By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Banded Piping Plover at Stone Harbor Point, NJ.
Courtesy of Tom Reed

On the beach nesting bird project we are normally busy this time of the year locating nests, putting up fence to protect nesting areas, and placing special predator cages around piping plover nests. This year we have added a new wrinkle – we are also conducting intensive piping plover band re-sighting surveys.

Those surveys are possible as a result of a research project being conducted in New Jersey (and Massachusetts) by the State University of New York – College of Environmental Science and Forestry on piping plover flight behaviors and patterns. About 30 plovers were colored banded here last year with more planned this season as part of the study. This has provided an exciting opportunity for us to answer some questions of our own that are not part of the research project itself, so the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey and the state’s Endangered and Nongame Species Program have teamed up to do near daily band re-sightings this spring and last fall.

It was previously known that piping plovers have strong site fidelity to their breeding grounds, and in fact, most of banded birds that have returned so far have come back to the same study site (which are Avalon Dunes and Stone Harbor Point), although a few have also flip-flopped sites. And within the sites, individual plovers have not necessarily matched up with their mate from last year, again it was known that piping plovers don’t nest for life as a pair, but how they are pairing is proving interesting. It appears to have more to do with their exact arrival date and which male or female is available (and if an “available” mate is even present).

While these observations may be endlessly fascinating to those of us in our plover-centric universe, banding does carry some risks to birds and we don’t have unlimited time or resources, so any study of this sort must also have a strong purpose that helps guide or inform species conservation and management. In this case, the daily resight surveys have shown that the first wave of our breeding birds returned to sites right around March 15. This is important because in recent years we have moved up the date when certain activities (i.e. mechanical beach raking, vehicle use, dogs on the beach) that could disturb or impact nesting or the habitat being utilized are put into effect. Through the band resightings we can ascertain these aren’t just migrants passing through, but rather breeders attached to those specific sites for which those activities could have impacts on nest site selection and use. Band resighting has helped illustrate the importance of maintaining habitat conditions at certain sites for piping plovers. Our science and detailed collection of data confirms the validity of the March 15 date being used for regulatory protection of piping plovers in New Jersey.

On the flip side, band resighting completed after the breeding season last year revealed that some of the plovers remained at their “nesting” site much longer than expected, until October in some cases. Our sites may play a bigger role than realized in staging or migration. In one case, a banded individual that had one of the latest departure dates was also one of the first arrivals this spring, meaning it spent over 6 months here in New Jersey. Most of our management protection for piping plovers is focused on the breeding season (March 15-August 15), so this may mean we have to rethink how we are protecting plovers and other shorebirds beyond that date. Migration is a physically taxing and dangerous life-stage for any shorebird, so it is critical they are as fit as possible in this phase, which, in part, may mean minimizing any persistence or significant disturbance.

This is just a small part of what we are trying to learn from the banded piping plovers. Our window of opportunity is likely fairly narrow – piping plovers are a relatively short-lived bird and the sample size of banded ones here in New Jersey is small. With this in mind, we hope to glean as much information as possible through this initiative.

Note: The researchers studying piping plovers as part of the SUNY-ESF project will be providing guest blogs to us from time to time so that we can find out what they are doing and learning out in the field. Stay tuned!

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Piping Plover on Wintering Grounds, Green Turtle Cay, Abaco, The Bahamas. © Tom Reed

Last month marked the third January I have been able to go to the Bahamas in the name of piping plover research. This recent trip was a little different than the others in that it was not an official work funded trip. Still, it wasn’t a traditional vacation either as a good portion of the trip was dedicated to plover surveys and related work. (It’s hard keeping me away from those pipers!)

This being on my own dime, I did make it a point to sample some of the Bahamas other wildlife this time around. At the top of my list was the Bahama parrot. Once found on many Bahamas islands, the parrot is now only present on Abaco and Great Inagua, and is a protected species in the Bahamas. Abaco National Park, overseen by the Bahamas National Trust, encompasses over 20,000 acres, including some of the most critical parrot habitat. Ongoing research of the parrot’s breeding success is being conducted on Abaco as well – it is heartening to see significant conservation effort being put towards parrots in the Bahamas.

