A dog off-leash would rip through and harass ever bird in the vicinity as well as damage any egg they wanted to. The "island" looks like it's in a shallow swamp that a dog could run across easily enough, though someone mentioned the area is usually fenced.
Here's a video of me flying a drone slowly over a group of crested terns sitting on rocks (birds similar to those in the story). I am maybe six feet above them. The only time they really moved was when a large wave hit the rocks and they left and returned when it subsided. There are a few dozen birds under the drone, while others are returning after the wave washed through - you can see they are not particularly bothered by it. (Obviously a drone crashing into the ground would spook them more.)
https://bit.ly/3gcjZbY
A dog off-leash would rip through and harass ever bird in the vicinity as well as damage any egg they wanted to. The "island" looks like it's in a shallow swamp that a dog could run across easily enough, though someone mentioned the area is usually fenced.
Here's a video of me flying a drone slowly over a group of crested terns sitting on rocks (birds similar to those in the story). I am maybe six feet above them. The only time they really moved was when a large wave hit the rocks and they left and returned when it subsided. There are a few dozen birds under the drone, while others are returning after the wave washed through - you can see they are not particularly bothered by it. (Obviously a drone crashing into the ground would spook them more.)
https://bit.ly/2T4t5PT