Happy News..A mother against the odds...Snowy plover in a wrecking yard

Howdy Y'all!

I work in a small wrecking Yard just outside of PDX. We are near the Columbia river & one of the nice(or bad) things is I work outside for the most part.

Some snowy plovers moved in a while back & one decided to make a nest in the middle of one of the rows of cars!! Dumb birds likee to nest in gravel & thier eggs & chicks look just like lil pebbles.

I noticed mama freeking out (& playing injured to draw me from her eggs-whatta gal!) so I checked & sure enough 4 eggs!.

Well the boss is a righty but he's smart enough not to fuck with an endangered species. He let me erect a barrier & do whatever work needs done in that area to lesten the disturbance. Better than shutting the place down IMHO. Well, today I went by Momma was acting strange-sure enough 2 of the 4 had hatched!!! One was still slimy. I came back after lunch with my camera & now there are 3 fuzzy little pebbles.
There's your good news for the day!. I'll do what I can to keep her undisturbed. I really understand why they are threatened they make thier nest in the gravel & predators can get them easy. If they do it on a road you'd run over them & never know it....Kinda sad but I'm taking care of these guys.Hope you can make them out, I didn't want to get too close...

Good catch! Now you are a bird mommy.

unless we get squished.

A gold star to you for protecting the little pebbles. That camouflage is incredible.

And they are cute little ones. Keep us updated as they grow.

thank you so much for taking care of those darling little birds. I love 'em!

She probably thinks she's a killdeer!

Photos at
http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i2780id.html
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/bow/SNOPLO/index.html
http://www.fws.gov/sacramento/es/animal_spp_acct/western_snowy_plover.htm
http://www.snowyplover.com/
http://www.rain.org/~audubon/sbasplvreducation.html (baby photos here!)

Hope you don't have any feral cats, fox, and possum in the area -- the birds won't stand a chance against them.

Please keep us updated, if possible. Can't wait to see baby pics.

nests by pretending to be hurt...dragging a wing to try to get you to follow them AWAY from the nest.

Good job in protecting the Snowy nest...

I studied the Piping Plover in SOuth Dakota in college....my long time favorite bird. It's happy little voice Peee Leew is etched in my memory.



I did a spring/summer study at Clay COunty park on the Missouri River outside of Vermillion South Dakota (USD). What a great time that was...I'd ride my bike out to the park, make my rounds checking each nest, wading or swimming the channels between sandbars. Watching each nest from a distance with binoculars, observing courting and nesting behavior. The small colony covered about a three square mile area with nests about 1/4 mile apart dotted in this web of large exposed sand bars. The plovers preffered the low wide flat sand bars with a band of marsh grass on the edges. Sand bars with more established vegitation were avoided. I wanted to video a hatching but couldn't get permission to use the video equipment in the wild...By midday I would wander back to the beach areas and my art student buds would be showing up to party...and I would hang out with them the rest of the day, bumming beer and snacks sometimes I planted a cooler of beverages in the woods for later if I drove out...I didn't tell anyone the locations of the nests or my beer cooler... :) Most folks didn't swim the 30 yard wide channel get to network of sands bars. It is a extremely beautiful place. Fine sand, clear water and marsh grasses....tons of birds...

I was this long-haired "bio-major" always at the park.

I counted the eggs in each nest and determined percentaged hatched and natality rates. I did this over the summer and follwed the status of 8 nesting pairs and thier broods. They did quite well a high percentage of young survived. ONe nests was destroyed by human traffic the parents went somewhere else out of my area. Egg shell thickness of hatched chicks were above normal and the average brood size and the eggs themselves were a bit larger than data from other regions that I had. I concluded that the population was healthy and thriving as long as the habitat remained intact and human recreation pressures kept in check during nesting season. Luckily that is early enough that it is a bit cold for many to be roaming around the sand bars late spring. After the young hatch they quickley are up and running and eating. After a few weeks they were difficult to find again. One had to watch an adult carefully and look for the other near open area edges...the chicks hide very well. Once they fledge they seem to leave the area and only occationaly did I see a bird as summer wore on.

The big issue with these birds (plovers) is that the nest being in sand with small pebbles at beach areas are suseptable to ATV and foot traffic. The birds are good at drawing people away from the the nest and preveting it from being discovered by a passer by but can't stop a beach football game or a constant stream of ATVs....

I did that study the spring and early summer of 1984 and the area is listed as a "critical habitat" for the species by USGS in 2002.

When I completed the study I presented the findings that fall during my bio major, "Senior Seminar" class with drawings and slide show. I was laughed at by the Pre-med students when I raised the curtains on the drawing boards exposing my hand drawn maps and birds. (art minor so they were rather good I thought)

The PreMed snobs stopped laughing fast after and all of the popular zoology Profs showed up to see my presentation as they knew I was doing this study and were always asking how it was going. They helped me a lot with equipment and resources and what to observe and how to observe. I took the entire hour and fielded questions (normally two presented, "maybe" one prof would attend.) My seminar was the only one that wasn't a "high school" term paper being read. I got an A and some of my best memories of my college years.

I went on later to be accepted into a progam to study marine biology in "three seas", East Coast, West Coast and Jamacia I was going to focus on coral ecology...unfortunately that was one of those life decisions that a young man allowed himself to be influenced by others and was convinced to not go...I regret that to this day.

and that is something in my life that I need to make right...

I effin couldn't believe it when I saw them(all 4 yipee!) running around. Little tiny versions of the roadrunner-zipzip zing!
There are also 3 slightly larger ones running around. Dad is helping now & watches them while mom forages. I've warned everyone that they are loose & we'll do our best. Gonna try & get a pic later but all 4 together will be tough.

:hi:

for a change. That's really sweet.

The little ones are very well hidden ... though I guess that's why they have speckly fuzz! I am watching some duck eggs hatch right now (rare domesticated varieties but nothing endangered). Way proud of you for protecting the mom and babies.

That pic is too cool! It's like those pictures you have to cross your eyes to make out the image.

It took a while but I see her. Thanks!

edit to add: Welcome to DU, your type are always so refreshing
peace be with you

Longer he thinks they are endangered the better...I got the name wrong when I named the file. I may be a birdlover but I can't name 'em very well.

I got a pic of 2 of them with Mom or Dad,Can't tell wich right?


Thanks for the comments, I've always been a softy. When I lived on a boat neighbors called me Noah as of all the critters I had...
Anyone in the San Rafael California area can visit my favorite animal rescue, Wayne the duck.He lives at the Civic center pond & now has many youngins that look just like him. Wayne was a large male muskovee & just a sweetheart. His mate got killed & he was mangled badly by a racoon. His neck was laid bare to the bone almost it's entire length. I had a vet friend who gave me gauze & burn cream. I did what I could & kept him in my shower (of my apartment!). He was very bad off & I had little hope. By the 3rd day & was going to put him down. When I came in to do it I saw blood in his water bowl. Wich means he had gained enough control to drink. His kneck was so badly damaged I thought there was no way. Animals are amazing...He had a great time using the doggie door & playing with my Jack Russel. A friend came by,I forgot to tell him about Wayne. He walked in & said DUDE! There is a DUCK in your living room. & he's HAPPY!...great compliment I'd say...
After a 2 month recuperation in the apartment I set him free in the SR. pond,just before moving to Oregon. I have friends who check on him time to time but if anyone in that area reads this,please go feed the ducks Ok??Wayne is easy to spot-Very friendly,large & glossy black with white specking. His kneck is heavilly scarred from the rear but the waddle area etc... has all healed nicely.