Dogs and birds don’t mix on Georgia island

LITTLE TYBEE ISLAND — Wildlife biologists are trying to protect beach-nesting birds on Little Tybee Island from some of their biggest threats: visitors and their dogs.

A Department of Natural Resources crew put up a warning sign there recently and roped off areas of prime nesting habitat, The Savannah Morning News reported.

Last year a dog killed at least one oystercatcher chick on nearby Williamson Island.

In spring and summer, Georgia’s beaches attract nesting shorebirds and seabirds and provide critical fueling stops for migrating species headed as far away as the Arctic.

American oystercatchers, Wilson’s plovers and least terns use sites such as Little Tybee Island, Pelican Spit off Sea Island, Cumberland Island and the southern end of Jekyll Island.

Among other species, black skimmer, royal tern and gull-billed tern also nest on beaches and offshore sandbars.

Efforts to protect them will include signs along with some law enforcement patrols, said Tim Keyes, a DNR biologist. Places like Little Tybee also need visitors to be involved to keep the wildlife safe, he said.

The sign erected on Little Tybee indicates dogs aren’t welcome. Below a graphic of a dog with a line through it, the sign reads “Protected Wildlife Habitat. Thank you for helping Georgia’s rare wildlife.”

“Dogs and beach wildlife are incompatible,” Keyes said.