The National Weather Service Forecast Office out of Newport/Morehead City has issued a warning for increasingly hot and humid air mass overspreading the region starting today and peaking on Tuesday.
The combination of heat and humidity will produce heat index values around 105 degrees today (June 13). The heatwave culminates on Tuesday, with record high temperatures around 100, combining with the very humid air mass to produce excessive heat, with heat indices of 110 degrees or higher for much of the area.
A Heat Advisory has been issued for today, with an Excessive Heat Watch for Tuesday.
An extremely unstable atmosphere will accompany the dangerous heat and humidity on Tuesday, and there is a threat for a significant damaging severe thunderstorm sometime in the afternoon to early evening hours.
At this time, the storm prediction center has upgraded the region to a “slight risk” for severe storms, but if confidence increases that this outbreak will indeed occur, later upgrades may be necessary.
Strong damaging winds of 60- to 80-mph, large hail, very heavy downpours with localized flooding, along with very frequent lightning, may all occur if storms develop Tuesday.
A male Eastern Towhee on Ocracoke. Photo: P. Vankevich
Text and photo by Peter Vankevich
The Eastern Towhee, a strikingly handsome bird that — good looks notwithstanding — is perhaps more noted for its many vocalizations.
Towhee is an onomatopoeic description of one of its most common calls, coined in 1731 by the naturalist and bird artist, Mark Catesby.
Illustration of a Towhee by John White
But well before that, the Eastern Towhee played a minor role in North Carolina’s early history. John White was the governor in 1587 of the small colony on Roanoke Island, that later became known as the Lost Colony and was the grandfather of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in North America.
White was also a cartographer and an accomplished artist. During his time on Roanoke, he drew many sketches of the flora and fauna, including both sexes of the towhee, which are the first depicted renderings of the species.
When one thinks of a sparrow, many envision drab-colored birds with subtle streaking, spots and eye lines that can make species identification sometimes challenging. Many will be surprised to learn that a towhee is also a member of the sparrow family.
The male has a black head, neck and shoulders, a white chest and rust-red wings and sides.
The female has the same color pattern as the male but is dark brown where the male is black colored. Both have long tails, a noted trait for all six towhee species in North America.
Pale eyed Eastern Towhee photographed on Ocracoke by P. Vankevich
Throughout most of its distribution range, the eye color of these birds is bright red, but if you find yourself birding in Florida or the southeastern coastal regions beginning on the Outer Banks, you may see towhees whose eye color is white or straw colored.
The yellowish straw color eyes may be the result of interbreeding between the white eye and red eye individuals. The towhees on Ocracoke have mostly red and straw-colored eyes. Pure white eye color individuals are rare.
Eastern Towhees nest throughout the eastern United States and southeast Canada. Northern populations are migratory. Southern populations, including Ocracoke, are year-round residents.
Although normally hidden in thickets and on the ground throughout Ocracoke Island, in the spring and early summer, they will perch on top of a shrub or small tree and sing loudly.
Females build nests and incubate eggs and both sexes provide parental care and will drive off would-be predators approaching the nest.
It is not only their vocalizations that indicate they are nearby. The Eastern Towhee uses a distinctive foot-scratching behavior to displace loose leaves on the ground and uncover arthropod prey. This foraging behavior occurs more in winter when much of its food comes from the ground.
Omnivores, their diet varies with the season, and they consume seeds, fruits and a wide variety of invertebrates, beetles, moths, caterpillars, grasshoppers and crickets.
During spring migration and you may be pleasantly surprised to see one resting in your back yard from a long night’s journey into day. Unfortunately, that is when they are most vulnerable to predators, The hazards of migration are many. Because they are ground birds, they are susceptible to predators, including pets.
Their biggest threat occurs during migration, which is only nocturnal. After a long night’s journey into day and exhausted, they rest on the ground making them susceptible to predators, especially cats.
Listen: The Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology has a variety of Eastern Towhees recordings. To listen, click here.
When to see: Year-round. More easily seen in spring when they will sing at the top of bushes and small trees
Where: Throughout the island where there are thickets. Springer’s Point is a good location
If you thumb through a bird field guide published before 1995 that includes eastern North America, you will not find an Eastern Towhee. You will, however, see a bird with a striking resemblance that is a Rufous-sided Towhee. It is one and the same.
