Ever heard of a hooded dotterel (aka 'plover')
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (325693)
Rockingham, Australia
July 13, 2018 6:33pm CST
Isn't 'dotterel' a strange word? I wonder how it came about. Hooded dotterels or plovers (Charadrius cacullaus) are small timid shorebirds that nest from August to February on beaches above high tide mark and into the dunes. Disturbance is their biggest threat. Hooded plovers have one of the lowest rates of chick survival in the world. Parents will abandon eggs and chicks if disturbed.
My bird book says they are also called the hooded dotterel. They lay 2-3 eggs in shallow scrapes in the sand so no wonder the eggs and chicks are so vulnerable.
Suggestions for aiding the continued existence of the hooded plover include avoiding the area between the high tide mark and the sand dunes. This includes only riding horses below the high tide mark to avoid trampling small exposed eggs; removing rubbish and food scraps which night attract scavengers such as foxes cats and seagulls, collecting discarded fishing line and plastic and moving away quickly if you come across chicks and/or eggs.
We didn't see a 'real' plover but this sign was on the Great Ocean Road in Victoria.
11 people like this
11 responses
@JamesHxstatic (29242)
• Eugene, Oregon
14 Jul 18
We have a snowy plover in Oregon that is under similar protection.
2 people like this
@snowy22315 (169930)
• United States
13 Jul 18
I think I have heard of them. We have a variety of shore birds that are on our coasts too..more than you would think.
1 person likes this
@snowy22315 (169930)
• United States
14 Jul 18
@JudyEv Australia might be the bird capital of the world. You have all kinds we don't have here.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (325693)
• Rockingham, Australia
15 Jul 18
@snowy22315 It happened in Ireland and on the continent too. Lots of birds that I didn't recognise but also a lot that had the same names as ours but weren't the same in appearance - magpies, robins for instance didn't look anything like ours.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118433)
• Gainesville, Florida
22 Jul 18
It's a wonder those birds have survived this long if they abandon their nests so easily.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118433)
• Gainesville, Florida
29 Jul 18
@JudyEv True, adding in humans and dogs to the natural predators that already ate or destroyed their nests, and it makes sense that they are now endangered.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (34348)
•
25 Jul 18
We have plover nesting areas at one of the beaches I go to near where I live. They have signs protecting them and it is roped off to the public.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (34348)
•
2 Aug 18
@JudyEv Yes, with their low survival rates definitely a good thing
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (73408)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
14 Jul 18
Very interesting. I had heard the word plover but didn't know anything about these birds.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109857)
• Los Angeles, California
14 Jul 18
I have never heard of the bird but there are many I am not familiar with.
1 person likes this
@Jessabuma (31700)
• Baguio, Philippines
14 Jul 18
I am not aware of this, it's my first time hearing this words
1 person likes this
@Jessabuma (31700)
• Baguio, Philippines
14 Jul 18
@JudyEv yes we do have many lovely birds here too
1 person likes this