By David Ball
Staff Writer
The last place in Duval County where people can drive on the beach is facing possible rules changes, after wildlife officials recently found 31 migratory bird hatchlings reportedly killed by vehicles driven on the sand at Huguenot Memorial Park on the northeast coast.
The dead laughing gulls and royal terns were discovered on the morning of July 19, and the next day the city’s Department of Parks, Recreation, Entertainment and Conservation responded by closing 700 feet of the beach to vehicular traffic. A month later, the city increased the restricted area to 850 feet and also barred pedestrian traffic until the end of nesting season which is Friday.
But in a recent letter to the mayor, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials asked that the city develop a long-term management plan for the park so these kinds of killings never again occur, and one possible option is to prohibit beach driving all together.
“There’s been discussion of that (closing the beach to vehicles), but no decisions have been made,” said City Public Information Officer Kristen Key. “That’s something that’s been discussed off an on for quite a few years.”
However, Key said the most likely scenario is to continue the current temporary measures of closing a portion or all of the beach to vehicles during nesting season from April 1 to Aug. 31, or when “nature necessitates.”
“As managers of this land, we have to manage the needs of the park users as well as the environmental needs,” said Key, who reported that the nesting season is also the busiest time for beachgoers, with 133,925 people visiting from July to September last year. This year, 98,315 people have visited the park since July 1.
But the concern isn’t just for nesting birds, said John Milio, Fish and Wildlife Service biologist, as the area is also an important wintering feeding ground for other birds, such as the endangered piping plover, and nesting ground for sea turtles.
When asked if vehicles can coexist on the beach with the various wildlife, Milio took a long pause before responding.
“I’d like to see what the City of Jacksonville proposes,” he said. “Our position will be that wherever the driving occurs, they have to be sure it doesn’t result in more mortalities for shore birds.”
Key said about 60 birds have been killed so far this year. A speed limit of 5 mph on the beach is intended to discourage accidental killings. Another enforcement tool is a $15,000 federal fine for harming or harassing a migratory bird. Key said no charges or fines have ever been levied.
The park is owned by the state and leased to the City. In 1986, the state designated large portions of the park as Critical Wildlife Areas, where all access is prohibited. Those sections include the more inland, vegetative areas, although the driving lanes out to the beach skirt several of those areas.
Ron Loggins, biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said Huguenot Memorial Park is one of the more ecologically important areas in Florida, as it is home to the only breeding colonies of royal terns and black skimmers on the east coast of Florida and one of the very few colonies of gull-billed terns and black skimmers in the state.
“For most of the breeding season, the birds are sitting back in the (protected areas) sitting on their eggs,” said Loggins. “But when the birds hatch, they are going to want to learn to fly and spread their wings, and they end up in the driving area of the beach.
“To some extent, I believe that vehicle driving on the beach can continue, but it’s a matter of timing,” he added. “We need education and some good public information, and it’s not only about wildlife. There are safety issues with children out there, as well, if people are driving too fast on the beach.”
The beach is in the district of City Councilman Ray Holt, and his aide said he is aware of the environmental concerns and is planning to engage the public if new regulations are considered or adopted.
Fish and Wildlife Service enforcement officer Downie Wolfe said he and other officials know how important the ability to drive on the beach is for many recreational users. He also said that the quick response from the city following the recent bird deaths does show a desire to limit the public’s impact on the wildlife.
“They took immediate action to protect that colony, and the city responded extremely well,” said Wolfe. “We want to reduce migratory bird kills to zero if possible, but that is often a difficult task. We really want the best combination of public recreation and environmental preservation.”