Word About the Hood

Word about the Hood

Biannual newsletter of BirdLife Australia’s Beach-nesting Birds Program

Edition 17 – June 2017

UPDATE FROM THE BEACH-NESTING BIRDS TEAM

Dr Grainne Maguire, Coast and Marine Program Manager

It has been awhile since I’ve had the Photo: Grainne Maguire opportunity to write an intro for our newsletter as I have been on leave for over a year. I have now returned to the project part-time and feel motivated to tackle some big gaps and issues that stand in the way of us helping these birds. I even got to set foot on to a beach again and see oystercatchers and hoodies, with a trip to Kangaroo Island being one of the first regions for me to visit on my return. It was particularly nice to visit the island because the people there are just so keen to get involved with protecting nesting coastal birds, and I can see lots of ways we can help. In the coming year, I look forward to reconnecting with each of the regions. Our team has decided to adopt some of our past methods of engaging with the regions including our start of season working group meetings, and more site visits throughout the season to spend time on the ground with volunteers. This will allow us to improve levels of support to each group according to their needs and to recognise issues as they arise.

We are fortunate to have received Icon Species funding from the Victorian Government for the next three years which will enable us to better support our Victorian groups and re-commit to start of season working group meetings, debriefs and training sessions along the coast. These have been pivotal tools for recruiting, up-skilling and supporting volunteers and land managers, and for evaluating our success and

adapting our recovery effor ts. If we are lucky, we may be successful with our funding application through the Threatened Species Fund which would enable us to support our South Australian groups, build these in size and strength, and to develop resources for all participants in the program to ensure we all have the best tools and advice available for protecting the birds and mitigating threats. In this same application we also applied for funds to do some much needed research into predators in an effort to discover some new techniques for mitigating the threats they pose, particularly as traditional control techniques are not always able to be used in some coastal areas, and because predator control is so costly and requires high investment over time to maintain tolerable levels.

Photo: Grainne Maguire

We also applied for funding to carry out additional targeted leg flagging to fill some key knowledge gaps and provide enough data to complete a Population Viability Analysis (PVA). A PVA would enable us to learn what our fledging output targets should be in order to ensure a stable and resilient population in the future.

Recently we held our National Conference in Willunga (south of Adelaide) and this was terrific. It was so great to see so many familiar faces as well as so many new ones. It was also good to hold the conference in South Australia for the first time, which meant that people who have not had the opportunity to attend before could come and that we could showcase a lot of the good work Photo: Glenn Ehmke happening in the state. Stay tuned to hear where our next conference will be held!

We hope you enjoy this newsletter which contains updates from each of the regions about the 2016/17 season, student research updates, and snippets about what we have been up to these past six months (of course excluding all the boring stuff like reporting, admin and permit/ethics applications/reports!). Remember to get in touch with us if you want to know where to find information about a particular threat or recovery action, or access to materials or templates, or you would like to enquire about events or training opportunities in your region.

WELCOME TO OUR NEW BEACH-NESTING BIRDS STAFF AND OFFICE VOLUNTEERS!

Photo: Fresh Images

In the last newsletter, we said good bye to Kasun, who had moved to South Australia to work on the Samphire Coast Icon Project... guess what? Kasun will be back working with the Beach-nesting birds Team in September! Kasun will remain in South Australia during September and run the start of season meetings, training workshops for Hooded Plovers and Pied Oystercatchers, and also run some Teacher Professional Development sessions! He’ll be busy travelling around the Fleurieu Peninsula, and to Yorke Peninsula, before he returns to Melbourne! Welcome back Kasun, we’re extremely excited to have you back on the team!

We also want to welcome our wonderful Office Volunteer, Lucinda Plowman!

OFFICE VOLUNTEERING FOR BEACH-NESTING BIRDS

Lucinda Plowman

Hi, I’m Lucinda, I am quite new to BirdLife, I started volunteering in the Melbourne office in February of this year. I have always had an interest in animals both wild and domestic and in fields of animal husbandry and conservation. I have volunteered at RSPCA for 6 years and completed two wildlife internships in Canada and several short courses at Box Hill Institute to continue my education in both fields. I currently work in a vet clinic and am seeking opportunities to complete Honours fieldwork overseas.

2 Word about the Hood - Edition 17

I have a degree in Wildlife Conservation and have had trouble getting work in the field and didn’t want to lose what I had learnt at university and so emailed BirdLife to volunteer. I was very lucky to get a quick response from the Beach-nesting Birds (BNB) team and have enjoyed myself thoroughly with Grainne, Meg and Renee 

I was lucky enough to help organise and attend the biennial BNB Conference in South Australia which was an awesome experience and got to learn more about the birds and those who volunteer and work so hard to help provide information on the ecology of the birds and how to raise community awareness and involvement. I enjoyed hearing stories from hard working professionals in the conservation field.

NATIONAL BEACH-NESTING BIRDS CONFERENCE, MAY 26-27, WILLUNGA, SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Over two days we shared ideas, met new people, heard about the work being done in different parts of Australia for beach-nesting birds, learnt of new research findings and attended some interesting training sessions. It seems like two days are never enough to showcase all the work happening and to hear all the stories people have to tell. The beach-nesting birds’ team come away from the conference with so many fresh ideas based on your feedback and insight into the issues we still need to dedicate more time to.

This event is one that we have always pieced together bits of funding for, and with the small cover charge for attendance, we can make it happen. We feel it is really important because these birds are so widely dispersed and we need to make sure there are opportunities for people working on this project to meet and to recognise that they are part of a large conservation project that goes well beyond their local coast. This time round we were fortunate to have some funding support from Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges NRM Board, Barwon Coast Committee of Management, the National Landcare Programme and the Victorian Government’s Icon Species fund.

The following pages are some images of the conference including the presentations, discussion groups and dinner on the Friday, the field trips on the Saturday and Sunday! Images from Glenn Ehmke, Kasun Ekanayake, Grainne Maguire, Renee Mead, and Carole and Ian Forsyth.

4 Word about the Hood - Edition 17

TALKING TO DOG OWNERS ON THE BEACH: LESSONS FROM THE BNB CONFERENCE:

Glenda Woodward, Friends of the Hooded Plover Yorke Peninsula, SA.

I have been a beach-nesting bird volunteer for some years but when I speak to people down the beach with dogs, I know I can improve how ask them to put their dogs on a lead.