Flock of Bahama Parrots in Flight on Abaco. © Tom Reed

I had heard the calls of parrots on previous trips, but since I literally had my “head in the sand” looking for plovers I hadn’t actually seen them. For awhile I didn’t think I would get a glimpse of them this time either – although we were at a parrot hotspot in Abaco known as Bahama Palm Shores, once again I heard them but couldn’t quite get them in my sights.  Parrots can be quite social and their chatter was clearly audible in the trees around us – tantalizingly close – but surprisingly hard to see for a large colorful bird. Our patience paid off as suddenly a flock of at least 100 parrots lifted up and circled over us, temporarily blackening the sky (perhaps “brightening the sky” is more appropriate in this case). What a spectacular sight and later we would see a smaller flock close up foraging in a field.

One of the most interesting things about the parrots on Abaco is that they are ground nesters – just like our beach nesting birds – instead of the sand on the beach they nest in limestone cavities on the pinewood forest floor. And like our beachnesters, nesting on the ground makes them and their nests vulnerable to mammalian predators. Cats, in particular, have been a serious threat to the survival and breeding success of the parrots. Given the obvious differences between the appearance and habitats of Abaco’s parrots and piping plovers, what a surprise it was to find a behavioral and conservation link between these two at-risk species!

Evidence of Impact of Hurricane Sandy in the Bahamas

Another notable topical  link between Abaco and New Jersey is that both were impacted by Hurricane Sandy – before she rolled ashore in New Jersey, Sandy violently swept through the Bahamas. The impact of Sandy was observed at several locations on this trip; topped palm trees and erosion on Green Turtle Cay and sand being moved to shore up battered homes and beaches on Elbow Cay.  Piping plovers missed being directly impacted by Sandy in New Jersey because they had already migrated south, but that doesn’t mean our breeders weren’t impacted somewhere else on their wintering grounds, such as the Bahamas.

This brings me back to the specific connection between piping plovers and the Bahamas. Recent surveys and banding studies have now clearly identified the Bahamas as the most important wintering site for our Atlantic Coast population of piping plovers. If all our hard work here on the breeding grounds is going to succeed, we need to ensure they are also protected on the wintering grounds, where they spend at least as much of, if not more of their time. Recovery and long-term survival of piping plovers (and any long-distance migratory shorebird) is going to depend on “full life cycle” conservation.

To date, relatively limited attention has been focused on studying and protecting piping plovers on their migratory and wintering grounds. That is changing and in fact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have just unveiled a Comprehensive Conservation Strategy for piping plovers in their non-breeding range that should jumpstart additional conservation efforts.

CWFNJ’s Todd Pover spying on Piping Plovers at Discovery Beach, Grand Bahama

Towards that end, my recent trip included piping plover surveys on both Grand Bahama and Abaco. The Grand Bahama segment included resighting of banded plovers, as well as trying to confirm the importance of several sites for wintering shorebirds, in particular the Pelican Point area on the island’s east end.  Surveys on Abaco included those at Green Turtle Cay, long known as a regular wintering site for piping plovers, but recent surveys we have conducted at varying tide stages show it is equally important as both a foraging and roosting location. Likewise, surveys we completed in the Cherokee Sound/Casuarina Point complex show that plover usage at specific sites in this area is highly dependent on tide, not surprising, but critical information for any future conservation or comprehensive survey effort.

Next month, CWFNJ will submit a grant to the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund to continue our piping plover work in the Bahamas. We hope to partner directly with Friends of the Environment, a local conservation group on Abaco we have previously worked with, to raise awareness of the importance of the Bahamas to piping plovers and to conduct further research on their local distribution and use of habitat on their winter grounds.

The rest of the New Jersey Piping Plover Team in the Bahamas, Emily Heiser, Christina Davis, Tom Reed (l to r)

Note:  A special thanks to the Bahamas National Trust for generously housing us at their Rand Nature Center during our stay on Grand Bahama and to Predensa “Denny” Moore for her ongoing support for piping plover conservation in the Bahamas. Also, a shout out to my colleagues and the rest of the New Jersey Piping Plover Team on this Bahamas trip; Christina “Kashi” Davis, Emily “Em” Heiser, and Tom “TR” Reed. And it appears I have a new nickname – “Tplove” – courtesy of the team, but we shall see if it sticks.

