Reports by Wendy Hayes, BirdLife Australia volunteer, trained Hooded Plover monitor.
Photos by Paul Hastings.

SAGA BEGINS: 9th February

HOODED PLOVER AT HORSE TRACK

The Horse Track Hoodies with a fenced off nest area on our Sandy Point beach are due to hatch their eggs this week.

We had hoped that this, their 4th nest attempt this season, would result in hatching of 3 tiny, fluffy and extremely vulnerable chicks to look out for while they embarked on the next hazardous stage.

The Hoodies had chosen a good spot, probably the best on this narrow part of the beach given shrinking habitat and increased human use of this part of the coast. They’d survived heavy human traffic throughout January including a busy Australia Day Holiday weekend, a Fun Run which passed by at waters edge at low tide with all dogs leashed thanks to the organizer, as well as an earlier set of very high High Tide levels.

After incubating eggs for nearly 4 weeks on the bare sand at the top of the beach, warding off a magpie family living nearby, fighting off an invading small battalion of silver gulls and keeping an eagle eye out for ravens and other predators much larger than themselves and all keen to feast on their eggs, this pair of Hooded Plovers faced yet another threat from the recent storm which hit Sandy Point on Thursday afternoon.

The pair stayed on the nest stoically sharing incubating duty during the initial front through cold, drenching rain and gale force winds. Overnight the high tide mark appeared to just reach the nest but a storm-surge wave must have washed over the nest, rolling the eggs out.

Miraculously, this plucky little pair managed to recover 2 of their 3 eggs and set up a new nest site close to the original location. Hatching is now slightly overdue but we’re unsure if the eggs are viable given all the dramas they have faced. Development may have been slowed following frequent interruptions to incubation over the weeks causing the incubating bird to leave the nest and exposing the eggs to both heat and cold, only time will tell. If the eggs do hatch you’ll hear all about it because the chicks are tiny, hard to see being extremely well-camouflaged, and forage for their own food on the beach till they can fly 5 weeks after hatching so we'll be asking everyone to take great care in the vicinity. If the eggs are not viable please continue to give the pair space on the beach, the breeding season is not finished and the pair might decide to lay more eggs in a new nest nearby.

Meanwhile we can improve the chances of successful hatching of this nest by following Birdlife Australia guidelines:

a. leash dogs at all times on this beach

b. walk at waters edge on firm sand, stay away from fence, preferably avoid area altogether at high tide,

c. minimise time spent in vicinity of fenced area, don’t linger

d. slow down when passing on horseback or bike (the birds are spooked and leave the nest even when you’re away from fence)

These little birds have taught us all a lot, our Sandy Point community has heeded the advice on the Birdlife Australia signs, mostly leash their dogs when asked, obey signs and avoid fenced areas. This improves chances of all our rare and endangered shore-nesting birds successfully breeding on remote beaches and dunes on the spit, as well as the shared Horse Track beach.

We are grateful to Sandy Point Foreshore Committee of Management for clearing the Horse Track and Designated (Tyre) Tracks enabling walkers to avoid Hoodie breeding areas at Horse Track and in the dunes on the spit, and thanks to WiSP(Wildlife in Sandy Point) for posting multiple notices and disseminating information about use of those tracks, Birdlife Australia for fencing materials, signs, support and volunteer training, and Jonathon Stevenson for mentoring.

UPDATE: 11th February

Hooded Plovers at Horse Track, Sandy Point, VIC hatched 2 chicks today. All well. 

This is a chick’s most vulnerable time, Horse Track Hoodies need our beach-sharing community to help these chicks survive for 35 days until they fledge. Please - leash dogs in this area - read and heed signs - avoid beach area adjacent to fence when possible, particularly High Tide - when passing a fenced area keep to waterline, do not linger
- spread the word

Chicks are - tiny, camouflaged, - defenceless (can’t fly), - feeding themselves (foraging outside fenced area) - vulnerable to numerous threats (natural predators, humans, dogs, bikes, horses, extreme weather) Hoodie parents are fiercely protective, every time the parents perceive a threat the chick stays still to avoid being noticed- possibly for hours if many people are passing. Chicks may starve if we don’t give them space. When you notice a parent Hoodie the chick may be close by but you may not notice it, to avoid accidentally standing on a chick leave the area carefully and slowly.

UPDATE: 11th February

Horse Track Hooded plover chicks, less than 24 hours since hatched, are already foraging on wet sand near the water-line.

One parent is shepherding the babies while the other wards off local magpies and aggressively fights off a flock of hovering silver gulls when they come close.

We are grateful to a local dog-owner with his 2 dogs who chose to turn back from the beach below the fenced area when he realised our Hoodie family was feeding on the sand where he intended to walk. A temporary line in the sand signals chicks are feeding on the wet sand ahead, please heed the Birdlife Australia signs.

Everyone in the Sandy Point community can help these chicks survive for the next 35 days (till they can fly) by
- leashing dogs
-avoiding fenced and adjacent area of beach whenever possible,
-walking on firm sand at waters-edge where the new chick feeding signs are posted, and
- spreading the word.

High tide due this afternoon (Saturday) will be critical for these babies who cannot yet run fast enough to flee a threat. They may starve if too many people walk past and they stop feeding.

UPDATE: 19th February

Our Horse Track Hoodie chicks did not survive past last weekend.

A moderate amount of humans on Sandy Point beach over that weekend coincided with afternoon High Tide leaving narrow strip of beach to walk/jog/ride along.

Beach-users sharing the beach where the well-camouflaged 2-day-old flightless chicks were foraging for themselves may have distracted the extremely vigilant Hoodie parents who were aggressively protecting the day-old chicks from natural predators. We humans possibly unknowingly contributed to loss of chicks during their most vulnerable period just by our presence in the vicinity.

Our Horse Track pair may decide to breed again (5th nest) before the current breeding season finishes. We will adjust signs accordingly and post a further update when certain. Till then please give our Hoodies SPACE on the beach past Horse Track exit, heed signs, leash dogs, avoid High Tide, walk slowly at water’s edge and off the soft sand, and don’t linger.

Along the spit we recently observed Hoodie flightless chicks foraging on the beach, more Hooded Plover nests containing eggs still to hatch and other breeding endangered shore-nesting birds, so keep out of the dunes and heed steps outlined on BirdLife Australia signs to improve their chance of successful breeding. If you notice adult Hoodies leave slowly and carefully to avoid unknowingly crush a camouflaged chick underfoot.

Congratulations to our Sandy Point beach-using community which by showing interest and increased willingness to share this beautiful beach, allowed Horse Track Hoodies to hatch eggs in face of extraordinary odds, and increased chances of chicks' survival in their own home.

Spread the word.