Scientific Research - Hooded Plover

Hooded Plover- Scientific Research

SYNOPSIS:

Hooded Plovers are an endangered bird, facing extinction. They are very small and have a black cap on top of their head. They live amongst beaches, just above the high tide and make nests in the washed up seaweed. Numbers of the Hooded Plover have decreased dramatically. This is because of predators attacking it and unsuccessful breading. Some main predators of the bird are Dogs, Vehicles, Humans and the Seagull (Which is becoming more and more competitive.  Habitat Modification and introduced predators are a threat as well.  There are only around 500 Hooded Plovers left in the Yorke Peninsula so something vital must be done soon. It is hard to tell how the breading is going as it is very difficult to locate the nests. We have guessed not too good as the population of the bird has dropped. We gather data to work out potential future actions to help the bird. Not too much can be done at this time though until we have more information on them.

AIM:

To investigate the Hooded Plover and record details about the bird e.g. the location, how many there was, what size they are and if you find a nest. It is important to note this info as numbers of the bird is rapidly dropping and its kind is facing extinction. Once the Hooded Plover is extinct it could affect a long chain of animals and fall back on us.

METHOD:

While recording data some tips on how to approach the bird are:

·         Walk slowly

·         Make little  noise

·         Don’t get too close

This will allow you to approach the bird without it flying away. Always separate your group into teams. The teams are: Camera Person, GPS Tracker, Scribe and Observers. This helps your locate and find the nests and birds itself.  

Results:

Birds seen:
Throughout the trip we saw 2 pairs of the Hooded Plover.
Our first pair were seen and photographed at=(S)35.14.077 (E)136.50.403
The second pair was spotted at=(S)35.14.039 (E)136.50.507

Weather:
Max:22, Min:15, no rain, 45%humidity. There was a SE wind going at 6km/h and there was 95% cloud cover. This weather was fantastic for our research. It provided us to get clear shots of the birds spotted. They were very active today, eating and flying around which made our job easier. Also we could I identify and tracks in the sand of potential predators. The waves were a bit big but had a nice smooth, swash and backwash.

Threats seen:
Human footprints: There were a few footprints on the West Bay beach but Apart from ours there weren't that many seen.
Walkers: We spotted 3 walkers.
Surfers: There were around 20 surfers 200m from our end point.
Cars 4WD: We spotted 4 cars, most with boat trailers.
Litter: We saw around 5-6 cans and various other objects.

Nests:No nests were found.