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

When cold weather settles in, as it recently did, our thoughts often turn to the south and warmer temperatures. Many of our long-distance migrant bird species are one step ahead of us, having already flown south for the winter.  Stephanie Egger and I, CWFNJ’s Beach Nesting Bird Project team, recently had the chance to join some of them in Florida.

The purpose of our trip was to attend the American Oystercatcher Working Group annual meeting to learn what our colleagues all along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts are doing to protect and study oystercatchers, and to share what we are doing in New Jersey as well. This year’s meeting was held in Cedar Key, Florida, a small town about two hours north of Tampa that is a very special place for oystercatchers. It is not unusual to find flocks of 500-1000 oystercatchers roosting on oyster shell rakes just offshore from this quiet gulf town, making it one of the most important wintering sites for this species in the U.S.

“New Jersey” oystercatchers are typically found in the Cedar Key flocks – birds that bred in New Jersey and were marked with orange color bands that have unique two-digit codes.  These bands and similar bands or flags used by other states, help researchers track movements and learn about the long-term survival of this species. 

This year, for the first time, we were also able to color band piping plovers in New Jersey, as part of a partnership with the State University of New York to study the localized movements and flights of plovers on their breeding grounds. While not the objective of the research, the bands have also provided some hints about migration and wintering patterns, as a small number of resights have been reported this fall. “New Jersey” piping plovers have been seen on Cumberland Island, Georgia; Joulter Cays, Bahamas; and most recently Madeira Beach, just southwest of Tampa where Stephanie and I just visited. That Florida plover, a female technically know as blue/orange; blue/yellow to represent the band combinations on both of her upper legs, but dubbed Kelly Ripa to make it easier to communicate about her amongst field staff, nested in Avalon, New Jersey this past summer.  She successfully hatched her eggs, but unfortunately none of her chicks survived. At least we know our “friend” is alive and well in sunny Florida – a nice choice for the winter given it was 75° on our recent trip while it was snowing back in New Jersey. We didn’t get a chance to track Kelly on this trip, but we are optimistic we will see her again when she returns to “Jersey” in the spring to nest.

The Florida Gulf Coast is obviously an important region for many of our migratory shorebirds. But our trip to Florida also provided us with an exciting opportunity to observe another extremely at-risk wildlife species that makes it home there.  Although manatees occasionally stray north to our waters in New Jersey they are native to the Southeast U.S., in particular, Florida. The warm waters and abundant springs of Kings Bay and Crystal River, halfway between our destinations of Tampa and Cedar Key, provide an important winter refuge for manatees. Scientists estimate at least 500 manatees are concentrated in this area in the winter, but upwards of 100,000 boats also annually use these waterways.

Therein lies part of the conflict. Much of this watershed is shallow and manatees are slow moving, making them highly susceptible to boat strikes. And in fact, prop scars were clearly visible on many of the manatees we observed.  Like most of our endangered species, a number of factors contribute to their precarious status, but human related threats remains front and center.

Potentially contributing to their risk is the mini-tourist industry built around viewing manatees. Manatees are extremely approachable and charismatic. They can reach 10 feet long and weigh in at 800-1000 lbs. And in the crystal clear shallow waters they are easy to see.  Even as a biologist who works with wildlife every day, I was wowed by what I saw. To put it non-scientifically….Holy (sea) Cow!!!

Which begs the question in this case, can we love our wildlife to death? While manatees are legally protected by endangered species laws that clearly establish they cannot be “harmed, harassed, or pursued”, interpreting when that line is crossed can be difficult to determine and enforcing it even harder.  Tourists and residents alike are understandably naturally drawn to manatees, but many feel compelled to swim with and touch them, or just in general, get as close to them as possible.

As in many things in life, finding the balance is the biggest challenge. With this in mind, Stephanie and I sought out a way to view and learn about manatees while disturbing them as little as possible. Among the choices we found to have a “hands on” manatee experience without having our “hands on a manatee” was a low-impact kayak trip with Aardvark’s Florida Kayak Co. We knew we made the right choice as soon as we met Matt Clemons, owner of the company and the guide for our manatee excursion. A biologist himself, Matt is a passionate advocate for manatee protection and knowledgeable about the behavior and science of manatees as well.