The official arbiter of bird nomenclature, The American Ornithologists’ Union, determined that this bird and its counterpart in the west, the Spotted Towhee (Pipilo erythrophthalmus) and formerly lumped together as subspecies, were split and each received full species status.
So why are they famous for their sounds? In addition to the sound of its name, it makes a call described as “cherwink.” But it is the song that I find so impressive, which sounds almost exactly as “Drink your teeeeeee.”
Pharmacy services are planned for this building behind the Ocracoke Health Center. Photo: P. Vankevich
By Peter Vankevich
It may surprise some that Ocracoke does not have a pharmacy.
The Ocracoke Health Center has relied on next-day prescription deliveries from Beach Pharmacy located in Hatteras village. Islanders then go to the health center to retrieve their medicines.
Photo: P. Vankevich
But it is not possible to get them on weekends since the health center operates Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closed noon to 1 p.m.).
But filling prescriptions on the island will change as plans are underway for Ocracoke to get its first pharmacy.
It will be located behind the health center in the building previously used by Hyde County EMS and later converted to Health Center offices and storage.
It will be the first open pharmacy in Hyde County, i.e., open to the public and with over-the-counter products.
Currently in Hyde County the only pharmacy is in the Engelhard Medical Center and its use is restricted to its patients.
Dr. Erin Baker. Photo: P. Vankevich
“The creation of a pharmacy on Ocracoke will not only be historic, the island’s first pharmacy, but also will be a significant asset as it will provide eligible, underinsured patients’ access to medication at an affordable rate,” said Dr. Erin Baker, the health center physician.
Funding is from a grant received under the American Rescue Plan Act (P.L. 117-2), Health Center Infrastructure Support.
“The health center board of directors has been discussing this in earnest for more than a year,” said Joe Rockenstein, chief executive officer of the Ocracoke Health and Engelhard Medical centers.
“I am just thrilled that we’re going to bring this service to the island, that our CEO has followed through and gotten this going for us,” said Sue Pentz, president of the health center board. “It’s exciting and will be a huge service to any of us and the tourists that visit.”
Prescription and refill sales, Pentz said, will yield a new and steady source of income for the clinic.
Rockenstein said the prescription prices will be lower than at commercial pharmacies, and that in itself is a great service to the people of Hyde County.
Within this grant the health center has contracted with Cardinal Health, a company that specializes in the distribution of pharmaceuticals and medical products and serves more than 100,000 locations, according to its website.
They will assist with the complex licensure process and provide a floor plan and shelving design along with security requirements.
Since this is in the beginning of the planning and implementation process, the opening date is yet to be determined, but the hope is sometime next spring or summer.
Ocracoke Interfaith Relief & Recovery Team’s second annual public meeting is at 6 p.m. Thursday (June 9) at in the Life Saving Church and live streamed on the OIRRT Facebook page.
The official agenda is below, and the meeting will review the following:
Grant funding received/administered and spent
OIRRT’s upcoming preparations for hurricane season/emergency plan.
At the end, attendees will have the opportunity to discuss preparedness concerns in the community.
OIRRT is a nonprofit, long-term recovery group formed on Ocracoke after Hurricane Dorian hit in September 2019. It works with Hyde County, North Carolina emergency management and multiple faith-based organizations to conduct the Dorian recovery effort.
It’s been almost three years since Dorian and 90% of the damage has been rebuilt, though rebuilding will continue until October.
Ocracoke islander Donald Davis will conduct storytelling workshop groups for two weeks in this month followed by free public performances each week.
During the first week, the public performance will be at the following times and locations:
Thursday, June 9, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., at the Ocracoke Preservation Museum. There are some benches for seating, and all are welcome to bring your own seating.
Friday, June 10, 3 to 4:15 p.m., at the stage at Books to be Red. Bring your own seating.
Thursday, June 23, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., Ocracoke Preservation Museum, and Friday, June 24, from 3 to 4:15 p.m., at the Books to be Red stage.
An internationally renowned storyteller, Davis holds his sought-after workshops throughout the year in various locations.
“Your identity is not how many college degrees you have, but it’s your stories,” Davis says about what he teaches.
