Featured Story

What is that?

AMBROSE CLANCY PHOTO

If you know, let us know. Send your responses to [email protected] or phone (631) 749-1000, extension 354.

Ellie Pedone emailed us with the correct answer for last week’s photo (see below). It’s the sign located at Shell Beach, which, she added, is her favorite beach on Shelter Island.

Tom Speeches phoned to say that the “sign welcomes locals and visitors with rules and regulations the town would like everyone to abide by.”

One of the rules on the sign is to be aware of protected nesting and breeding places for piping plovers.

The little birds start arriving on the breeding ground from early- to mid-March, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

During May and June, one egg is laid every other day until the average clutch of four eggs is complete.

The piping plovers, an endangered species in New York, weigh 1.5 to 2.25 ounces. These delightful birds build their nests in sandy areas near dunes, but with little or no shore grass.

They get their name from the high, “piping” sound they make as they scurry along beaches and take to the skies.

AMBROSE CLANCY PHOTO