Saul Aviles Bernal, a service learning student at CSUMB, participated in the 2026 Heermann's Gulls Outreach project this year. Read his insights about Seaside's unique colony of seabirds.

This summer, I had the opportunity to volunteer with the Monterey Audubon Society to help protect Heermann’s Gull fledglings in downtown Seaside. One of the biggest things I took away from volunteering was how easy it is for people and wildlife to cross paths without us really thinking about it. As part of my Civic Action Project at California State University, Monterey Bay, I created the Responsible Wildlife Tourism: A Visitor’s Guide to Monterey County based on this incred

This summer, Ava Gardner had the opportunity to work for the Monterey Audubon Society, participating in a dream internship. She had the unique opportunity to apply her knowledge of data analysis to support to the Black Oystercatcher Monitoring Project. She applied her skills in data organization and visualization while gaining unique insight into the impacts humans have on the lives and futures of shorebirds.

During Summer 2026 at Monterey Peninsula College, Braulio Beltran participated in the Black Oystercatcher Monitoring Project with Monterey Audubon Society. His experience influenced his perspective on bird wildlife.

Standing at the edge of Seaside State Beach, I watched Kyan Russell look through the spotting scope to check the little legs of the gulls. I was thrilled to learn he found a banded fledgling! Wow, a tiny success. This year’s new Heermann's Gulls of Seaside project included monitoring, outreach, fledging safety, and banding. This rare colony emphasizes collaboration with community science.

A shared passion for wildlife conservation untes CSUMB students Aidan Randall and Maxwell Frantz. They've teamed up to monitor the Seaside Heermann's Gulls. Their work blends rooftop observations, GoPro footage, and drone surveys to track nest locations, chick development, and interactions with neighboring Western Gull colonies.

Black Oystercatchers are excellent indicator species of the rocky shoreline habitat. One thing that makes them a valuable indicator species is that they do not go across any other habitats. They nest on rocky shores, are territorial, and easy to spot (and hear) from shore. Join us to monitor these unique birds.

Weather: It was foggy today, but, contrary to expectation, the fog was not crippling for most of the count. We could see the red buoy (albeit not far beyond it) for most of the day, and we had a really fun, diverse Loon Hour! (Loon Hour is the 0700-0800 hour, named such because when the Pacifics start flying by the tens of thousands an hour, Loon Hour is almost always where it falls.) It was fairly calm at dawn and dusk, but wind at the count was moderate from the SW for most