Dear Reader, 



What's a beach without birds? 



Can you imagine a salt marsh without graceful egrets and ibises? 



The birds that inhabit our coast are precious resources, not only 

 to people who watch them for pleasure, but for scientists who study 

 them too. 



Some scientists even say that the health of birds is a good 

 indicator of the shape of the environment. 



In this issue of Coastwatch, we look through the binoculars of 

 journalism at some of North Carolina's native shorebirds. 



In our first story, I explored the state's management of the 

 following coastal nesters — gulls, terns, skimmers, egrets, ibises, 

 herons and pelicans. These birds nest in groups called colonies, 

 hence their name — colonial waterbirds. But it's this tendency to 



flock together that requires management of their habitat to 

 maintain their populations. 



To gain an appreciation of what it takes to be a die-hard 

 coastal birdwatcher, Carla Burgess spent a day with John Fussell 

 — Carteret County's very own "bird man" — at the wonderfully 

 wild Rachel Carson Estuarine Research Reserve near Beaufort. 



And C.R. Edgerton delved into one of the great success stories 

 of the coastal bird world: the recent boom in brown pelican 

 populations in North Carolina. 



We hope these stories and their accompanying photographs 

 will give you new insight into the wonderful world of North 

 Carolina coastal birds. 



See you next issue, 

 Kathy Hart 



In This Issue 



Providing Safe Haven for Nesting Waterbirds . . .2 



Down East With a Bird's Best Friend 6 



Brown Pelicans: 



An Environmental Success Story 10 



Young Mariners 



Create Your Oivn Paper Whale 14 



Sound To Sea 



A Small Bird With Big Problems 15 



Marine Advice 



Bayou Technology Makes Good in 



Tar Heel Waters 16 



N.C. DOCUMENTS 

 CLEARINGHOUSE 



FEB U t992 



N.C. STATE LIBRARY 

 RALEIGH 



Field Notes 



Placing a Value on Recreational Resources 1 7 



The Aft Deck 18 



Back Talk 20 



The Book Store 21 



COASTWATCH 1 



