Hope for Displaced Waterbird Colony

American Bird Conservancy (ABC) worked closely with Governor Ralph Northam’s Administration in Virginia to help create an alternative nesting area for thousands of terns and skimmers, including the largest colony of Royal Terns in the Commonwealth. Recent field reports indicate that a vibrant colony of terns occupied the new habitat, with young of the year now taking their first flights. Virginia has also introduced new rulemaking to protect migratory birds that can hopefully be a model for future federal protections such as the proposed Migratory Bird Protection Act that is making progress through the House of Representatives.