I must declare that I like dogs, I even have a dog.

I just wish people with dogs would put those dogs on a leash when they see the hooded plover signs on the beach. I realize I am often stressed – worried about the birds – would like people to get those dogs on a lead ASAP.

So, I was really looking forward to the recent Beach-nesting Birds Conference, hoped to pick up some tips on how to better talk to people with dogs. On the second day of the conference, Kevin Collister, an expert

communications faci litator spoke to the group. His Background was different for a bird conference, having worked in STAR (Special Tasks and Rescue) force for years – over 20 years of experience dealing with Australia’s most dangerous criminals – drug searches, high security escorts, escapes and riots!! Now I thought, that should help when dealing with strangers on the beach!!

If Kevin Collister, can talk down Photo: Renee Mead people with guns, I can talk to people with dogs.

Kevin was very entertaining and had some really good tips. This is by no means a full summary of his talk but some of the tips I picked up on the day, and would strongly recommend if anyone has the opportunity to hear him speak to do so.

So, firstly :  You need to control your thoughts, control your stress (I can just see those dogs running toward those chicks now….), breathe with your diaphragm (helps you relax).  Assess yourself, the person you want to talk to and the environment around you  Treat people with respect  Try and see where they are coming from e.g. may not have seen the signs, may be having a bad day etc.  Stand, strong, confident and relaxed, well balanced on both legs.  Talk at a distance (making sure you are not right in their face)  Start with saying “good morning” or similar, make a connection with them if possible e.g. nice dog/what sort of dog is that?  Then can I ask you to please put your dog on a leash? (we can only ask, not tell) “Do you realize that there are some endangered hooded plover chicks on the beach ahead”? Maybe have something to show them such as a hooded plover information leaflet.  Could go on with “Do you realize that Australia has the highest number of native animals that have become extinct”. “If we don’t make some changes to how we manage the environment around these gentle little birds maybe they too will become extinct”.  Always leave on a good note if at all possible, e.g.” Thank you for your time, have a good day” etc.

Hope these few tips help and may the hoodies have a very successful season ahead!

Photo: Glenn Ehmke

6 Word about the Hood - Edition 17

‘THE YOUNG ONES’ – BELLARINE/SURF COAST CONFERENCE POSTER

Julie Riley and Jennie Turner, Coordinators, Friends of the Hooded Plover Breamlea

Season 2016/17 was a tough one for the Bellarine/Surf Coast with only the ‘nudist’ chick fledging but we were heartened to see so many juveniles visiting our beaches or finding territory here. So the ‘Friends’ groups celebrated these ‘Young Ones’ in our poster displayed at the conference on the Fleurieu Peninsula. Those representing our region were volunteers Andrea Dennett, Jan Lierich, Jennie Turner and Geoff Gates with Brett Diehm and Sher Blyth from Barwon Coast, Steve Smithyman from COGG, and ‘fox man’ Paul Schefferle.

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT:

Rochelle Berryman – Volunteer, Eyre Peninsula

What made you want to volunteer on the Beach-nesting Birds Project and when did you start? I love the beach, I love the environment and I love birds and animals. I’ve always really appreciated what is in ‘my front yard’ and want to do my best to not only look after it, but give something back as well. It actually started with whales; I began volunteering as a whale spotter in June 2014 for my region which led to many back and forth conversations with Elizabeth Steele-Collins (Volunteer Regional Coordinator, South Coast Fleurieu Peninsula). Elizabeth suggested that I should become a volunteer with BirdLife Australia to monitor the Hoodies near me. So glad I did!

What sort of activities do Photo: Rogers Beach. Rochelle Berryman you undertake as a volunteer? Mostly monitoring and recording data on the BNB portal. It’s a full time job in Hoodie season! I only have 2 pairs that I monitor but it’s very time consuming. I talk to a lot of beach-goers and many times have had to camp at the beach to keep an eye on things. Also have been involved in some education activities with the local school, I believe it’s very important to educate people, especially kids, for the Hoodies future survival.

Whereabouts on the coast do you volunteer? I married a coastal farmer (he loves the Hoodies too). Our farm is Lipson Cove on the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. I volunteer along a large coastal area between Port Neill and Tumby Bay.

What has been one of your highlights whilst being a BirdLife Australia Friends of the Hooded Plover volunteer? Getting to know the little Hoodies, they are so gorgeous. I will be a Hoodie Volunteer forever. Knowing that I can make a difference is huge, without us volunteers the Hoodies wouldn’t have much hope at all. When you know that the chicks wouldn’t have made it to fledging stage if you weren’t there volunteering, watching their first flying lessons and then to see them fly across the water to another beach is one the most rewarding things I’ve ever done.

Photo: Glenn Ehmke

8 Word about the Hood - Edition 17

STUDENT CORNER

INTERACTIONS BETWEEN DOGS AND FOXES ON VICTORIA’S PUBLIC BEACHES

Caitlin Orr, Deakin University Honours Student

I have a strong interest in the management of introduced species, particularly predators. Most Victorian beaches are publically owned and managed. On the coasts of Victoria, two prominent mammalian predators are dogs and foxes. The management of domestic dogs is a controversial issue on Victorian public lands. Dogs may negatively impact on wildlife and coastal environments, whilst dog owners want to exercise their dogs along beaches. Less controversy exists about foxes. The predation of native species (e.g., the beach-dwelling Hooded Plover) by foxes has been extensively documented since the 1890’s.

While efforts to manage foxes and dogs are ongoing, the possibility that they interact has been largely ignored but may be critical in terms of what their control would mean for native species.

This Honours project has two aims: 1. To determine if domestic dogs provide bird populations with protection from fox predation 2. To test if the addition of dog urine to the vicinity of a nest confers protection from foxes

Beach sites across Victoria will be chosen to have equal spread of dog off lead, dog on lead and dog exclusion beaches (with known fox-control histories). Surveys will be conducted at each beach to determine domestic dog densities. Cameras will be set to confirm dog visitation estimates. Motion-sensing cameras will then be deployed throughout the dune system. Each camera will have a bait station (mimicking a Hooded Plover nest) to attract nearby foxes into its vicinity. Fox population estimates will be determined for each beach, along with the areas of the beaches being used by foxes. Analysis will examine whether prevailing dog densities influences fox occurrence or activity. A random subset of bait stations will then have artificial dog urine applied around them. Comparison of the survival of these nests with untreated nests will enable an examination of the effectiveness of this approach in helping beach- nesting shorebirds.

