Plovers Deserve Protection

Many summer traditions of locals — those who sustain Southampton year round — are sacrosanct. But everything has its limits.

Enjoyment of the Picnic Area, the only beach in Southampton Town where residents can drive on the sand between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. in summer, is a tradition that has been curtailed in recent years due to nesting piping plovers, a federally protected species under threat in New York State. As much as people don’t want to hear it, sacrificing a recreational opportunity to protect an endangered species is a worthy trade, especially when it’s only temporary and intermittent.

According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 2.5 billion migratory birds have been lost since 1970, a population decline of 28 percent. Habitat loss has been identified as a main driver. Habitat conservation, including protecting nesting sites for piping plovers and other threatened birds, is necessary to halt or reverse bird loss.

Restrictions on beach driving may be unwelcome, but they are required when fragile creatures that have already lost so much habitat due to human development are in their precarious nesting stage.

Piping plovers don’t use the same nesting sites every year. Some happened to choose the vicinity of the Picnic Area this year, and next year they could be absent from that particular beach, alleviating beach driving concerns there for a whole summer.

This region is known for its marvelous beaches — but it’s also known for taking seriously the role we play in protecting and nurturing the glorious ecosystem we share with wildlife here. These are tiny birds, and this is, in the end, a tiny way we can demonstrate that we understand their real value.