Change comes, but slowly. A lot of people call it erosion, but we like to call it shoreline change.
Grasses return first, then the shrubs and, finally, the trees.
Without thick growth of plants to obstruct their view, birds and their young have easy foraging, particularly during the hatching and breeding season, beginning in March and continuing into the summer. The chain of barrier islands also provides the first landfall for migratory birds, which often head west toward Jamaica Bay after touching ground here. And it is a summer respite for the mallards and the clapper rails on the bay. Occasionally a harbor seal will sun itself on the beach during the fall and in winter. But spring and summer are the most active times for the birds, as well as small animals like fox, mink, rabbit and long-tailed weasel, most of which live in dens on the bay side.