I will contact regional coordinators and land managers once plans are more established. In conjunction with the land managers, I will be conducting my project on Victorian beaches this spring and aim to determine if domestic dogs alter the number or usage of beaches by foxes.

EMBRYONIC VOCALISATIONS

Kristal Kostoglou, Deakin University PhD student

Growing up I was always fascinated by both plants and animals. I remember in year 9, I discovered the Bachelor of Environmental Science at Deakin and it sounded like the most exciting course. At the time, my secondary college did not offer environmental science so I took the initiative to start a petition to include it in the VCE curriculum.

Unfortunately, they were unable to run the subject for my year level but have now included it as an ongoing VCE subject. Despite this, I still went on to complete the Bachelor of Environmental Science

9 which helped me find my passion for birds, particularly shorebirds! After volunteering one day at Cheetham Wetlands monitoring Red-capped Plovers I knew I wanted to study these guys!

I completed my honours research project over the 2015/16 Red- capped plover breeding season in Cheetam Wetlands. My project, which has now been published in Behavioural Ecology (Kostoglou et al. 2017), explored the intriguing characteristic that is embryonic vocalisations i.e. embryos calling from within the egg. There is little to no information on embryonic vocalisations, particularly for shorebirds, which is why I decided to examine the potential benefits and basic patterns of embryonic calling. I also tested the potential costs by determining whether these vocalisations are used as an auditory cue by predators to locate nests and eat eggs.

The results from my project showed that vocalisations only occurred in the late stage of incubation (5-0 days before hatching) and that the nature of vocalisations (i.e. number of calls per recording, minimum and maximum acoustic frequencies [kHz]) can be influenced by age and temperature. Although embryonic vocalisations did not increase the chance of predators locating nests, my results highlighted the complexities of shorebird embryonic vocalisations.

In July 2017, I will begin my PhD at Deakin, continuing to study the function and costs of embryonic vocalisations for both Red-capped Plovers and Masked Lapwings.

RADIO-TRACKING HOODED PLOVER CHICKS

Tom Schmidt, Deakin University

I completed an honours research project over the 2016/17 Hoodie breeding season in central, Southern Victoria. Hooded Plover chicks suffer high mortality (only about 20 % of chicks that hatch are thought to survive to fledging) although the causes are not well understood as most failed chicks simply ‘disappear’. My research project aimed to investigate the effectiveness of radio-tracking for monitoring hooded plover chick survival and fate, hoping to increase our understanding of the causes of high chick mortality. I also analysed chick survival and fate information using historical portal data from nine previous seasons of monitoring.

I carefully captured chicks and attached small radio transmitters before releasing them back to their parents. Chicks were then monitored every one to two days. Eleven (22 %) of the 49 chicks monitored in the study survived to fledge. Statistical analysis showed the attachment of a transmitter had no significant effect on chick survival when compared to their untagged siblings. For chicks that failed with a transmitter attached, fate was determined in 23 % of cases through necropsy of recovered bodies or print evidence around a recovered transmitter. In one shocking case, I traced a Photo: Grainne Maguire missing chick to a garbage bin and found the body double-bagged

10 Word about the Hood - Edition 17 inside a dog poo bag, seemingly as an attempt by the dog owner to cover-up the incident. A necropsy confirmed this chick was killed by a dog.

The likelihood of determining the fate of failed chicks greatly increased using radio-tracking compared to the historical data from regular monitoring, where chick fate was only known for 2.4 % of failed chicks (and this is from 552 chicks in 9 seasons of monitoring). Understanding the factors affecting chick survival is important for implementation of appropriate management, further research is needed, however radio- tracking presents a promising technique to help develop our knowledge of Hooded Plover chick ecology.

Many thanks to my supervisors, Mike Weston and Grainne Maguire, and to all the volunteers who assisted me in the field and contributed sightings to the portal throughout the season.

HOODED PLOVER CHICK KILLED BY DOG

Associate Professor Mike Weston, Deakin University

The battle to save threatened shorebirds which breed on our beaches rages every spring and summer, as hoards of Victorians and their dogs enjoy time at the beach, and Hooded Plovers breed. Sadly, the chances of surviving from hatching to the age at which they can fly, a mere 30 days, are so low that chick death is considered a major conservation problem.

So what kills these chicks? We have little idea, but we do know the vast majority do not survive. However, if we start to solve this mystery we could generate solutions to help these declining bird populations. The difficulty stems from the high mobility of chicks. They feed themselves within hours of hatching, and that means these ‘balls of fluff’ move a lot, while their attentive parents shepherd them around the beach, and work to keep them warm and safe from predators. We were overdue to take bolder Photo: Tom Schmidt steps to understand this critical issue.

Boldness came in the form of tiny radio-transmitters fitted to the chicks when they hatched, and which enabled researchers to locate them, dead or alive. Wildlife and Conservation Biology honours student, Tom Schmidt, brought the dedication and expertise needed to conduct this ambitious project.

“Happily, we tracked some chicks until they could fly. The transmitters also enabled us to find some bodies of chicks which had not survived, and these were sent off for post-mortem inspection” said Tom. “The bodies told us their stories, and it seems like dog and bird attack were lead candidates as causes of death. However we made one shocking discovery of a chick ……”.

The team was shocked by the discovery of a mauled chick dumped in a rubbish bin at a beach entry point on 13th Beach. Tom recounted “….we knew the signal was coming from the bin, so we had to scan each item in the bin to locate the chick. The whole time I was thinking to myself that this must be a mistake, how could a small flightless chick of a threatened species end up in a bin?” The tiny body was tied into a bag containing dog faeces, and the injuries were consistent with dog attack. Internal organs protruded and a second bag was used, Photo: Tom Schmidt apparently to conceal the evidence.

“While we did not witness the event, the evidence paints a picture of dog attack followed by an attempt to cover that attack up” said Dr Weston. “This is shameful behaviour! BirdLife Australia, through its volunteers and experts, have been working tirelessly to help this species, and promote responsible dog ownership and management on beaches. This event undoes that good work, and diminishes the efforts of responsible dog owners” he said. Recent changes to dog management on Victorian beaches have seen dogs excluded and controversy regarding dogs on beach continues. Given that most chicks still mysteriously disappear, dog attack could be playing a prominent role in the species decline.

