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2021 marks the 25th Anniversary for the Maryland Coastal Bays Program. Funding and events for the year will center around saving our coastal bay birds. Three species of endangered birds make the Maryland coastal bays their home:

 Royal Terns, Common Terns (yep not so common anymore), and the Black Skimmers

(Photo Credit Bill Hubick)

Sandy, open beaches are necessary for colonial nesting birds, as that is the habitat on which they build nests on. Unfortunately, this habitat is becoming harder to come by in the Maryland coastal bays. Development, erosion, and sea-level rise are all factors that have taken away valuable nesting area for these bird species. The islands that dot our coastal bays are the last remaining refuges for these birds because they are ideal habitats mostly devoid of possible predators such as foxes and raccoons and they provide the sandy beaches that are essential to these birds. MCBP is working alongside many partners including the Department of Natural Resources and Audubon Maryland-DC chapter and Delmarva Birding to preserve, protect and create solutions to protect these birds.