Reproductive success seems to be low in virtually every colony.
Little is known about the nesting ecology of this species in North America. As a result, a study began in 1994 to assess the reproductive success, colony site selection, and feeding ecology of the species at a number of study sites in coastal Virginia. From 1994 to 1996, results suggested that nesting success on large barrier islands and on small shellpiles associated with lagoonal marsh islands was very low, with flooding being a principal cause of nest failure. Predation at some sites by great horned owls was also significant in certain times. This enabled us to conduct an adaptive resource management study whereby shells were used to build up marsh shellpiles.