“Responsible dog ownership on beaches means that dogs should not be able to hunt and kill birds or other wildlife. That involves awareness, obeying regulations and using leashes” said Dr Weston. “Our philosophy has always been to find solutions to promote coexistence, to share the beach, with restrictions as a last resort. The dog walking community on our beaches needs to rise to the challenge, we need them to help save these species.”

PORTAL CORNER

Work on the portal never stops! There is ongoing maintenance required and issues that need addressing when they arise. We are within days of having an updated data portal user manual, which Leonie Daws has kindly volunteered to update and has been working hard to make it as user friendly as possible, so thank you to Leonie for spending time helping us get this ready!

An important date for you to put in your diaries, is 17th July – 31st July. The portal will be closed during this time to prepare for next season and to upgrade a few glitches. You need to have all your data entered by Sunday 16th July.

We’ve also included some summary stats for data entry for each species below for the 2016-2017 breeding season:

Sooty Pied Beach Stone- Red-capped Hooded Plover Oystercatcher Oystercatcher curlew Plover # of entries 245 149 4 866 8,742 Most entries 46 63 3 153 221 for one site Most total 65 35 3 217 559 entries Debbie Keith Jones, Renee Mead Mark Lethlean, Debbie (name) Prestwood, South Australia Victoria Prestwood, South South Australia Australia # of people 40 37 2 59 192 entering data # of threat 134 93 4 710 5,382 assessments

INTERESTING SIGHTINGS

A BEACH TOO FAR!

Ann Lindsey

It was the 22nd of July, 2016 and the moment I saw the bird feeding at the edge of the waves in the distance, I knew it was a rare species for the Hunter Region of NSW. Was it some exotic species flown in early from South-east Asia or perhaps an American dotterel which had lost its way? As we drew closer

12 Word about the Hood - Edition 17 details became clearer and fellow surveyor, Neil Fraser, looking at the BirdLife Australia shorebird sheets commented that its plumage looked like a pale version of that of Hooded Plover. And so it was – a young Hooded Plover which had flown north instead of south! According to Grainne Maguire, beach-nesting bird expert, whom I immediately contacted, young birds disperse from breeding sites in search of a partner and new beach on which to settle. Hooded Plovers get their black hood by about eight months of age and so our bird was younger than eight months as it was still wearing a washed-out, pale brown cap. This is the first, recent, confirmed sighting of Hooded Plover in the Hunter Region although there are reports from the Port Stephens area in 1928 (Chisholm & Cayley) and 1931 (Horden). Their current northern range in NSW is approximately Jervis Bay.

The bird was found during a regular Hunter Bird Observers Club monthly survey of Stockton Beach, aka Worimi Conservation Lands which stretch over 30 kilometres between Stockton and Anna Bay north of Newcastle. Surveys started in 2009 in conjunction with national park rangers and are now part of the management plan for the Park. For the purposes of BirdLife Australia’s Atlas Project, the beach is divided into three five kilometre area searches. Australian Pied Oystercatchers occur commonly in small numbers and attempt to breed most years but due to disturbance most attempts fail. In March up to 150 Double-banded Plovers fly in Photo: Ann Lindsey from New Zealand and spend the winter roosting on the beach front.

Needless to say, the Hoodie’s presence caused a flurry of birdwatchers to the beach as it was a new bird for absolutely everyone’s Hunter List. Luckily the bird favoured an area only about four kilometres from the northern end so people without four wheel drive vehicles were able to walk in. This increased activity was most useful as we were able to pinpoint its last sighting which was 19 August.

A.H. Chisholm & N. W. Cayley (1929) Birds of Port Stephens, N.S.W., Emu - Austral Ornithology, 28:4, 243-251 H. E. Hordern (1931) Birds of Port Stephens, N.S.W., Emu - Austral Ornithology, 31:1, 21-26

DREAM WEDDING… NOT FOR THE HOODIES!

Martin and Helen Boyer, Friends of the Hooded Plover Great South West Victoria.

During the busy holiday period, a member of the public on holidays at Cape Bridgewater contacted BirdLife Australia to let them know they had found a hooded plover nest, near the Bridgewater Café. This beach is 3km in length and being only 8km west from Portland, it gets extremely popular during the holidays.

After a couple of inspections to confirm this, a nest was found by Hoodie Volunteer Laurel Selwood who passed it onto us. Being Christmas time we took the family to Bridgewater Beach to put up signs and protection, only to find a group of people walking around, setting up chairs and tables. They were holding a wedding the next day in the same cove as the nest! They had a permit from the Glenelg Shire who are the land managers after discussing our concerns with the wedding party and wedding organiser we set up our roped off area 8 meters from nest with seating for the wedding within 10m of the rope. To our amazement some of the group thought we would be able to take the egg off the nest and return it after the wedding. After chatting with the group to inform them about the birds and their nesting habits, and the importance of space on the beach, the group respected the need for the fence to remain on the beach. The wedding went ahead, on a 40 degree day, and miraculously, the nest survived not only the wedding guests, but vehicles (unrelated to the wedding) driving in the cove. The Wedding party respected the birds and the fence and the birds were seen incubating while the nuptials were underway!

We contacted Councils by laws officer and discussed our concerns with not just holding wedding parties but also everyday vehicle access to this beach. After our talks with the council we identified their lack of knowledge which would have led to this permit being issued. More education is needed for not only the council but also for the public that use this beach. Even with signs and ropes up for the Hooded Plovers, vehicles were parking on the beach within touching distance from the rope and some even shifting the rope closer to the nest. On hot days up to 20 cars can be parked all over the beach with no worry that it is illegal to drive on the beach! We’re working with BirdLife and the Council to highlight the importance of Hooded Plovers in permit approvals, and highlight the illegal use of vehicles on beaches.

Photo: Hooded Plover nest fence and signage (circled in red) and the wedding seating. Martin Boyer

RED-CAPPED PLOVER SUBMISSIVE BEHAVIOUR

Glenn Ehmke & Andrew Browne, Friends of Hooded Plover Mornington Peninsula Inc.

Back in October 2016, Glenn and Andrew were checking on the breeding Red-capped Plovers along Balnarring, on Westernport Bay. Only to view a really interesting interaction between a ~21 day old chick and an adult male red-capped plover (not the parent).