We were the only paddlers (or boaters for that matter) out on the water that afternoon. We saw upwards of fifty individual manatees, adults and juveniles alike, in pristine protected habitat like the Three Sisters Springs, which is part of the Crystal River NWR, but also in developed lagoons. Matt was adamant about promoting a “no touch” policy, but beyond that, even though we were able to float over or close to manatees, he was careful we didn’t linger too long or that our presence altered their behavior. To my mind, this was model eco-tourism in practice.

Of course, Matt pointed out that just a few days earlier, over the Thanksgiving weekend, this area was choked with boaters, divers/snorkelers, and kayakers seeking out manatees. Because manatees appear so tolerant of human presence, it is easy to assume we aren’t having an impact. Which brings me full circle back to some of the shorebird species Stephanie and I work hard to protect.  Here in New Jersey we have a very small population of piping plovers, on average just 120 pairs in a given year. Just as with the manatee population, the loss of just a few individuals or any sustained low reproductive success can have big ripple effects on the long-term survival and population of these species.  We need to err on the side of caution.

My first impression of manatees was that they presented an entirely different conservation dilemma than I am used to dealing with, but the more I learned and thought about it, I realized the basic issues are the same.  Finding that balance I spoke of – between species protection and allowing human recreational use of habitats shared by both, limiting human disturbance without turning off the public’s interest in conservation, and navigating  legal and regulatory protections in a reasonable manner – these are the same whether it be in New Jersey or Florida, or with respect to manatees or piping plovers.

On a personal level, the manatee encounter was an incredibly inspiring wildlife experience for me (and Stephanie)!  It also made me appreciate the challenges we face as biologists and wildlife managers and re-energized me professionally.

If you would like to support the work we do to protect New Jersey’s beach nesting birds, please click here http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/getinvolved/donate/

If you want to see what Save the Manatee Club is doing to protect manatees or view their manatee web cam, click here http://www.savethemanatee.org/savethemanateecam.html

By Alfred Breed, CWF Technician

My official job title with Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey is  “American Oystercatcher Technician”.  As such I am tasked during nesting season with monitoring Oystercatcher nesting sites, and during migratory season with locating flocks of Oystercatchers, counting them, resighting marked birds in each flock, recording data of field survey results and reporting our NJ counts and resights to a central database that holds data from the other reporting states in the migratory flyway.

As is usually the case in any job that has a “description”, the phrase “and other such tasks as assigned” is included as a catch-all for things that aren’t specifically listed in the description, but can be an important part of the duties of the position nonetheless. In my case these ancillary tasks are different each day, and often involve three of my favorite things: wildlife (of course!), science, and gear.  Working around my Oystercatcher surveys, which can only be conducted at high tide, I might be tasked to go to a location anywhere in the state and survey for a particular species of plant or animal; or to site select, construct, install, use, maintain, and troubleshoot various types of data collection or other equipment throughout South Jersey.

Trucks, trailers, boats and kayaks are the big-ticket items that I use every day, but I’m lucky enough to use a large variety of other cool tools and equipment as well. Driving is often a big part of my day, with travel times between sites eating up significant portions of the workday.  Sometimes I’m a wildlife EMT or ambulance driver, saving sick or injured animals from their immediate predicament and/or transporting them to various certified rehabilitation facilities located throughout the state.

Best of all is when I’m asked to assist visiting scientists or other conservation partners in their work, which can mean bio-sampling or banding.  Direct human/wildlife interaction is only appropriate when it is  for valid scientific or conservation management purposes, and is sanctioned and a permit issued by the appropriate governing body.  To be a staff member and so to be included in these sanctioned and permitted activities is a rare privilege indeed.

Each day is different, always interesting, occasionally exciting, and always personally rewarding as I play a small part in the management of threatened and endangered wildlife and the habitat that we share.

By Stephanie Egger, Wildlife Biologist

CWFNJ Wildlife Biologist, Stephanie Egger, surveying American Oystercatchers post Hurricane Sandy.

