Piping Plover Foraging on Sandy Neck Beach
Turtle Journal visited Sandy Neck in Barnstable on April 1st to enjoy a sunny, if chilly Sunday morning. As we crossed from salt marsh side to bay beach at Cut #1 (No Vehicle Access) about a half mile east of the asphalt road and parking area, we spotted three piping plovers (Charadrius melodus) foraging along the shoreline.
Rolling Sand Dunes of Barnstable’s Sandy Neck
The southern salt marsh side of Sandy Neck marks an extremely productive Northern Diamondback Terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin terrapin) habitat in Massachusetts, second only to Wellfleet Bay. The rolling sand dunes between southern marsh and northern beach stretch for a third of a mile, supporting viable terrapin nesting. (See November Springs Deathtrap on Turtle Hatchlings.)
Sandy Neck Piping Plover
Foraging plovers were wedged between advancing tide and constant stream of off-road-vehicles driving along a rutted track gouged between dunes and waterline. When disturbed by beach walkers or vehicles, these birds would take flight and hopscotch frenetically back and forth along the shore.