The chick encroached onto adjoining RCP territory and attacked by the male adult holding that territory! The chick was being attacked for quite a period of time, and to try and stop the attack, the chick ended up using submissive behaviour, by lying on it’s back, pretending to be dead. This did the trick, with the attacking male leaving the chick alone.

One of the issues for the poor chick, was how to get back onto two feet! By paddling its feet until the momentum upset the Photo: Andrew Browne balance, the chick eventually managed to awkwardly roll itself back onto two feet!

Photo: Andrew Browne

14 Word about the Hood - Edition 17

FROM NSW

REPORT FROM THE NORTH (OF NSW THAT IS) - ACTIVITIES IN SUPPORT OF BEACH-NESTING BIRDS

Linda Brannian, Birdlife Northern Rivers, Convenor, Jan Olley, Byron Bird Buddies & Tanya Fountain – Tweed Shire Council, Natural Resource Management Unit

Byron Bird Buddies (BBB), Tweed Shire Photo: Tanya Fountain Council (TSC), and Birdlife Northern Rivers (BNR) have been busy in support of Beach-nesting birds of the Northern Rivers.

The NSW Environmental Trust has funded a project at Fingal Head (Tweed River), with TSC partnering with the Tweed Byron Local Aboriginal Land Council, being the major land owner at Fingal Head. In the approach to the beach-nesting bird breeding season a successful fox trapping program is being followed up with the use

of Jet the detection dog to search out any active fox dens for fumigation. Since last Spring, the local community, assisted by BNR members and ecologist David Charley, have been surveying migratory and resident shorebirds. The hope is the resident Beach Stone-curlews will attempt to nest at Fingal Head this year, and so surveys will be ramped up in the coming months and if nesting occurs, protection measures will be put in place. Other measures undertaken under this project to protect beach-nesting birds includes increased Ranger patrols and delivery of a responsible pet program with Fingal Head primary school students.

The children and staff at Fingal Head primary school are also using monitoring cameras and “sand pads” to understand fox and cat movements in protection of their Bush Stone-curlew family. Whilst not a beach-nesting bird, the Bush Stone-curlew is still susceptible to many of the same threats as the local Pied Oystercatchers and Beach Stone-curlews. Monitoring by ecologist David Charley has found three nesting pairs residing at Fingal Head and tagging and tracking of Bush Stone-curlews over the summer breeding season has increased our understanding of the population along the Tweed Coast (which could actually be one of the biggest populations in NSW). The Bush Stone-curlews move much further

than first thought, with chicks from Fingal Head heading Photo: Linda Brannian south to Pottsville to join a large non-breeding flock. Other BNR community engagement opportunities included a stall at our local World Environment Day Festival, Murwillumbah and a “Wild About Pottsville” morning with a bird walk and an education stall with all our materials on “dogs on beaches” and protection of beach-nesting birds. A presentation is being prepared for Tweed Coast Dunecare volunteers to help identify the birds they see and most importantly to report and protect our beach-nesting Australian Pied Oystercatchers, Beach Stone-curlews and Little Terns. We will begin the presentation with a big “Thank You” for all the hours contributed to improving the habitats for these birds.

Activities in Byron and Ballina Shires include: Following a successful 2016-17 breeding period, where 5 pair of Pied Oystercatchers successfully fledged 10 chicks and the nesting pair of Beach Stone-curlews fledged one chick, we are now preparing for the 2017-18 breeding season. At both the nesting sites, Brunswick Estuary and Belongil Estuary, we are

15 planning to renew signs, re-establish the temporary fences and establish a volunteer monitoring program. National Parks and local Councils are also conducting fox and wild dog baiting in the surrounds.

In a small estuary south of the Byron Bay township, Tallow Creek, a pair of Pied Oystercatchers have taken up residence, Beach Stone-curlews have been sighted and Rainbow Bee-eaters also nest in the dunes. To assist locals in managing the area BBB has been working with National Parks and the local residents to develop some educational material, signage and monitoring tools with messages for

Photo: Linda Brannian respecting the natural values of the area including nesting birds, traditional owner values and the Cape Byron Marine Park.

BBB have participated in a number of community engagement opportunities including a presentation on local shorebirds and stalls at; Byron Shire World Water Day, Young & Green Family Fun Day, Renew Festival, Bangalow Heritage House Day, providing a space to discuss birding issues with the community and provide educational hand-outs such as “Shorebird of Byron Shire” and “Dogs on Leashes, Birds on Beaches” brochures.

Photo: Renee Mead

Photo: Reid Waters NORTHERN NSW BIRDLIFE AUSTRALIA WORKSHOPS

Renee Mead, Beach-nesting Bird Project Officer

Meg and I were lucky enough to return to Northern NSW in January, after our first trip in October. This trip was focused on Caravan Park awareness raising and kids activities! We managed to fit in six activities in our four day trip! The kids that painted bags were all super keen to learn about their local beach-nesting birds, and some of the caravan park managers got involved in the painting as well!

We also had two workshops focussing on monitoring beach-nesting shorebirds birds found in northern NSW (Pied and Sooty Oystercatchers, Beach Stone-curlew and Red-capped Plovers), one in Pottsville and the second in Urunga. Both were well attended and triggered community interest in monitoring and protecting these birds.

I do have a little side story for this trip! Meg and Photo: Beach Stone-curlew sitting on nest. Image taken via I had stopped to have a look at a known Beach smart phone through scope. Renee Mead Stone-curlew site (not expecting to actually see a BSC), and were looking out to some good habitat, and said “come on BSC, come out – it would be nice to see a BSC”. Imagine my amazement when a BSC actually did appear! It ran underneath a fallen mangrove and I lost sight of it in the vegetation – it was so well camouflaged. A quick run up to the car to retrieve the scope, and… and… and… the BSC was actually sitting on a nest under the fallen branches!! Not only had Meg and I turned up to this site not knowing if we would even see BSC,

16 Word about the Hood - Edition 17 but we had found their nest! Now, if you read the December 2016 Word about the Hood, you may have heard about my excitement at seeing a Beach Stone-Curlew and its nest (thanks to Lori Cameron and Reid Waters for showing us) during our last visit. So, you might be able to imagine my excitement when Meg and I found this nest on our own. Pretty sure I almost laid my own egg in eggcitement! Poor Meg had to put up with my squeals of delight for a while! Lucky this was where we were having a workshop later that day, so we were able to show the group where the pair were nesting. Pretty sure I was on cloud 9 for the rest of the trip!

