American oystercatchers are black and white shorebirds with bright orange beaks that feed and nest on the beach. The Beach-Nesting Bird Program monitors the population and productivity of American oystercatchers in Delaware.

These birds begin arriving in Delaware in March, start nesting in April and migrate south by September.

Like piping plovers and least terns, they lay their eggs directly on the sand. They will also nest in salt marshes.

Historically, American oystercatchers have nested at Cape Henlopen State Park, Delaware Seashore State Park and Delaware’s Inland Bays. They started nesting at Fowler Beach, in Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge, following the completion of a restoration project in 2016.

Protecting American Oystercatchers

The state has tracked nesting pairs of American oystercatchers since 1974 and recorded the number of fledglings each year.

The number of nesting American oystercatchers in Delaware is variable. DNREC monitors them once they arrive for the breeding season and until the last chick has fledged.

Any sightings of banded oystercatchers are reported to the American Oystercatcher Working Group. In Delaware, oystercatchers have not been banded since 2012. DNREC staff regularly spot banded oystercatchers on the beaches, and in the Inland Bays.

Increased survey coverage of Delaware’s Inland Bays in recent years has improved our ability to estimate American oystercatcher breeding and productivity throughout the state. Due to access constraints and dense vegetation, there are challenges to monitoring in those areas and not all nests and outcomes are detected.

The figure displayed here only includes confirmed breeding pairs and outcomes, but more nesting likely occurred outside of monitored areas and survey effort has varied across seasons. We hope to continue to expand survey coverage to better understand American oystercatcher breeding trends in Delaware.

Updates from the Field

In 2024, several breeding pairs were identified on beaches and marshes throughout Delaware. Though several beach nests hatched, no American oystercatcher chicks fledged from these pairs, with cause of failure unknown. Mammalian predators and human disturbance were observed in the areas around the broods.

Several American oystercatcher nests were observed in the Inland Bays during monthly breeding bird surveys. DNREC staff monitored all nests that were visible by boat and were able to determine that at least three nests fledged young in 2024. Fledglings were seen during multiple surveys.

Through the Beach-nesting Bird Program and colonial waterbird boat surveys we hope to continue to improve our understanding of American oystercatchers in Delaware and the threats to their productivity.

Related Topics:  american oystercatchers, atlantic ocean, beach nesters, beaches, birds, conservation, delaware bay, fish and wildlife, shorebirds, wildlife