The New Year starts on Cumberland with a great many shore birds on the beach: Sanderlings, Dunlins, Semipalmated Plovers and a few Piping Plovers. Like last year, flocks of Red Knots are wintering here along with several pairs of American Oystercatchers. Four species of gulls and three species of terns and a small number of Black Skimmers are usually seen grouped together on the beach this time of year. They do this mostly for protection: more eyes looking for danger. One significant predator they have to watch for is the Bald Eagle. Several eagles have apparently taken up residence on the island because we have frequent sightings of them now.
Winter is when mink and otters are most likely to be seen. Their main predator, the alligator, is not active this time of year. This is also the breeding season for these water oriented members of the weasel family. This month we have had several otter sightings from Greyfield dock. Greyfield also provides kayaks for our guests who want to explore the nearby salt marshes where mink and otters, along with bottle-nosed dolphins, are known to frequent. Salt marshes also provide habitat for numerous wading birds: egrets, herons and wood storks are commonly seen, but in the winter migratory ducks like Hooded and Red-breasted Mergansers are added to the list. On early morning birding tours with our naturalists from Greyfield, we have had several sightings of the migratory White Pelicans that winter in the area.
Last fall we had a particularly large acorn drop from the predominant live oak trees that cover most of the island. There are so many acorns still on the ground providing food for a lot of Cumberland’s wildlife. Deer and turkeys have been seen every morning in the Dungeness fields feeding on the acorns.
Fred Whitehead
