Some Sandy Hook Beaches Closed For Piping Plover This Summer

HIGHLANDS, NJ — As they did last summer, the National Park Service announced that some beaches at Gateway National Recreation Area - Sandy Hook will be closed in summer 2021 so shorebirds can nest.

Which beaches have not been determined yet, and the beach closures will depend where the birds choose to nest, said the National Park Service, which runs Sandy Hook.

However, expect some beaches to be closed when you enter the park this summer. These are full beach closures that will begin to be implemented starting this Friday, May 21.

Updates on which beaches will closed will be posted weekly on the GatewayNPS social media pages; Sandy Hook visitors are encouraged to follow GatewayNPS on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

The birds that nest at Sandy Hook include the federally threatened piping plover and the federally endangered roseate tern.

The beaches where they choose to nest will be closed to all fishing, surfing, and beach bathing once nests begin to hatch and chicks are on the beach.

Says the National Park Service:

"Piping plover chicks need to increase their weight five times within several weeks of hatching so that they’ll be able to thrive and fly. The plover chicks need access to the shoreline to feed in order to achieve this necessary weight gain. The presence of people on the beach causes chicks and their parents to expend energy running up and down the beach to avoid this perceived threat. Interruption in feeding and energy expenditures prevents chicks from thriving and leads to chick mortality."

There are 3,000 or less pairs of nesting piping plovers all along the Eastern Seaboard and, in the past decade, the Sandy Hook peninsula has been home to 40-50 percent of New Jersey's piping plover population.

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