By Dan Shine
Voice Columnist
Maritime Series
Part VI
See Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 7
In the creation of this story, we wish to acknowledge the efforts of Cathie Iaccarino, Bill Breen, Dr. Scott Graves, Dr. Jim Tait, Lee Letourneau, Mark Paine, and Kathy Granfield.
Located at the intersection of Beach Street and Second Avenue, Sandy Point is what the scientific community refers to as a “nursery,” meaning an area that provides abundant nutrients, access to mates, cover from predators, and the proper temperature, chemistry, and geology to support young life forms. For Sandy Point and its surrounding waters, a broad variety of creatures call it “home.”
Sandy Point and the surrounding waters provide a home to many year-round species, as well as an important stopover for species on the move. In early spring, the elusive weakfish visits the waters around Sandy Point, followed by the first ‘schoolie’ striped bass of the season (schoolies are exactly that – babies that come down the rivers after spawning and congregate at the mouths of our major rivers – Housatonic, Quinnipiac, Connecticut and Thames).
Large migrating bass coming up from the south soon join them as the water warms. The population of year-round residents – bluefish, fluke, flounder, and tautog (blackfish) grow and diminish as they follow the baitfish (killifish, herring, bunker, and sand eels) that frequent ‘the flats’ around the point. Doing the important job of scavenging and recycling the remains of all this feeding is a healthy population of crustaceans, including blue, green, and Asian crabs (Asians are an invader which has made life very difficult for the native green crab), as well as the horseshoe crab, which cruises the bottom eating worms and the odd bivalve.
The combination of plentiful nutrients and shallow depth, plus tidally flushed waters make the whole area a great place for many marine species to flourish.
But perhaps Sandy Point is best known for its bird population, especially since it provides important nesting and foraging habitat to a number of threatened or endangered coastal bird species. These include Egrets, Heron, Falcons, Plovers, Oystercatchers, Sparrows and Terns.
The Quinnipiac Indians were well aware of this, and according to one old map they had a summer encampment not far from Sandy Point. It was on the sand bar that they could hunt for varieties of fish, shellfish, eggs and waterfowl; and in the adjacent marshes were other varieties of game.
The arrival of European settlers brought with it a growing need for food, and no doubt Sandy Point provided some of that too. In addition, wild asparagus was discovered nearby, making the area all the more attractive.
It was apparent that the tip of the sand bar and a corresponding point of land on the eastern shore formed the narrowest point separating inner New Haven Harbor from Long Island Sound—a natural point for coastal defense. Therefore, in 1659, a fort was built on that eastern shore to protect the little town of New Haven and its surrounding settlements from attack by sea. That fort was later named Fort Nathan Hale, which was active throughout many of this nation’s early conflicts.
Today, Sandy Point, with its barrier reef and dunes, its salt marsh and tidal lagoon are best known as a wildlife sanctuary and a summer picnic spot for families. It is a great spot for solitary walks, with memorable views of wildlife, Downtown New Haven and the harbor.
Photos Courtesy of Fred Rimler.