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Hammock's Beach State Park



Hi Birders.  My family and I just got back from a very fun day at Hammock's 
Beach State Park.  

If anyone is interested, there are fair sized groups of Black Skimmers and 
Forster's Terns nesting on Bear Island, on the Bogue Inlet end.  (Bear Island 
is just off the coast from Swansboro NC near Camp LeJeune/Jacksonville.)  I'm 
not very good with numbers, but there were probably 20-30 of each that we 
could see easily.  The park service has roped off the area to keep the 
beachgoers from disturbing the nests.  You can get an excellent view of both 
groups who are nesting in the open and very accessible.  It is about a thirty 
minute walk from where the bath-house used to be (before the hurricanes last 
year).  

We also saw lots of Great Egrets, 3 Snowy Egrets, 5 Great Blue Herons, 4-5 
Lesser Blue Herons, two Black Crowned Night Herons and an Osprey on the ferry 
ride out to the island.  On the island we saw a dozen Sanderlings, 2 Willets 
and a Whimbrel - as well as the usual assortment of various Gulls.   There 
were also two birds we couldn't identify near the nesting groups - the size 
of very large gulls, they had brown and white markings and thick, heavy beaks 
- shaped like finch beaks, but much larger.  The beaks were dark near the 
face and turned yellow towards the tip.  Anyone have any ideas?  There are 
also supposedly several Painted Buntings nesting on the island, just a 
hundred yards or so up the trail from the ferry dock  - at least according to 
the Park Ranger.  Unfortunately they managed to elude us all day.

All in all, it was a pretty good day of birding considering the family really 
just wanted to body surf! 

A great week to all.
Toni

Toni S. Rexrode
Apprentice Birder
Durham, NC 
TrioRex@aol.com