Visiting Bird Shoal and nearby islands The view from town.View of town from Bird Shoal.Gulls on a sand outcrop. Click on any photo to enlarge or start slideshow. In this part of coastal North Carolina, the best place to find shorebirds in a natural environment is on the uninhabited small islands and salt marshes of the Rachel Carson Estuarine Preserve. One of them is actually called “Bird Shoal.” It’s located to the south of Beaufort, accessible only by boat. Click on the map below for an enlargement. Map of R. Carson Preserve Bird Shoal and its neighboring islands are populated by several herds of wild horses in addition to birds. Large flocks of terns, pelicans, black skimmers and gulls are normally present on the long stretches of sand, along with an assortment of sandpipers and other more solitary shorebirds. In the area of Middle Marshes there’s an expansive sand flat, accessible to birds and curious humans only at times of low tide. Otherwise, the sand island is totally submerged underwater at high tide. Such a place is a popular feeding ground for shorebirds, where they can forage for their favorite tiny morsels that live in wet sand. Low tide on sandflat.Sky reflected. I ride along with my husband when he takes his boat out for a bit of recreational fishing. Dropping me off on the sand, he anchors and casts his line. I turn my attention toward any birds in sight, walking slowly toward them, ready to record any bird encounters with my camera. Please post a comment… Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Name *FirstLastEmail *Comment or Message *EmailSubmit Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading...