Sharing Our Parks with Ground Nesting Birds

Off leash dog playing in the Discovery Park Meadow | Marcus Donner, Friends of Discovery Park

This article was originally published in an abreviated version in the Fall 2026 issue of EarthCare Northwest, our quarterly member newsletter. Become a member today and receive our next issue. 

The Savannah Sparrow’s nest is almost impossible to see. They weave dried grass into a 3” cup that holds their precious clutch of eggs. The nest sits directly on the ground hidden in the tall grass, making it particularly vulnerable to being crushed by off-trail footsteps.   

Earlier this year, Birds Connect Seattle released our Fewer and Fewer report, documenting counts of local birds over the last two decades. The findings were sobering: many species are declining, including some of the birds that nest directly on the ground. Savannah Sparrows have declined dramatically at both Discovery Park (-77%) and Magnuson Park (-65%), while Killdeer, a shorebird that lays its eggs on open beaches and gravel, have declined by 80–99% in some monitoring locations. 

There is no single cause. Habitat loss, climate change, invasive plants, pesticides, and other pressures all play a role. But for ground-nesting birds, one source of stress is also one of the most preventable: people and dogs entering sensitive habitat during nesting season.  

Most dogs and dog owners are not trying to harm wildlife. They simply may not realize that a tiny nest is hidden beneath their feet, or that the presence of a large mammal may be scaring a female from laying or incubating eggs, or prevent her from returning to her nest with food for young chicks.  

Savannah Sparrows at Discovery Park | June 2025 | Photo by Marcus Donner, Friends of Discovery Park

Savannah Sparrows and Meadows 

Few people have watched these changes as closely as Jan Bragg, a longtime community science volunteer at Magnuson Park. She began monitoring birds there in the mid 1990s and remembers hearing the songs of Savannah Sparrows regularly in the spring when they returned from the south. “There were maybe ten nesting pair territories when I first started. Now we’re down to one or two each year. It is sad. Really sad.” 

From April through August, Jan places signs in areas where Savannah Sparrows may be actively nesting. The signs are simple: “Savannah Sparrows nest on the ground. Stick to trails and keep dogs on leash.” While it is the law to keep dogs on leash in public, often that goes ignored. Jan believes that if people know why it is harmful to wildlife to have dogs off trail in meadow habitat, they may be more likely to follow the rules.  

A well-behaved dog that never barks, never runs after birds, and stays close to its owner can still unintentionally step on an egg or a newly hatched chick hidden beneath the grass when off trail. 

At both Magnuson and Discovery Park, non-official “social” trails formed by frequent off-trail use from humans and dogs have fragmented meadow habitat. Friends of Discovery Park board member, Joyce Erickson, says this fragmentation degrades the entire meadow habitat, shrinking the spaces where birds can safely forage and nest. Aerial photographs of Discovery Park show how networks of unofficial paths gradually carve up what was once continuous pristine meadow habitat.

Google Earth images from 1990, 2002, and 2026 show the increase in social trails, fragmenting the meadow.

Killdeer and Beaches 

Nesting shorebirds and marine mammals also experience struggles from off-leash dogs on beaches. This spring, Marcus Donner, a board member with Friends of Discovery Park, watched a Killdeer attempting to establish a nest on North Beach. Another ground nester, Killdeer lay their eggs in a small depression in the sand and gravel, relying on camouflage to protect the eggs. Numerous off-leash dogs frolicked along the beach, frequently startling the Killdeer off of its nest, only to return and be scared off again by a different dog. He is concerned about this kind of repeated disruption.  

One of the biggest misconceptions about wildlife disturbance is that harm only occurs when a dog physically harms a bird, but it can be much more subtle and compounded by repeated disturbances. Each time a hopeful bird parent is scared from its nest, it loses precious time and energy that should be spent incubating eggs, foraging, feeding young, or preparing for migration. 

It is also worth remembering that by law dogs are not allowed on any Seattle public beach—on or off leash—with the sole exception of the designated off-leash area at Magnuson Park.

Killdeer nesting at North Beach, Discovery Park | April 2026 | Photo by Marcus Donner, Friends of Discovery Park

Parks are for Everyone 

Discovery Park and Magnuson Park are among Seattle’s most beloved green spaces because they offer so many different experiences. People come to walk, run, swim, picnic, play sports, watch birds, photograph wildlife, and exercise their dogs. 

The challenge is not choosing between people and birds. It is recognizing that different parts of a park serve different purposes. 

Parking lots, sports fields, manicured lawns, and designated off-leash areas are designed for intensive recreation. Meadows, wetlands, beaches, and other wild habitats are where birds and other wildlife feed, rest, and raise young. 

One of the most important actions visitors can take is also one of the simplest: stay on designated trails. The wilder the habitat, the greater the impact that off-trail feet and paws can have. 

Meadow habitat at Discovery Park, one of the few remaining urban meadows in Seattle | Photo by Carol Roll

Actionable Solutions 

While we can’t solve every bird population decline overnight, there are some simple ways we can reduce the pressure on vulnerable species, including the Savannah Sparrow and Killdeer.  

• Stay on trails (people and dogs).
• Use a leash where required. 
• Give nesting birds extra space during spring and summer. 
• Choose developed recreation areas to walk pets when possible.  
• Follow posted signage at parks, including those that refer to sensitive wildlife or habitat or seasonal changes.

For Jan Bragg, city living means sharing parks with many different park users, including dogs and dog owners. “I want people to know and respect what else is living there and do their part to help protect it.” 

The next time you walk through a meadow at Magnuson or along the shoreline at Discovery Park, imagine a nest hidden beneath the tall grass or camouflaged in the gravel and those parents desperately trying to raise their young.  

Sometimes conservation begins with nothing more complicated than noticing what is already at our feet.