The waters surrounding Shooter' s Island have long been a dumping ground for ruined ships and boats, and the wreckage there has caused these waters to be exceptionally still  An ornithologist found that the overall abundance of waterbirds around Shooter' s Island is similar to that around each of the neighboring islands, but that juvenile waterbirds are much more abundant around Shooter' s Island than around those other islands
This suggests that the still waters around Shooter' s Island serve as a nursery for the juveniles
The number of juvenile waterbirds around Shooter's Island, as well as the number around each neighboring island, does not fluctuate dramatically throughout the year.