Photo: Renee Mead

SOUTH COAST REGION NSW

Jodie Dunn, Shorebird Recovery Coordinator, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service Over the last 6 years the number of critically endangered Hooded Plovers on the south coast of NSW has doubled! This is an amazing effort after almost Photo: Charles Dove 20 years of intensive nest protection work. The entire NSW population was down to less than 50 birds remaining, and all nesting south of Jervis Bay (~2.5 hours south of Sydney). The program for the south coast region historically had about 20 birds with 7 or 8 breeding pairs nesting between Jervis Bay and Batemans Bay while the far south coast held the remining 30 birds and 12 to 14 breeding pairs. However since 2010 in the northern part of the NSW Hoodie range bird numbers and breeding pairs have doubled to 40 birds and 13 to 14 breeding pairs plus this season word is that the far south coast population has also slightly increased from 30 to almost 40 birds. That means the NSW population is now almost 80 birds! We have also had a range expansion with a breeding pair nesting north of Jervis Bay.

During the 2016/17 breeding season, despite these much higher breeding pair numbers, only 6 chicks fledged from the 27 nests monitored (15 chicks hatched from the 59 eggs). The season started slowly with a few pairs nesting early in the season (Aug/Sept), but the frequent cold snaps repeatedly disrupted the nesting timeline and it wasn’t until mid October and November that most pairs started nesting. Most nests were lost to foxes and raven predation, with a few also lost to human interference and erratic weather (sand buried, inundated). The first chicks hatched in mid November but these little ones didn’t make it either. Two clutches of chicks did well in December and one survived to fledge at Lake Tabourie

17 and another three survived to fledge at Rennies Beach in Ulladulla. This is one of the doggiest, and yes mostly off leash, beaches on the south coast. I almost had a heart attack every time I went to the beach and saw an off leash dog chasing one of the adults along the shoreline or the chicks hiding in seaweed right near a dog that was thankfully more interested in watching it’s master surfing. All three managed to survive and fledged just as the Christmas rush came to the south coast.

Photo: Chris Grounds Two more nests hatched chicks in the middle of January amidst the holiday makers. Both clutches were 2 chicks and all survived until around 3 weeks of age when each clutch lost a chick, possibly to off leash dogs, but we are unsure. The remaining chicks fledged at each site – Inyadda Beach at Manyana/Bendalong and Racecourse Beach in Ulladulla. Then the season abruptly ended, despite still beautiful warm weather and an unusually late start to the season, I really thought some birds would still have an egg or two left in them! So a total of 6 healthy chicks fledged and 5 of them are definitely still sighted on the south coast, although their caps are getting quite dark now.

The National Parks and Wildlife Service’s South Coast Shorebird Recovery Program engages around 80 volunteers between Gerroa and Batemans Bay. We also monitor endangered Pied Oystercatchers and endangered Little Terns. During the 2016/17 season Little Terns nested in a colony of about 42 breeding pairs at Lake Conjola, laying 55 nests of 134 eggs with 109 chicks hatching out and at least 61 fledglings, but possibly 100. Twenty seven pairs of Pied Oystercatchers were monitored and laid 37 nests containing 73 eggs from which 36 chicks hatched and 21 fledged!

So as you can see, Pieds and Terns are much easier to protect and we have a lot more success with their nesting than our timid little critically endangered Hoodie. But their population trajectory is going in the right direction! I can’t wait ‘til we reach 100 Hoodies in NSW 

FROM VICTORIA

MORNINGTON PENINSULA

Diane Lewis, President, Friends of Hooded Plover Mornington Peninsula Inc.

We have had a much happier group of volunteers this season. At this time of year I am usually writing about the poor chick survival on the Mornington Peninsula and thinking how do we keep our dedicated volunteers motivated?

The 2016-2017 season bought with it some success at last and some great stories as well. The seas pounded the Victorian coast taking Hooded Plover nests in their wake, but come January the seas were much kinder to the Mornington Peninsula beaches.

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On May 1st our last 2 chicks fledged bringing a grand total of 13 chicks fledging this season – a record number. It has been ten years since our beaches have recorded double digits.

Early in the season most nests were washed away by high tides and swells. Despite the odds one nest survived, one chick hatched and fledged in December. Come January when the Peninsula was amass with beachgoers the hoodies started nesting again, we had 17 nests to monitor and chicks hatching too. Our volunteers were wonderful, some checking the chicks twice daily. It was so busy Glenn Ehmke came down to help on a regular basis.

This year is the first time FoHP has been given access to some Point Nepean beaches. A small group have been given permission to check four HP territories monthly. This is a restricted area and no management is permitted. To our amazement 5 chicks fledged there late in the season. As this is the first time these territories have been monitored we don’t know if this is the norm or good luck.

We witnessed some interesting behaviour: like chicks swimming in rock pools at Koonya and Fowlers. We watched as three chicks from the same brood at Gunnamatta grew to fledge (all on the same day), while a single chick on the adjacent

territory also fledged at the same time.

These Gunnamatta chicks were then banded and flagged by Dr. Grainne Maguire in early March. By April they were sighted at Ocean Grove. We won’t forget these four as they were named after out 2 Hoodie rangers (RH, LF) and long time volunteers (NS, AD) who have been Photo: Glenn Ehmke monitoring Gunnamatta for longer than I have been involved.

I include Glenn Ehmke’s (Mornington Peninsula Volunteer) story about ‘old man’ JZ at Koonya west and the unwelcome adventure one of his chicks had.

One particularly inspiring story featured a stalwart of the Mornington Peninsula National Park “JZ” and partner XU at Koonya West ocean beach.

Banded as a fledgling (3 March 1997) at Gunnamatta by Associate Professor Mike Weston (Deakin University), then flagged in 2010, JZ turned 20 this year - a truly amazing age for a small bird in such a harsh environment. He has called Koonya West beach home for longer than many of us have had our homes!

Long-time volunteers have watched as JZ and his partners have tried and tried and tried to raise their chicks, but sadly, at best only a handful have survived to flying age. In some years he and his partner have laid 5 nests with none surviving! But he’s never given up in 20 years. So many failures have taught JZ to be extremely wary and very, very good at protecting his nests and Photo: Glenn Ehmke chicks.

