Tag: Piping Plover

I Shot the Plovers, but I Did Not Shoot . . . .

Piping Plovers are listed as near threatened, mostly due to our development of shoreline areas. However, their populations are on a slow rise, due to habitat protection, as is the case at Ferry Beach.

Well, with a camera, that is. You got it, the title is adapted from the song. It was a windy day, blowing near 30 MPH with gusts. You can see the blur of the blowing, damp, grainy sand in the photo. Fortunately, the blowing sand was heavy enough that it rose only about two feet from the ground. Sand is really bad news for cameras.

The wind was great news for wind surfers who were struggling to deploy their wings in the strong wind. However, once they launched their wings they were moving about 25 knots over the water, sometimes going about 30 feet airborne. You will find some photos from a prior shoot, here.

Ferry Beach State Park: blowing sand
This species has a small population which has declined significantly since the 1950s. However, there have been overall population increases since 1991 and the species’s population is thought to currently be growing at a slow rate. The population increase is however largely the result of intensive conservation management and thus it is likely that positive trends would reverse again if conservation action were to stop. Due to its high conservation dependence and the risk of future declines following any stochastic event, the species warrants listing as Near Threatened.

Piping Plovers are listed as near threatened, mostly due to our development of shoreline areas. However, their populations are on a slow rise, due to habitat protection, as is the case at Ferry Beach. Actually, their greatest risk here is being hit by the occasional, stray golf ball from the adjacent golf course.

I walked along the beach waiting for photo opps. Seeing none after meandering about half mile down the beach, I started my return. Shortly thereafter I saw a little guy appear on the beach. Like many shorebirds, Plovers let you get relatively close; I began shooting. At this point I decided it was time to sit and wait, camera at the ready. Scanning in all directions, it was not long before I noticed a pair of birds in the grass to my right. They were not moving much and seemed to pose for my camera. After getting many shots, I decided to move to another angle for a different perspective.

Using my camera’s continuous shooting mode, I rattled off 262 frames to get 11 good photos. You will find these photos at my on-line gallery.

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