Two back-to-back hurricanes rocked Florida this fall, causing extensive changes to Gulf and Atlantic shorelines up and down the Sunshine State. Audubon Florida’s coastal team has hit the sand to monitor these alterations and analyze the impact to both wintering and beach-nesting bird species.

Overall

Across beaches, bays, and barrier islands, sand has moved.

“It’s a mixed bag when you look at everything together,” Director of Bird Conservation Audrey DeRose-Wilson explains. “Our hearts go out to the communities struggling to rebuild after Hurricanes Helene and Milton. For birds, the situation is more complicated.”

More Sand

Sand moves around in big storms, pushed by storm surges, tides, and wind. Some areas saw big gains in sand on their beaches, which could provide additional nesting habitat next summer.

In Southwest Florida, Shorebird Project Coordinator Megan Hatten reports that low areas at Morgan Beach and Dickman shoals have now filled in. Moreover, across the region, she says: “Large areas of vegetation at many sites have been covered by sand, further altering the landscape.”

Plants growing on the beaches may stop bird nesting, so fewer vegetated areas could help next season’s nesting bird families.

Less Sand

In the Tampa Bay region, a barrier island known as Three Rooker North lost vegetation and sand elevation. If high tides or storm surges swamp the entire expanse, it might not continue to support beach-nesting birds.

Across Northeast Florida, nesting sites lost sand, continuing sand loss from past storms. The beach at Ft. Matanzas National Monument lost fifteen feet of shoreline, while both Little Talbot Island and Anastasia Island state parks experienced erosion and heavy escarpment (where chunks of beach fall into the surf) along their dune lines. These sites now have narrower stretches of shoreline for birds and beach-goers to share.

Similarly, in Southwest Florida, the Second Chance shoal and Carlos Beach have lost considerable elevation, leaving these coastal areas significantly lower than before the storm.

Renourished Beaches

Unfortunately, renourished beaches were not immune to sand loss. Indian Shores lost all the sand that had recently been placed at the site, leaving the area scoured and narrow, while an emergency berm, built along North Naples beaches following Hurricane Ian in 2022, lost significant elevation this summer.

Islands

Siesta Key experienced extremely high tides during both hurricanes, and sand was pushed over quite a bit of overgrown vegetation. Because of this change, we hope to see it become suitable habitat again for Snowy Plovers in the upcoming breeding season.

Living Shorelines

Just before the storms hit, Audubon nearly finished building a new living shoreline within its Florida Coastal Islands Sanctuaries (click here to learn more). Early reports are positive: The concrete wave attenuation units did not shift as the storms moved through. Some mangrove trees were lost, which resulted in a loss of water bird nesting habitat, and we are still waiting for additional reports on island erosion. Unfortunately, the storms damaged the dock we had been using for staging materials, so we are working with our contractor to find an additional option to finish the installation before nesting season begins.

Looking Toward the Future

As a consequence of a changing climate and a warmer Gulf of Mexico, we expect more busy storm seasons and intense hurricanes in the coming decades. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to protect people and coastal habitats from surges, wind, and flooding. We need robust planning and strong leadership to improve resilience now and into the future.