This year Dad (JZ) and Mum (XU) fended off silver gulls, moved chicks away from beach goers and kept Photo: Glenn Ehmke their chicks clear of high tides, storms, foxes and who knows what else.

One if his 2 week old (then flightless) chicks survived being chased by a dog for over a kilometer along the entire Koonya West beach,

One thing JZ and many other birds didn’t have to do worry about nearly as much this year was having their chicks trampled or disturbed by people as the beach-goers were generally wonderful showing much enthusiasm and interest in the little birds’ battle against the odds.

A couple of us were lucky to work with Deakin University Honors student Tom Schmidt. His findings have Photo: Glenn Ehmke been very interesting and his project bought some valuable insights into the fate of some chicks. Parks Victoria did an amazing job this year as did all our volunteers. It is interesting that most of the fledged chicks didn’t come from the beaches that had fledged chicks the previous season. We are also aware there are some volunteers have been waiting many years to see a chick fledge from their beach. We will continue to work with BirdLife seeking answers as to why some beaches never seem to be successful. Photo: Renee Mead

BELLARINE PENINSULA

John Murray, Volunteer, Friends of Hooded Plover Bellarine Peninsula. Originally published in Rip Rumour:

"V for …? V for victory or V for vanquished? A solitary egg from the last local nest, Nest V, of the endangered Hooded Plover breeding season was due to hatch on March 22. On checking the Collendina nest site on hatch day the egg was gone but no chick was sighted. Either the egg or the newly hatched chick was taken by a predator. Thirteen magpies were foraging in the nest zone…V for vanished.

The breeding pair, NZ and partner, were some hours later observed on the dune slope above the failed beach nest site. Grieving? They have put in SUCH an effort this Sept –Mar breeding season, as they always do. Their September Nest A was the first on the Victorian coast, the only earlier eggs appeared in South Australia. Those three eggs of Nest A were predated by a fox as were five subsequent three-egg nests of NZ and partner. They also lost another two clutches of three eggs which Photo: Andrea Dennett were swamped by high tide/swell. That’s nine failed NZ nests this season.

The previous breeding season, NZ’s first nest was predated by a fox which also killed NZ’s long-term male mate CA. Three weeks later NZ had a new partner and new nest, and finished that season with six failed nests… more grief.

This breeding season our five local resident Hoodie pairs have made 22 nests on the surf beach between Point Lonsdale and Collendina. Excluding Nest V, two nests were successfully incubated but those five chicks all died within several days of hatching. All other nests failed at the egg stage – to fox, unleashed dog or swamped.

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From nineteen breeding pairs between Point Lonsdale and Lorne only a single Torquay chick has survived to flight [fledged] this season. After the end of this footy season the resilient, brave Hoodies will again attempt to breed on Southeast Australian surf beaches – their only home since The Dreamtime. V for vulnerable.

*John uses an alphabetical system for the nests along his stretch of coast.

A LATE RUN OF FLEDGLINGS ON THE BASS COAST

Stephen Johnson, Coordinator, Friends of the Hooded Plover Bass Coast

Mid February had arrived and the Bass Coast mainland had delivered no more than 3 fledglings. Filled with high expectations and excited anticipation after the previous season's record return of 24 fledglings, 2016/17 was shaping for a disastrous post boom bust. It wasn't for the lack of persistence by the 32 pairings who by seasons end had amassed yet another record in 226 eggs. Fortunately the back end of their breeding season unlike the front end produced consistent stable weather which was the dominant factor for them making a late run of chick survival toward an average return for the Bass Coast of 10 fledgling, 8 of which were banded and leg flagged.

Almost all their 101 nests were protected by enclosures with the appropriate signage. Bass Coast Shire managed beaches Cape Paterson 2nd Surf and Kilcunda each yielded a single fledgling while the remaining eight came from the more isolated Parks Victoria managed ocean beaches.

Fox and Raven predation along with tidal inundation to a lesser extent were the main impacting threats. The Inverloch beaches of Point Norman and Screw Creek were again impacted by human and dog off lead disturbance resulting in no successful fledglings from 3 pairs who made 9 nests producing 23 eggs from which 7 chicks failed to fledge.

A major disappointment for the season was the loss of 2 chicks within 10-12days of fledging. This occurred at Point Norman and Wilsons Rd Cape Paterson the cause being unknown. Next season we will plan closer chick monitoring at these two sites in an endeavour to prevent such late failings.

Chick loss whether at early or late stage of their flightless period (between hatch and fledge) is a major concern for the Hooded Plovers sustainability. Ongoing research by Deakin University students looking at the causes of such failings is vital for targeted mitigating strategies to help these birds.

Our only Red-Cap Plover and Pied Oystercatcher site at Point Norman also tried but without success. Five pairings of Red-Caps managed 10 eggs and 3 chicks without a fledge while 1 pair of Pied Oystercatcher

Photo: Stephen Johnson

21 who heavily defended their territory made 3 valiant attempts bearing 2 eggs on each occasion only to be taken by fox and tidal inundation.

I will finish by thanking the Beach-nesting Team at Birdlife Australia for their ongoing guidance and leadership and the Bass Coast Hooded Plover Volunteers who have once again put in countless hours toward helping the survival of our wonderful beach nesting birds.

SURF COAST

Sue Guinness, Coordinator, Friends of the Hooded Plover Surf Coast

The twists and turns continued this season. Our biggest success was JM & EJ and our Torquay volunteers who successfully had one chick fledge. The birds spent their time proactively moving up and down the beach between Whites beach and the western side of Pt Impossible. Their excellent parenting skills meant their chick successfully survived a number of challenges including hang gliders, horses, dog walkers, dogs galore, and a range of avian predators, not to mention the high tides. The small group of volunteers from Torquay worked miracles along with the Land manger team GORCC and a few ring- ins from across Photo: Geoff Gates the estuary at Bancoora and as far away as Barwon Heads. A huge thank you to all of you.

Sadly we had no other successes along our patch despite the best efforts of our hoodie residents. We did have a new pair between Hutt Gully and Urquart Bluff, WT and an un-banded friend. Let’s hope they are back next season and manage to breed successfully. WE also had a few floaters appear intermittently.