As we all know Hurricane Sandy caused severe damage and devastation to New Jersey residents, homes, and their businesses, but we must not forget that wildlife can also suffer from the impacts of a hurricane.  CWFNJ’s Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager, Todd Pover, Alfred Breed, CWFNJ Field Technician, and myself, conducted wildlife/habitat assessments on beaches from Brigantine to Cape May after the storm.  Our nesting sites further north in Ocean and Monmouth Counties were still not accessible at that time to evaluate.  We assessed nesting habitat for beach nesting bird species, especially Piping Plover as well beach/inlet habitat used by migratory shorebirds, particularly American Oystercatchers.

A view of the severe erosion at Strathmere Natural Area, Cape May County, NJ.

As expected, many of our nesting sites and sites that are also used by migratory shorebirds for roosting were hit hard by Hurricane Sandy, losing a great deal of sand and suitable habitat.  However, in some locations such as Stone Harbor Point and North Brigantine Natural Area, the storm scoured out areas with too much vegetation which is good for beach nesters as they prefer sparsely vegetated areas. Sand was also pushed back into the dunes to create blowouts and overwash areas that may serve as additional habitat.  Many of the areas seem to be very low lying now from the loss of sand and might be more flood prone which could impact the beach nesters in the spring.

We also observed migratory songbirds, golden-crowned kinglets, which were taking shelter and flittering through the back dune/bayberry habitat right after the storm.  This was a good reminder of the value of New Jersey coastal habitat for songbirds as they migrate down the coast.

American Oystercatchers roosting with juvenile Black Skimmers at Strathmere Natural Area, Cape May County, NJ

As part of our assessment, we conducted American Oystercatcher surveys as a significant number use New Jersey beaches for roosting during the fall and winter.  Luckily, approximately 900-1,000 American Oystercatchers were still using our southern coastal inlets after Sandy, about the same number of birds observed the week before the storm.  Thanks to funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation we were already conducting fall surveys for American Oystercatchers and in the position to compare their numbers before and after the storm.

Only time will tell if the habitat will build back up enough in time for the spring as the birds begin to arrive for the nesting season or if it will have lasting impacts on migratory bird species. We hope to conduct further assessments to gain a better understanding of the short- and long-term impacts to wildlife from Hurricane Sandy and how that may affect conservation and recovery effort for these species moving forward.

For CWFNJ’s videos of wildlife and habitat assessments click on the links below:

Wildlife Assessment Post Hurricane Sandy at North Brigantine Natural Area, NJ

Wildlife Assessment Post Hurricane Sandy at Stone Harbor Point, NJ

Wildlife Assessment Post Hurricane Sandy at Strathmere Natural Area, NJ

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Roost Flock of American Oystercatchers with New Jersey (Orange) Bands
Photo courtesy of Pat Leary

Did you know that American oystercatchers don’t just nest in New Jersey, but that we also have the northernmost wintering population on the Atlantic Coast? Our state’s coastal inlets are also important as stopover sites for migratory oystercatchers. Yesterday, we counted a flock of over 300 oystercatchers on Champagne Island in Hereford Inlet and this morning we surveyed a smaller flock of about 75 birds in Corson’s Inlet. In addition to counting the birds, we also look for (i.e. resight) color bands during the surveys. Most of the bands are from birds that nested here, but a number of bands from other states, such as Massachusetts, are also currently being seen.  New Jersey bands are orange colored – you can see two of “ours” in the photo above.

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Group of Post-breedingl Piping Plovers Roosting at
Stone Harbor Point
Photo courtesy of Sam Galick

We spend a lot of time on the beach nesting bird project discussing the love/hate relationship the public has with piping plovers. For every person that supports our conservation efforts for this highly vulnerable shorebird, there seems to be at least two people that complain the plovers take up too much of the beach or prevent dogs from being allowed on the beach.

But every once in awhile, you have one of those perfect encounters that makes all the work worthwhile, so I thought I’d share a recent one with you.

Last week I was conducting a piping plover migration and band resighting survey at Stone Harbor Point. The fact that it was an extremely warm and sunny October day – extending the illusion of summer for just a wee bit longer – alone should have been enough to make me content. Then there was the very cooperative flock of 13 piping plovers, including three with color bands that I recognized as our summer breeders. All and all, it was shaping up as a good day in the field!

As I was almost wrapping up my survey I noticed a birdwatching couple a little further down the beach gazing off into the distance through a scope. On the off-chance they had noticed some plovers I had missed I approached them to see what they were looking at.

“Seeing anything interesting?” I inquired.

