WELLS – Wardens and local police were investigating the destruction of a fence that protected endangered seabirds that are nesting on Wells Beach.

The stake-and-twine fence that protected an area used by about 15 nesting pairs of least terns was torn down Saturday night, said Joe Felio, a wildlife biologist who works for Maine Audubon.

The fence protected the terns and their eggs, as well as people who stand to get dive-bombed by the birds, Felio said.

“As a colony they’ll dive-bomb intruders, so you have to give them a fair margin around where they’re nesting,” she said.

Least terns, the smallest of the tern family and the only terns to nest on the mainland, are listed as endangered by the state of Maine. They’re also listed as federally endangered in other parts of the country.

Their eggs are the same color as the sand, so they can be unintentionally destroyed by beach-goers, Felio said.

Maine Audubon officials had met a week ago with people who owned homes in front of the nesting area and had received their support for the effort to protect the terns, the biologist said.

“It’s a big surprise to us that this has happened because for the most part, we’ve had a lot of good support,” she said.