Bird man of Deer Lagoon offers presentation at Audubon assembly
Carlos Andersen has fostered a particular appreciation for Deer Lagoon and its tranquil habitat.
For so long as he’s lived in Freeland, Carlos Andersen has fostered a particular appreciation for Deer Lagoon and the tranquil habitat it offers for the myriad species of birds that go to Whidbey Island.
Andersen plans to share photos and tales of this beloved place in the course of the upcoming common assembly of the Whidbey Audubon Society at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 9 on the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Whidbey Island, which is situated at 20103 Highway 525 in Freeland. Zoom access is available by visiting the organization’s web site, whidbeyaudubonsociety.org.
In addition, Andersen will lead a discipline journey to Deer Lagoon for a restricted variety of contributors the morning of the following day, Nov. 10. Registration is available on-line at whidbeyaudubonsociety.org/events-list/field-trip-to-deer-lagoon.
At least 211 completely different hen species have been documented on the South Whidbey lagoon, and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has designated it as the one most necessary website on Whidbey Island for year-round waterfowl habitat.
Andersen has been working with the state, Island County and a number of other native environmental organizations on Whidbey to piece collectively the historical past of Deer Lagoon, which was bought in 2004 by the county with the assistance of a federal grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He believes extra protections ought to be in place to protect the lagoon, which serves as a priceless place for wildlife to breed and nest.
“It’s awe-inspiring, how hard these little birds have to work and how important Deer Lagoon is for them to stop and recharge,” Andersen stated.
He is at the moment advocating for the lagoon to have an in depth site-specific administration plan, one thing the county’s complete plan alone doesn’t adequately handle. In previous paperwork, the lagoon has been known as a complicated and considerably contradictory mixture of a park, a recreation space and conservation areas.
Andersen has issues about what he considers to be high-impact leisure actions disrupting the birds, from drone utilization to electrical bicycles to watercraft. Kite surfers have additionally been identified to trigger stress to the fowl, which see the kites as predators. Off-leash dogs current one other drawback.
“Dog waste is a serious environmental health hazard for the water quality,” Andersen stated.
With its mixture of a wetland space and tidal flats, Deer Lagoon is a novel and extremely sought surroundings for birds to go to. Around this time of 12 months, it’s a preferred place for geese and different waterfowl. Andersen stated you possibly can count on to see completely different species of birds within the morning versus the afternoon.
“That’s the beauty there,” he stated. “It’s almost like a treasure hunt.”
In the previous he has seen swans, geese, warblers, owls and herons, amongst many different varieties of birds. People visiting the lagoon are sometimes excited by seeing the flock of American white pelicans, which is current from round April to early fall. These birds are protected by the Federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and state regulation, which doesn’t enable them to be disturbed or harassed. Current leisure actions, equivalent to the usage of motorboats, will disrupt them.
Andersen stated he doesn’t assume one other 10 years can go by with out addressing these points and getting an excellent administration plan for the lagoon. He has offered intensive feedback to the county’s complete plan on the topic.
“In the morning, when it’s so still and beautiful, it’s incredible to have something like this in our own backyard on the island and it really deserves the highest level of preservation that we can give it,” he stated.