And that identity is covered by layers of the past.
“Stories carry our identity—the people you came from and the things you’ve lived through,” he says. “The more we know our stories, the more we can make proper decisions about things to keep and things to discard.”
This week may see dangerous rip currents along the Outer Banks. Know what to do if you get caught in one. Graphic by Kim Mosher
Monday, June 6 Hyde County government budget meeting with volunteer fire departments, 5 p.m. Hyde County Government Center and Ocracoke Community Center livestreaming on Facebook at Hyde County Public Information.
Hyde County Board of Commissioners, 6 p.m. A public hearing for the proposed FY 2022-2023 budget will start shortly after the beginning of the regular meeting. Anyone wishing to make a comment about the proposed budget may do so at this time.
Hyde County Government Center and Ocracoke Community Center livestreaming on Facebook at Hyde County Public Information.
Ocracoke Oyster Company: Brooke & Nick, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, June 8 Ocracoke Oyster Company: Barefoot Wade, 7 p.m.
Thursday, June 9 Donald Davis Storytelling workshop public performance, 10:30 a.m. Ocracoke Preservation Society museum, 49 Water Plant Rd.
Ocracoke Interfaith Relief & recovery Team public meeting update & hurricane preparedness, 6 p.m. Life Saving Church and livestreamed on Facebook.
Ocracoke Oyster Company: Barefoot Wade, 7 p.m.
Friday, June 10 Donald Davis Storytelling workshop public performance, 3 to 4:15 p.m. Books to be Red stage.
The Breeze: Train Wreck, 9:30 pm
Saturday, June 11 Ocracoke Oyster Company: Martin Garrish, 7 p.m.
The Breeze: Train Wreck, 9:30 pm
Sunday, June 12 Celebration of life of John Ivey Wells, 1 to 3 pm, Berkley Barn. Potluck.
Ocracoke School graduation, 5 pm. Books to be Red stage
A Pamlico Sound ferry gets ready to depart Ocracoke. Photo: C. Leinbach
OCRACOKE – A labor shortage at Hatteras and severe shoaling issues in Pamlico Sound have forced the North Carolina Ferry System to adjust its summer schedules to and from Ocracoke Island.
In a press release, the Ferry Division said it has been working to address its labor needs with six job fairs across eastern North Carolina in 2022, but still needs to fill several temporary and permanent positions to be able to fully staff its summer operations at Hatteras. Those interested in applying should go to the state jobs website and search the term “ferry.”
A seventh job fair is scheduled in Manteo on Thursday, but until manpower needs are met, the vehicle ferry schedule between Hatteras and Ocracoke will be as follows:
In addition, severe shoaling in Pamlico Sound’s Bigfoot Slough has created a safety issue for the largest of the sound class ferries. As a result, those ferries have been pulled from the route, and schedules have been adjusted to reflect the change.
Those schedules, effective immediately, will be as follows: Cedar Island to Ocracoke: 8 a.m., 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Ocracoke to Cedar Island: 7:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.
Swan Quarter to Ocracoke: 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. Ocracoke to Swan Quarter: 7 a.m., 11 a.m. and 12:45 p.m.
The Ferry Division is working closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to conduct an emergency dredging operation in Bigfoot Slough as soon as possible. Once water levels in the ferry channel have been returned to a safe depth, the Pamlico Sound routes will resume their normal summer schedules.
In the meantime, travelers making short visits from Hatteras to Ocracoke are encouraged to use the Ocracoke Express passenger ferry to avoid wait times for the vehicle ferry. The passenger ferry makes three round trips daily, taking travelers directly into Ocracoke Village, where a free tram operated by Hyde County will take them to shops, restaurants and attractions. Reservations are available online or by calling 1-800-BY-FERRY.
The first named storm of the season, Tropical Storm Alex, has moved away from the Southeast United States, but the swell from this system will create an increased threat of dangerous rip currents along the Outer Banks at least through mid week, the National Weather Service reports.
By Tuesday, Alex will be hundreds of miles off New England as it heads northeast.
There are no other storms systems in the Atlantic at this time.
Aerial view of Ocracoke Island. Photo: C. Leinbach
By Connie Leinbach
Hyde County Manager Kris Cahoon Noble is recommending a 10-cent property tax increase, or 0.895 cents per $100 of assessed valuation up from the current rate of .795 cents.
