Pelicans Nesting in New Grass Plantings on North Breton Island

“It’s common to see brown pelicans nesting at the north end of the island in the established mangroves first and after the mangroves are fully occupied, they will nest in the adjacent dune grasses,” said Fortier. “This year, the birds have taken to the dune grass plantings from mid-island to the south end of the island where our restoration project has provided new habitat on significantly higher ground.”  

A quick count by Fortier revealed roughly 400 pelicans nesting in the dune grasses from mid to south-island. “This new ‘high ground’ has increased nesting capacity for brown pelicans on North Breton Island, and it happened in a hurry,” said Fortier.

North Breton Island is part of Breton National Wildlife Refuge which was established in 1904 by Theodore Roosevelt as a way of protecting birds, especially the kinds of birds that had been killed for their plumage. Since the time of the refuge’s designation, all the islands within it have eroded to a fraction of the size they were in the early 1900s. 

With Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment settlement funds and settlement funds from an oil spill caused by Hess in Breton Sound, the Service worked with all the Trustees to design a restoration project focused on enhancing habitat for brown pelicans, skimmers, and gulls. 

Construction began in late 2020 and by 2022, the island was expanded from 290 to 426 acres as 6.59 million cubic yards of sediment was used to construct beaches, dunes, and back-barrier marsh. Surface elevations were increased throughout the island. After construction was complete, 72,400 plants, including mangroves, bitter panicum grass and sea oats, were installed. Once the backside of the island platform settles to target elevations, the Service will conduct additional vegetative plantings to enhance the island habitat and stability.

“Of course, the mangrove seedlings have a lot of growing to do before pelicans will be able to nest in them,” said Fortier. We’re very pleased to see the benefits the pelicans are already receiving from our dune grass plantings”, said Fortier. Those plantings will also protect the dunes from erosion.

North Breton Island is one of the most important barrier islands in Louisiana. It provides habitat for one of the largest waterbird colonies in the state and includes one of the largest rookeries of brown pelicans. The island also provides crucial protections for mainland Louisiana, including the City of New Orleans, from storm surge and wave impacts. 

A series of videos explaining the project can be found on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service YouTube Channel. Search by “North Breton Island Restoration.” You can also learn about the project at this WWLTV video. 

Date: June 15, 2024