“A flock of royal and caspian terns, but no, nothing much really,” the man replied. And then out of the blue he added, “No piping plovers.”

This was a surprising comment since I hadn’t prompted him and October isn’t exactly prime time for piping plover viewing in New Jersey (or anywhere on the breeding grounds for that matter). I proceeded to strike up a conversation with the couple. It turned out they were from Holland, this was their first trip to the U.S., and they were on a birding/nature trip that was starting in the Cape May area.

We talked a little about the work I did and then, naturally, I mentioned to them that there actually was a group of piping plovers just 50 yards away from them on the beach. Given their pale sand color, even more so in non-breeding plumage, I wasn’t surprised the couple had walked right past the plovers.

The man’s eyes widened and he said, “Really?”

Of course, I led them back to the plovers. As we approached the plovers and they came into clear view, the man stopped and turned to me and said, “I have been dreaming of seeing a piping plover for years.”

It isn’t too often you get to make someone’s dream come true. And it is nice to know someone else is dreaming of plovers other than me.

By Sarah Scheffer, CWFNJ Seasonal Field Technician

This year’s chapter of the Beach Nesting Bird Project brought with it many unique opportunities, particularly with the placement of color bands on nearly 30 of our piping plovers at two locations along the New Jersey coastline. Nesting adults and four chicks from Stone Harbor Point and Avalon were given bands, which we have been using to conduct resight surveys to understand how adults and juveniles move about before migrating. In the long term, these bands can be used to determine if birds return to the same breeding grounds or natal sites, and where they overwinter. The banding was carried out by two researchers from the State University of New York, Emily Heiser and Christy Weaver, as part of a project to determine flight movements and patterns of piping plovers in order to be able to minimize risks to these threatened shorebirds when assessing the placement of wind turbines. Luckily, some of the CWFNJ team, including myself, was able to provide assistance and help with the banding!

Placing the funnel trap around Piping Plover nest to capture the birds for banding.

Being able to band the piping plovers was a truly special experience. Nesting adults were captured by manipulating the predator exclosures (wire cages) placed over their nests to create only one entrance and one exit into a netted tunnel. Once captured the plovers were then carefully measured and weighed to determine crucial information such as body mass, wing length, and beak size. Using a small specialized tool, brightly colored plastic bands were placed on the legs of each bird to give them their own unique combination. Banding schemes can vary depending on who performs the banding and can include small flags and metal or plastic bands placed on the legs. At our two New Jersey sites, birds were given four bands, two on the upper portion of each leg. Piping plovers at Stone Harbor Point sport a green band on the top of each leg, while those at Avalon wear blue bands.

Piping Plover from Avalon NJ dubbed Whitney Houston (aka blue/grey blue/green) in hand for color banding.
Courtesy of Emily Heiser.

These bands have made it much easier to identify individual birds and to observe their habits. Along with the band combinations, we decided to give the plovers nicknames as well! Although the nicknames are definitely something that adds a little bit of fun to identification, they are actually quite practical as well. The nicknames helped to streamline communication about what was happening at each nesting site. For example, it is much easier to say that Bruce (Springsteen) was observed incubating his nest, than to say the bird with green gray, green yellow (band combinations are read from top to bottom, from left to right) was seen incubating.

During the summer piping plover breeding season, our duties included checking the breeding sites and the individual nests or broods every day. As the season progressed, resight surveys were also performed. A section of beach was regularly traversed and the number, location, and activities of the banded piping plovers were noted. These surveys give us crucial information about the site and the movements of the plovers, as well as when they depart to migrate. After her nest was lost in a flood tide, a banded female nicknamed Ivana was observed to have begun her migration and was spotted soon after in Virginia! As most staff check on the same sites every day, we became well acquainted with each bird and their particular idiosyncrasies. The increased ease of identification of these birds has helped turn up some surprising information. The banding project has resulted in a wealth of knowledge and the possibility to further understand the New Jersey population.

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Conserve Wildlife Plover Olympic Team
Todd Pover, Stephanie Egger, Alfred Breed (standing, l-r)
Melanie Mason, Sarah Scheffer (kneeling, l-r)

This past week, three teams of biologists and researchers took to the beach to compete in the first-ever Piping Plover Olympics. Christina Davis, a plover biologist with the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife (NJDFW), and I have been talking about the concept for nearly ten years, but this year, inspired by the 2012 London Olympics, the plover games finally became a reality.

