Lido black skimmer colony weathers Tropical Storm Colin

Although the bird habitat on Lido Beach took some damage during nesting season, a majority of the chicks survived — and the skimmers have begun mating again.

By David Conway
| 6:00 a.m. June 16, 2016

Lou Newman shared this picture of two adult black skimmers and a chick on Lido Key post-Tropical Storm Colin.

Sarasota
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Tropical Storm Colin ended up being relatively mild for most Sarasota residents, but a flock of birds living on Lido Beach went through a tumultuous time.

Since 2014, a growing black skimmer colony has called Lido home in the summer during the birds’ nesting season. The skimmers, classified as a “species of special concern” in Florida, started the nesting process a few weeks early this year.

Audubon Florida roped off a portion of the north end of the beach to protect the nests and chicks. Before the storm, there were about 700 adult skimmers, 150 nests and at least 40 chicks, according to Holley Short, Audubon’s coastal bird monitoring and stewardship coordinator.

During the storm, the water washed over the beach and the skimmer colony. The adults were forced back behind vegetation near Benjamin Franklin Drive to escape the effects of Colin. After abandoning the colony, the fates of the newly hatched chicks were in jeopardy.

“We were scared, because the volunteers that came out here couldn’t find any chicks,” Short said.

Plymouth Harbor resident Lou Newman went out to Lido June 6 at high tide in the midst of the storm. He found the water had wiped out the skimmer colony, but the wildlife photographer spotted several chicks being sheltered by the adults. He passed the images along to Audubon, confirming that some of the young skimmers survived.

“They’re great parents,” Short said. “They learn what to do in this situation.”

The skimmer population did sustain damages. All of the nests were lost after the storm, but at least 25 chicks survived. In total, around 450 adult skimmers remained on Lido — and they’ve already begun to mate again.

With the Fourth of July approaching, Audubon is reminding visitors to the beach to keep their distance from the black skimmer colony during the next few months as the birds continue to nest. With cooperation from humans, the black skimmer colony can thrive even in the face of natural adversity.

“They’re up against so much already,” Short said. “It’s important for people to know to help them out and give them a little space. They just went through a tropical storm!”