Coastal Stewardship: Gulf

All along the Gulf Coast, Audubon works with volunteers and partner organizations to conserve, restore, protect, and monitor a network of coastal sites for colonial and beach-nesting birds—including Wilson’s Plovers, Black Skimmers, and Reddish Egrets—and to help people and birds coexist and thrive in these sensitive coastal areas. In some places, Audubon chapter members and other volunteers adopt beaches, educating beachgoers about the birds and how to keep them, their eggs, and their chicks safe. At other sites, professional stewards protect the critical island breeding habitat of colonial waterbirds.

In a good example of Audubon’s citizen science approach, Audubon biologists also mobilize networks of volunteers to gather a wealth of data about coastal waterbirds and their habitats through the Audubon Coastal Bird Survey and other research efforts. Our scientists are building a credible, long-term inventory of information on coastal waterbirds to help keep these birds’ populations resilient in the face of sea-level rise and human development. Audubon will continue to augment these research and protection efforts by engaging local communities and the public at large through innovative outreach and social marketing in our ongoing work to reduce human disturbance, increase awareness, and broaden public protections for birds that breed, winter, and migrate along the Gulf Coast.

Theory of Victory: Audubon will develop comprehensive partnership programs to actively monitor, manage, and recover key colonies and nesting sites for beach-dependent Gulf Coast birds.

For more on Audubon's work restoring the Gulf, click here. You can download the Gulf restoration plan here.