The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection on Thursday announced that Charles Island in Milford and Duck Island in Westbrook will be closed to the public through Sept. 9 to prevent disturbances to nesting birds.

Both islands have been designated by DEEP as Natural Area Preserves, primarily due to their importance as nesting habitats for several state-listed birds, including snowy egrets and great egrets (state threatened species), glossy ibis and little blue herons (state special concern), DEEP said in a news release. The two islands also have been designated as Important Bird Areas by Audubon Connecticut.

In addition, the DEEP is asking beachcombers, sunbathers and boaters along the shoreline to respect the fencing and yellow signs warning of piping plover and least tern nesting sites.

The piping plover, a small, sandy-colored shorebird about the size of a sparrow, is a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act, as well as a state threatened species in Connecticut. The small, gull-like least tern, which nests in colonies in the same beach habitat as the piping plover, also is a state threatened species.

Human disturbance at beach nesting areas may result in nest abandonment by piping plovers and least terns or the loss of eggs and chicks, DEEP said. DEEP each year delineates nesting sites with rope and fencing to dissuade people from disturbing the birds and nests.

These shorebirds need special protection throughout their April to August nesting season and especially during the increased beach activity over the long Memorial Day and Fourth of July weekends. By obeying the warning signs and staying away from fenced areas, beach visitors can avoid disturbing the nesting birds.

The DEEP Wildlife Division also provides the following advice to protect nesting shorebirds:

• Refrain from walking dogs or allowing house cats to roam freely on beaches during the nesting season.

• At areas where dogs are allowed, always keep them on a leash, but remember that even leashed dogs have the potential to step on nests and young. Dogs also may harass sensitive shorebirds by chasing them.

• Do not bury or leave trash, picnic leftovers, and fish scraps on a beach. They attract predators of shorebird chicks and eggs, such as skunks, raccoons, foxes and black-backed gulls.

• Do not attempt to “rescue” young birds that appear to be lost or too young.

• Do not attempt to remove young birds from the beach to care for them at home. In most cases, when immature birds are found alone, the adults have been frightened away but remain nearby and will return to their young once the intruder leaves. 

It is illegal to hold wildlife for rehabilitation without proper state or federal permits. In addition, shorebirds have a unique diet that people would find hard to duplicate, probably resulting in starvation of the young bird.

Any violations affecting wildlife should be reported to the DEEP’s 24-hour, toll-free hot line: (800) 842-4357.