The increase will help fund the county’s proposed general fund budget of $15.559 million for 2022-2023, up from $15.357 million last year.
The Hyde County Board of Commissioners will hold a budget hearing Monday, June 6, during the regular board meeting at 6 p.m. The meeting will be broadcast on the Hyde County Public Information Facebook page.
Noble said this budget would not require an appropriation from the fund balance to balance expenses and revenues. The fund balance is a pot of money set aside for emergencies and all counties are recommended to maintain a fund balance of 8% of their budget.
Hyde County’s fund balance as of the most recent audited figure as of June 30, 2020, is $4,914,339.
Noble said the fund balance won’t be used because of the proposed tax rate increase, which estimates the collection from property taxes to reach $7.8 million, up from $6.92 million last year. But all tax revenues — from DMV, delinquent fines and penalties – are expected to total $8.73 million.
The rest of the revenues are mostly from the state and federal governments to cover such mandated services as health ($1.79 million) and social services ($2.17 million).
Expenses for emergency medical services will rise to $2.15 million, up from $1.88 million last year. Included in that is a first-year lease payment on a new ambulance for $38,592.
Noble said beginning Memorial Day, there are four EMS crews rotating on the island, and two ambulances have been on the island since May 26.
She said the number of EMTs on the island varies because some EMTs work on both the island and the mainland.
Also, the county wants to offer basic EMT training on the island if there are enough participants.
“Having more island residents certified as EMTs could mean more on-call EMTs and a greater level of coverage in the coming year,” she said.
The sheriff’s department budget is $1.82 million, up from $1.71 million last year.
In North Carolina, the state funds the schools with local counties supplementing it.
Although the Hyde County Board of Education had asked the county for $1.7 million, the proposed appropriation is $1.3 million.
Noble said after examining the school district’s audit, the county found that they had made significant contributions to their general fund balance over the last several years showing that it did not require the level of funding given by Hyde County to operate the schools.
“The (commissioners) feel the reduced contribution should not decrease the school system’s ability to serve at previous year’s levels after examination of their financial records,” she said. “The commissioners will meet with the Board of Education at 4 p.m. on June 6 to discuss this and ensure that they can operate with that level of funding without cutting important areas like art and athletics.”
In the “Elderly nutrition” expense sheet, the mainland is to receive $39,000 in services and Ocracoke zero.
Noble said Meals on Wheels is the mainland program, funded by the Albemarle Commission (AC).
Right now, the local churches are providing daily meals for some of the elderly on the island.
It was funded prior to Dorian by the AC and this practice could continue with talks between those providing those services currently and the AC, she said.
“The AC is willing to assist if this is requested and I would be happy to be liaison in those discussions,” Noble said. “Laura Alvarico at the AC would be happy to discuss this with anyone that would like to pursue that.”
Last year was a banner year for farmed oyster production in North Carolina, with a 111% increase compared to the previous year.
The state’s shellfish industry had $27 million in economic impact and supported 532 jobs in 2019, according to the latest available economic totals, and various groups are working together to double the number of jobs by the end of the decade.
Legislation introduced last week would fund numerous projects to protect coastal water quality to the tune of $8.5 million. Of that, $1 million is to match a federal grant for oyster sanctuary development, which is seen as key to growing oyster populations, improving water quality and supporting the shellfish industry.
On Thursday, Rep. Bobby Hanig, R-Currituck, filed House Bill 1151, which would provide money for living shorelines, oyster sanctuaries, marine debris cleanup and other water quality projects and for promoting the North Carolina Oyster Trail, a collaborative effort to promote oyster-based tourism experiences aimed at culinary travelers. The measure passed a first reading Tuesday and was referred to the House appropriations committee.
Hanig introduced the measure after a meeting Tuesday of the North Carolina Oyster Trai, which he chairs. The meeting included presentations by various groups seeking to advance the oyster farming industry and wild oyster restoration efforts, including seafood purveyors and the nonprofit North Carolina Coastal Federation, which publishes Coastal Review, North Carolina Sea Grant and the North Carolina Shellfish Growers Association.