Stephanie Egger “modeling” Team Conserve T-shirt as she prepares for first contest

With storm clouds threatening in the distance, the official Plover Olympic flag was unfurled and the teams gathered in uniform early last Tuesday evening for what would be a hard fought contest. A total of six events were staged, including sign and fence installation, color band resighting, exclosure building, egg and beach toy searching, and a team relay carrying fence poles. The evening was capped off with a challenging Piping Plover Trivia Contest. Events designed to test both the body and mind.

The Olympics were a chance for the teams to use the skills they learned and honed all season in a competitive arena instead of in the name of conservation. It was an opportunity to test the teamwork that we strive to develop amongst the staff. And it was tremendous fun!

Conserve Wildlife Team Captain Todd Pover holding winner’s trophy.

Teams were from the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey (of course); our “cross-office” rivals from NJDFW; and a plover research team from the State University of New York, consisting of members from both New Jersey and Massachusetts. Over the course of the evening there was a fair share of trash-talking and some battle scars to show, and in the end medals for everyone.

But there was also a winner…and I am happy to report that Team Conserve Wildlife emerged with this year’s winner’s trophy. Good job team!

The only thing missing from our Piping Plover Olympics was sponsors. The games were all about fun, but it isn’t too late to be an “Olympic” sponsor for the work we do here at CWFNJ. If you would like to help support what we do to protect our state’s endangered beach nesting birds, click here to adopt a piping plover. Or if you want to help CWFNJ’s overall conservation mission, click here to become a member today.

By Todd Pover, Beach Nesting Bird Project Manager

Piping Plover with Injured Wing at Cape May Point State Park

There is no way to sugar coat it – this has not been a stellar year for piping plovers in New Jersey. Due to a number of ill-timed severe storms, high tides, and heat waves, chick productivity was low this year. There was some comfort in knowing that these events were largely out of our control, so at least it wasn’t something we could have prevented. At the same time, there is a nagging feeling that years such as this are the new “normal” as we enter an era of climate change where more extreme weather is predicted.

While there were a number of tough moments throughout the season, one incident was especially frustrating for the staff. Several days after a piping plover chick reached its fledge (flying) date at Cape May Point State Park, where it had battled marauding crows for over a month, CWFNJ field technician Sarah Scheffer discovered the fledgling dragging its wing. This is never a good sign – usually it indicates a broken wing. Fortunately, because we monitor the site daily, we caught the problem immediately.

So, along with our partners at the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife – Endangered and Nongame Species Program, we set out to capture the bird the very next day. This involved a mixed bag of emotions; taking the chick from its natal site, with its distressed parents peeping as we took it away was heartbreaking to see and hear, but in this case we knew it was the best option. Once in hand, we transported the bird to Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research in Delaware, one of the most respected rehab facilities in the country.

Injured Piping Plover Looking Into Mirror at Rehab Facility
(next to a recovering Killdeer)

And so the rollercoaster ride began. The initial diagnosis was a minor fracture, but after x-rays things looked less promising – the chances given of the bird ever flying again were just 50/50. It also had other injuries consistent with a predator attack, but a round of antibiotics took care of that. There was good news as the bird steadily gained weight and remained active and alert. Even so, we weren’t overly optimistic as none of the piping plovers we had taken in for rehab in the past had survived or healed to the point of being released. A zoo placement is fine for educational purposes, but the point of this rehab and our program focus in general is to recover species in the wild.

So we were both a little surprised and obviously ecstatic when we got the call last week that the bird was flying and ready to be released! One month after going in for care, we took the piping plover out to Cape May NWR-2 Mile Beach Unit for a staff release “party”. It turned out to be a short celebration – the bird could fly even better than we hoped and immediately flew out of sight over the dunes – no lingering around to say “thank you”!

Rehabbed Piping Plover Ready for Release
(along with its killdeer rehab buddy)

Certainly, species recovery won’t hinge on a single bird making it back into the wild population, but in a year when nothing seemed to go right, and we had to work extra hard for every single fledgling, this was a ray of light and a happy ending to our otherwise difficult season.