WATCH: Man lands helicopter amid protected bird nests on Egmont Key

A Bradenton man caused dozens of protected shorebirds to flee their nests when he landed his company’s helicopter earlier this month on the southern tip of Egmont Key State Park, a protected area where tens of thousands of birds have gathered for breeding season, according to Florida wildlife officials.

Video of the incident, obtained by the Tampa Bay Times, shows the helicopter’s whirring rotors stirring up sand and flocks of shorebirds retreating from their beach nests on the restricted wildlife refuge May 12. Shortly after landing, a woman exited the helicopter and started taking photos, according to a Florida wildlife incident report.

Ernesto Cordero, 53, was piloting the helicopter and was cited with harassing state-threatened species, landing an aircraft in a state park and entering into a closed area, according to the incident report.

Cordero told investigators that he landed at the state park because “he could smell fuel and believed he may have had a fuel leak.” When investigators pressed Cordero about whether he had declared an emergency with air traffic control because of the fuel smell, he said he did not. Cordero apologized when authorities said he landed in a closed section of the state park and also a wildlife refuge, according to the incident report.

The helicopter’s registered owner is Bradenton-based landscaping company CC Landscaping Warehouse Plus, Inc., according to flight tracking data company FlightAware. Cordero is listed as the owner for the company, according to records from the Florida Division of Corporations.

Flight data shows Cordero’s 101-mile journey began at Albert Whitted Airport in St. Petersburg, continued along the Gulf Coast over Fort De Soto Park and then over the southern tip of Egmont Key before eventually landing in Punta Gorda. Records show the helicopter dips below 75 feet for at least three minutes over Egmont Key.

When reached by phone Thursday, Cordero reiterated to the Tampa Bay Times that he landed his helicopter in the wildlife refuge because he was worried he was leaking fuel. He also said he didn’t feel the need to contact air traffic control about his concerns.

“What is (air traffic control) going to suggest to me?” Cordero said.

He also complained about the scale of the ongoing investigations into the incident which, according to him, now includes the Federal Aviation Administration. Cordero also lamented his upcoming court date in Hillsborough County and how there should be more attention on the boaters near Egmont Key — not his company’s helicopter — that are stressing the birds.

In an emailed statement, the FAA confirmed it was investigating the incident but declined to say how long the investigation would take.

“I’m not disagreeing that it was wrong,” Cordero said. “If you want protection on the island, you need to protect it from boats.”

Keep up with Tampa Bay’s top headlines

Subscribe to our free DayStarter newsletter

We’ll deliver the latest news and information you need to know every morning.

Loading...

You’re all signed up!

Want more of our free, weekly newsletters in your inbox? Let’s get started.

Explore all your options

Cordero apologized and said he knew that landing the helicopter had stressed protected birds. He also said the woman who witnesses saw taking photographs was his girlfriend and that she was looking for fuel leaks. Cordero told authorities he didn’t have to exit the helicopter when he landed because he could look for fuel leaks by looking out the door of the cockpit.

“I need to pay the consequences,” Cordero said. “I know that.”

Cordero landed the helicopter during the thick of Tampa Bay’s shorebird breeding season, which runs roughly from March to September. A recent bird survey of the area where Cordero landed his helicopter found approximately 50,000 pairs of nesting shorebirds that included brown pelicans, white ibis, laughing gulls and royal terns, according to the incident report.

Accessible mainly by boat (or helicopter), Egmont Key’s wildlife refuge is home to the highest nesting colony of laughing gulls in all of Florida, and it’s also home to one of the highest nesting royal tern colonies in the state with over 7,000 pair, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Florida’s wildlife agency also identified several species fleeing their nests in the video of Cordero landing, including black skimmers and sandwich terns, according to the incident report.

Cordero’s violations were second-degree misdemeanors and it’s up to the courts to decide how much he could face in penalties, according to Ashlee Sklute, a law enforcement spokesperson with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Hillsborough County court records show Cordero has a hearing July 1 for violating state park rules.

In a statement to the Times, Audubon Florida praised the responding Florida wildlife officer, Lt. Michael Bibeau, for investigating the incident. Bibeau earned an award from the nonprofit last year for his work organizing shorebird protection in Pinellas County during busy holiday weekends.

“We’re grateful to Lt. Bibeau for his quick response to the helicopter disturbance at Egmont Key,” said Audrey DeRose-Wilson, director of bird conservation for Florida Audubon.

“Helicopters can cause major disturbances for nesting birds, making eggs and chicks more vulnerable to heat and predators, or causing birds to abandon nesting areas altogether.”