To address disturbance along the Atlantic Flyway, a collaborative study funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has been underway involving partners at Virginia Tech, Audubon, Manomet, and the USFWS. Using a Community of Practice (CoP) approach – where groups of people regularly interact to exchange knowledge, resources, and expertise on a shared concern or interest – the team has developed a suite of communication tools and resources that served as the foundation of community-based social marketing (CBSM) campaigns aimed to reduce disturbance caused by beach walkers and dog walkers.
One of the signs developed for a campaign to encourage beach goers to not disturb birds during the high tide. Developed by Audubon Connecticut
In 2022, nine CBSM campaigns were implemented along the Atlantic Flyway (Parker River NWR, MA; Milford Point, CT; Long Beach, CT; Jones Beach, NY; Lido Beach, NY; Folly Beach, SC; Harbor Island, SC; Tybee Island, GA; and St. Simons Island, GA) to minimize disturbance to nesting and migratory shorebirds. Through these campaigns and participation in various conferences across the Americas, these efforts successfully engaged over 6,100 individuals along the Atlantic Flyway in shorebird conservation initiatives. The collective contributions of each site resulted in a large-scale, coordinated effort, enhancing coastal management across the Atlantic, with over 1,050 acres of coastal areas now under improved management.
Thirteen new sites spanning from Prince Edward Island, Canada, to Banco dos Cajuais, Brazil, have joined the CoP to implement CBSM campaigns in 2024, bringing the total to 23 sites working to address human disturbance by dogs and beach walkers through behavior-change campaigns. Regular updates on project successes, lessons learned, and evaluation will be shared at AFSI Human Activities Working Group meetings. Meetings are held at 12:30pm EST on the second Tuesday of each month. Email Deb Reynolds (debra_reynolds@fws.gov) for more information and to get involved.