“This bill provides policy guidance and more financial resources to enhance water quality and the resiliency of our coastal communities while increasing the productivity of our coast’s fishery habitats,” said Coastal Federation Executive Director Todd Miller.
Demand for NC oysters outpacing supply
Ryan Speckman and Lin Peterson launched Locals Seafood out of the back of a truck in Raleigh in 2010, specializing in North Carolina seafood. They told the House committee that back then, the product was all wild oysters.
Now, Speckman said, they’re probably the largest distributor of different varieties of North Carolina farmed oysters. The seafood company trucks in oysters from all along the state’s coastline to distribute to restaurants, markets and stores in the Triangle. The company also operates two oyster bars, one in downtown Raleigh and the other in downtown Durham.
Speckman said the oyster industry is “definitely an area that we can see more growth, and there’s a lot more potential.”
Peterson added that even though the company is built on connecting North Carolina consumers with North Carolina products, demand is greater than supply and the company must bring in oysters from out of state.
But, there’s evidence that the state’s oyster industry is growing to meet the demand.
Jane Harrison, North Carolina Sea Grant coastal economics specialist, told the committee that the goal of a $100 million shellfish industry in North Carolina that supports 1,000 jobs by 2030 was possible, “looking at our trajectory over the last few years.”
The goals had been set as part of the 2019 North Carolina Strategic Plan for Shellfish Mariculture that the legislature had mandated two years earlier.
Harrison said that 2019 was the first year that farmed oysters contributed more than wild oysters in total economic value. Although there were over the past decade declining production values for wild oysters and clams, market growth for farmed oysters is “really bringing the value to our shellfish industry these days,” she told the committee.
Evidence of that growth can be seen in the number of shellfish farming leases. From 2020 to 2021, Harrison said there was a 10% increase in the number of leases. She added that North Carolina is seeing mostly water column leases, which allow floating cages, and bottom leases where oysters are grown below the surface. “We see higher productivity, really a better investment,” with water column leases, she said.
During the period, there was a 22% increase in water column lease acreage.
“Why does that matter? Again, because these (water column leases) are more productive. So because we have more productive farms coming online, we’re going to hopefully have much higher production numbers, shellfish landings and economic value,” Harrison said.
Although hurricanes and the coronavirus pandemic had slowed interest somewhat, the trend is improving again.
“We are seeing a pickup just from last year,” Harrison said, “a 16% increase in the number of applications to establish these kinds of farms.”
Along with the growth in oyster farming, Harrison said the decline in wild oyster harvests could be reversed.
“We can bring those back if we improve water quality, if we invest in oyster sanctuaries, in the habitat that supports them. The farmed oysters are making up some of the some of the losses,” she said.
The Division of Marine Fisheries posts signs like these at areas closed to shellfishing. File photo
Closed to shellfishing
The North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries has an interactive map on its website that shows where waters are temporarily or permanently closed to shellfishing because of pollution. Other waters are off-limits to shellfishing because of moratoriums on shellfish leasing.
Sanctuaries not only create oyster habitat, they also lead to improved water quality.
Erin Fleckenstein, coastal specialist with the North Carolina Coastal Federation and a presenter during the committee meeting, told members that much progress had been made in the year since the most recent update on the North Carolina Oyster Blueprint, a plan for restoring and protecting oyster habitat. More than 50 stakeholders across the state worked on the blueprint.
“We’ve made a lot of progress in the last year since that blueprint has come out,” Fleckenstein told the committee, adding that the successes have been because of the state’s investment in the oyster industry and improving water quality.
A program to build oyster sanctuaries is on track to reach the Oyster Blueprint goal of building an additional 100 acres of oyster sanctuary in Pamlico Sound by 2025. Fleckenstein said the sanctuary program had a 25-year track record of success and “we’re poised really well to reach that goal of 500 acres of oyster sanctuary by 2025.”
There are currently 15 oyster sanctuaries in Pamlico Sound as part of the Sen. Jean Preston Oyster Sanctuary Network that together cover about 260 acres. Oyster sanctuaries make up only about 6% of all oyster reefs in Pamlico Sound but contribute nearly 40% of the sound’s oyster population.
