Success at Westport Town Beach
Over the past couple months, our Coastal Waterbird Program crew has worked extremely hard to keep the piping plovers of Westport Town Beach safe.
Throughout the season, five different pairs of these amazing little birds established their own territories along the beach’s shoreline. Here, they attempted to lay nests and start their own families. Unfortunately, even with the help of the Coastal Waterbird Program almost every single pair had their eggs predated by local scavengers, including crows and coyotes.
The pairs that lost their eggs did not re-attempt to lay another nest afterwards and left for the season. Pair two on the other hand, was able to keep their eggs safe, and four healthy chicks were able to hatch successfully. Throughout the first couple weeks of life, these little puffballs spent their days foraging on the beach and building up their strength. Now, they have reached the age where all four are ready to fledge.
Each day they get closer and closer to flying, which will be crucial for them to master before making their journey down south to the tropics for the winter. It is a miracle that these piping plover chicks have all successfully made it to this phase of their life, and they have many more amazing years ahead of them.