Another entry in Abby’s Birdbrained Summer.  Abby, the summer communication intern for the Coast Office of Audubon North Carolina, is visiting sites with Audubon’s field staff and our community of volunteers. After she goes into the field, she’ll post blogs detailing her experiences.

If you see someone in a light blue T-shirt and binoculars walking around the south-end of Wrightsville Beach, you are probably in the presence of one of Audubon’s Beach Stewards. This year, there are about 30 stewards that serve as ambassadors between the community and the nesting shorebirds. The stewards educate the public about the nesting colony and help protect the birds from human and canine disturbances. These are just a few of Audubon’s crucial volunteers.

Michelle and Katherine Frazier are a mother-daughter team. This is their first year as official beach stewards, but they have been visiting the nesting colony on the south-end of Wrightsville Beach since 2010. They both participated in Audubon’s Good Egg Project, and volunteer for SkyWatch Bird Rescue. Katherine’s favorite birds are the Black Skimmers because of “their funny beaks…how the bottom is longer!”

Garold Carlisle is a Project Manager with GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy during business hours, but when he gets off of work, he heads to the beach. I asked him how long he had been a steward, and he responded “I have vast experience. Maybe a month, but it’s addictive.” He has been showing beach-goers the colony through his scope nearly every day since becoming an Audubon volunteer, and was kind enough to lend me his binoculars. He’s extraordinarily personable, and loves all of the interesting people he meets on the beach.

Kathy Hannah has been volunteering with Audubon for three years, is a member of the Cape Fear Audubon Society, and volunteers at Airlie Gardens. She was a teacher for 40 years, and loves photographing the birds. Check out her pictures of the birds on her blog. As a formation of Black Skimmers flew overhead, she was impressed by their grace. “I don’t know who their choreographer is, but he’s really good,” she said.

Kristin Holloman has been a sea turtle volunteer for two years, and previously worked for the Wildlife Research Commission. She also favors the Black Skimmers, “I’ve just been fascinated by them since the first time I saw them in ’99 or 2000…I love the way they rest in the sand, it’s adorable.”

We at Audubon NC are extremely grateful for our extensive community of volunteers and stewards. If you want to support bird conservation, but don’t have time to dedicate, please make a donation! You can make a vital difference.