Harvesting is prohibited in oyster sanctuaries. They are protected to encourage growth of large, healthy oyster populations. Each year, the oysters produce millions of eggs that are carried by currents and tides to surrounding areas.
Jason Peters, who oversees the sanctuary, artificial reef and cultch planting programs for the North Carolina Division Marine Fisheries, told the committee that oyster sanctuaries are half of a two-prong approach to restoring the oyster population. The other prong is the open-harvest cultch-planting program, which supports the wild-harvest industry. The division builds the open-harvest reefs, and when the oysters reach the right size they can be harvested.
Pamlico Sound is the primary focus of the sanctuary program, Peters said.
Each oyster sanctuary site covers about 80 acres. Work began last year on Cedar Island sanctuary, the current project, which is permitted to be about 75 acres and expected to be complete in 2024.
“Oyster sanctuaries do in fact strengthen and support the oyster population in Pamlico Sound,” Peters said. The sanctuary sites produce lots of oyster larvae, which is dispersed into the water column and then settles on reef sites.
While the sites represent a small fraction of the total oyster habitat in Pamlico Sound, sanctuaries in the sound are producing about 25% of the larvae that are supplied to the ecosystem.
“Pamlico Sound Oyster Sanctuaries” looks at how oyster sanctuaries in the Pamlico Sound have been growing and thriving since construction started on the first one in 1996. Video: Baldwin Video Productions/North Carolina Coastal Federation Peters emphasized the sanctuary network’s role in supporting the entire Pamlico Sound oyster population.
“Those larvae spread all throughout the Pamlico Sound and support reefs that are open to harvest. They subsidize commercially harvested reefs with critically important larvae,” he said. “And among other benefits, they are spectacular water filters, filtering dramatic amount of water with a small area so quite a benefit. and they last a long time and then.”
Not only are the oyster sanctuaries providing habitat for fish and oysters, but they’re also creating economic opportunities in coastal communities, said Fleckenstein, who cited Stephens Towing Co. as an example. The company has long worked with the federation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in building reefs in Pamlico Sound.
Will Hollowell, the company’s operations manager, told the committee that the company was equipped to build reefs at the right pace and at the right price. With one barge, more than 1,000 tons of rock or other materials can be placed in a day. And the work also employs others, such as the truck drivers who are moving rock from North Carolina quarries to the barge operators who are coastal residents.
Along with reefs, demand for living shorelines has continued to grow, Fleckenstein told the committee. She said living shorelines also provide oyster habitat and they gird shorelines from erosion and protect and improve water quality, which is key to supporting the shellfish industry.
“We don’t want to risk the great reputation of North Carolina oysters by having people getting sick (from) eating oysters that are grown in poor water quality,” she said.
Fleckenstein told Coastal Review that Hanig had requested annual updates to the committee on the progress. She said the legislature’s desire to understand the progress being made in North Carolina’s oyster work was encouraging.
Less encouraging, as members of the committee noted, were moratoriums that prevent development of oyster farming operations in certain waters.
One moratorium in Brunswick County dates back to 1967 and another for a portion of Core Sound to 1993. The General Assembly in 2019 enacted shellfish moratoriums in waters from the Wrightsville Beach drawbridge through Masonboro Inlet to the mouth of Snows Cut in New Hanover County and in Bogue Sound in Carteret County that were to expire in 2021 but were extended last year until 2026.
Rep. Pricey Harrison, D-Guilford, suggested that the committee consider ways to address the moratoriums. Hanig agreed, saying it was imperative.
“This industry impacts traditionally low-wealth counties, and we do everything we can to build them up,” Hanig said.
Chris Matteo, head of North Carolina Shellfish Growers Association, a trade association representing about 70 growers in the state, and owner of Carteret County-based Chadwick Oysters, explained how much the shellfish industry means economically. North Carolina oysters are being sold out of state and that money is coming back into the state’s economy, he said.
“The impact on the state’s rural economic development is also meaningful and expanding every year. A lot of us grow oysters in areas that are not a great place to make a living, and it’s really impacting the local economies in a positive way,” said Matteo.
He told the committee that investments made in the shellfish industry “are really beginning to pay off.” The fact that the industry continues to grow after storms and during the pandemic, he said, “is really a testament to your support and to the tenacity of the group that grows shellfish in the state.”
