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“Citizen scientist” high school teacher recorded 5 years of migration data for Black Skimmer birds in the Eastern US, documenting the farthest dispersal for breeding for the species

05.06.26 | PLOS

A citizen scientist’s survey provides insights into the movements of Atlantic and Gulf states’ populations of Black Skimmers (Rynchops niger)

Visitors big and small. Hundreds of Black Skimmers in the foreground visiting Huguenot Memorial Park, Florida from multiple US States and the container ship, the “Taíno”, in the background visiting from Puerto Rico. At the mouth of the St. Johns River is where it meets the Atlantic Ocean. In this flock on December 22, 2025, Moyer photographed 56 unique band codes for Black Skimmers, representing seven different US States: Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Virginia, South Carol Credit: Brett R. Moyer, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

“Citizen scientist” high school teacher recorded 5 years of migration data for Black Skimmer birds in the Eastern US, documenting the farthest dispersal for breeding for the species

Article URL : https://plos.io/41NRaLc

Article title: A citizen scientist’s survey provides insights into the movements of Atlantic and Gulf states’ populations of Black Skimmers ( Rynchops niger )

Author countries: USA

Funding: The author(s) received no specific funding for this work.

PLOS One

10.1371/journal.pone.0347650

A citizen scientist’s survey provides insights into the movements of Atlantic and Gulf states’ populations of Black Skimmers (Rynchops niger)

6-May-2026

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Additional Media

Black Skimmers resting on the beach at Huguenot Memorial Park. Image shows a portion of a flock of Black Skimmers resting on the beach at Huguenot Memorial Park on 4 February 2023. Note the bird with the field readable band, Black C05, in bottom left of the photograph. Credit: Brett R. Moyer, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Keywords

Animals Birds Life Sciences Migratory Birds Organismal Biology Vertebrates

Article Information

Journal

PLOS One

DOI

10.1371/journal.pone.0347650

Article Publication Date

2026-05-06

Article Title

A citizen scientist’s survey provides insights into the movements of Atlantic and Gulf states’ populations of Black Skimmers (Rynchops niger)

COI Statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Contact Information

Hanna Abdallah

PLOS

onepress@plos.org

How to Cite This Article

APA:

PLOS. (2026, May 6). “Citizen scientist” high school teacher recorded 5 years of migration data for Black Skimmer birds in the Eastern US, documenting the farthest dispersal for breeding for the species. Brightsurf News. https://www.brightsurf.com/news/19N6VXQ1/citizen-scientist-high-school-teacher-recorded-5-years-of-migration-data-for-black-skimmer-birds-in-the-eastern-us-documenting-the-farthest-dispersal-for-breeding-for-the-species.html

MLA:

"“Citizen scientist” high school teacher recorded 5 years of migration data for Black Skimmer birds in the Eastern US, documenting the farthest dispersal for breeding for the species." Brightsurf News, May. 6 2026, https://www.brightsurf.com/news/19N6VXQ1/citizen-scientist-high-school-teacher-recorded-5-years-of-migration-data-for-black-skimmer-birds-in-the-eastern-us-documenting-the-farthest-dispersal-for-breeding-for-the-species.html.