and other times they walked right by as if to say "Not now Dad, I'm exploring." The chicks already preen and make some of the movements that the adults make. They are only 3-4 days old and just little balls of fluff. Here are some of my pictures.
I am always excited to walk along the beach in the Meadows at the end of May/beginning of June as it's time for the birth of the American Oystercatcher chicks. It is also a time of mating for the Least Terns. Last year most of the Least Terns left the area due to destruction of their eggs so I wasn't sure there would even be any terns. While there were some of the terns the majority of them have left for other nesting areas. Hopefully in the future they'll come back.
