This week we had some predator activity in the Piping Plover area. On Wednesday, I found two detached wings from different birds along the shoreline near our nest. I kept an eye out but did not see any raptors. I arrived at the Point Saturday morning to find either a Merlin or a Peregrine Falcon eating a small bird on some driftwood. There was bad heat distortion at that distance, and it flew away as I got closer. I didn’t see it for the rest of that day or today.
A Killdeer nest hidden along the beach at WPBO. Photo by Joselyn Ralph
All of our regular plovers are accounted for, and our nest seems to be doing well. A new male, X,O:Of,RG, was here on Wednesday and has since left. Another new male, X,-:OB Red Dot, was spotted today for the first time. Our regular male X,B:Of,OG was gone for a few days and spotted at Vermillion before returning.
I found a Killdeer nest in the cobble/driftwood on the bayside. I walked right up to it with no adults doing the broken wing display — a reminder of how important it is to look down while you’re walking. The adults did return to it later, so it is an active nest.
~ Joselyn Ralph
2023 Piping Plover Monitor
Piping Plover monitoring is a collaborative effort between Michigan Audubon and Seney National Wildlife Refuge (USFWS).