The romance twists continued at Pt Roadknight Tip this summer gone. KM has been on territory for a Photo: Kate Schofield number of years and re partnered with RP in recent times after PP disappeared. They started the season together, however it seems RP decided BL (male) was a better option and the 2 ganged up on KM. Georgie Beale from GORCC observed a lot of bullying of KM by BL and RP. After putting up a good fight he got the boot. He remains in the area and has been observed both on his own and hanging with others which is good to see. It seems his reign at the Tip (95W) is over for now anyway; who knows what will play out next season. RP & BL despite best efforts were unsuccessful this season.

The other news in our patch is that we were successful in getting a CoastCare grant under the heading “Equipping our community with the tools to conserve threatened coastal species - Surf coast Hooded Plover Protection”. This will enable the purchase of protective clothing for wardens in way of hats and long sleeved shirts as well as having funding to hold three dogs breakfasts over the coming season and a pre- season workshop. Thanks to BirdLife Australia and Meg in particular for her encouragement and support in helping to complete the grant application at such short notice.

If anyone has any suggestions regarding protective clothing suppliers please let me know by email at [email protected]

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BREAMLEA

Julie Riley and Jennie Turner, Coordinators, Friends of the Hooded Plover Breamlea

Nippers training at Bancoora Surf Life Saving Club Photo: Bancoora SLSC In February, an invitation was extended to the Friends of the Hooded Plover, Breamlea to talk to the Bancoora Nippers about Hooded Plover conservation. We gladly took up this offer and were pleased to be joined by Deborah Evans who has worked with us over the season monitoring on Bancoora Beach. The Nippers program draws its membership from local Breamlea families and from Geelong, which includes the Armstrong Creek growth area nearby so we were keen to take any opportunity to spread the word about the importance of preserving the wildlife on local beaches.

There was a large group of children who listened attentively to the stories about Hoodie habitat and behaviours and were enthusiastic to view the 3D nest display and to take stickers. We hope that through this brief talk, these young people, their parents and Nipper coordinators will have gained a greater understanding of the special little shorebirds that share the beach with the surf club.

Bancoora Beach Signage

A large ‘No Dogs’ sign erected on the beach at 44W Bancoora Beach during the 2016/17 breeding season by COGG Environment Unit officers has been effective in educating the dog-walking public to avoid this zone.

An Unusual Threat

As long as we’ve been monitoring BK and unbanded mate at Black Rock, we’ve been aware of a stone circle with NSEW orientation, which had evidently been constructed by worshippers, on the foredune within the Photo: Jennie Turner breeding site. Not wishing to antagonise unknown but potential allies, we’ve always tolerated its existence. Two seasons ago, with a chick on the beach, we realised that a Summer Solstice celebration might shortly take place in the circle. Andrea put out a call on the ‘Hooded Plover Volunteers’ Facebook page, which provided a contact name. Assurances were given that no ceremony was planned at that stage, although Julie did engage with a group, dressed in white, returning from this site after the chick had fledged and took the opportunity to

make further cont acts.

We now know that “The Sacred Circle”, as it’s known to its users, has its own Facebook page. Last season, we had 2 pairs nesting in the same territory at the same time. We contacted The Sacred Circle’s Facebook Coordinator who was very helpful and posted that the site was off limits until clearance from us. Hopefully, through friendly contact and a softly, softly approach, we can sufficiently educate these ‘nature worshippers’ about the Hooded Plovers and win them over to the extent that they might move their ‘Sacred Circle’ to another, less contested Photo: Jennie Turner area of the beach.

SANDY POINT, SOUTH GIPPSLAND

Caitlin Pilkington, Secretary, Sandy Point Community Group

Sandy Point was successful in securing Coastcare Community Grant funding for fresh new hooded plover signage to be installed at key access points to hooded plover breeding areas on Sandy Point beaches. And, local media company Fresh Flare Media is currently developing (pro-bono) a short video – starring local Birdlife Australia volunteers! – to raise awareness on the presence of and threats to local plovers. We’re excited about launching the signs and video in time for the next hoodie breeding season.

MEET THE RED-CAPPED PLOVERS OF WESTERNPORT BAY

Andrée Austin, Volunteer, Friends of Hooded Plover Mornington Peninsula Inc.

Feisty Red Caps have managed to prevail this breeding season despite the masses, their off lead dogs, foxes and even a decaying whale carcass. I guess it's all they've known on the Peninsula over Photo: Andrew Browne summer for many years now.

These beach nesting birds seem very small after monitoring Hooded Plovers, and It takes a little adjustment to spot them after being tuned in to Hooded Plover behaviour.

Red Caps are more common than Hooded Plovers and nest on beaches and inland lakes. Not a great deal is known about their habits. Thus the Red-capped Plover monitoring project is gaining steam. With beach monitors spread over several beaches to monitor the Red Caps most of them settled at Pt Leo, Shoreham and Balnarring on the Peninsula this summer.

The first thing I noticed when monitoring at Pt Leo/Shoreham was that when approaching a nest Red Caps stay on the nest longer than Hooded Plovers. Thus you can get closer to them before they scurry off. This may be due to their size and lack of visibility to us, but we don't really know for sure what they are thinking! They may charge at you if you are too close, and display the distraction tactics that Hooded Plovers do to get you away from the nest. The partner off the nest will lead you away from the nest early,

Photo: Andrew Browne and they may also perform broken wing displays.

Nests are not always easy to find. A couple of nests were most likely in the grasses of the dunes at Pt Leo as two chicks emerged in early January with no nests being noted. These two chicks made it through to fledging during the peak of the Christmas/New Year break and the warm weather of the summer school holidays. Dodging hundreds of dogs and thousands of beach goers they have really beaten the odds.

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Red Caps have smaller territories than Hooded Plovers and there can be vociferous territorial disputes. Quite often! We had three pairs nesting across a 150 metre stretch at times. Once eggs have hatched and chicks are on the beach things can become quite communal and the whole group will vigorously protect the chicks from interlopers. Chicks are fluff balls on long legs and take about 35 days to fledge.

Red Caps also change territories more readily than Hooded Plovers and at Pt Leo have moved up and down the beach as they chose. As these Red Caps are not banded it isn't possible to know who is with whom and which territory they usually occupy. The male has a deep red cap and the female a much lighter red cap. Juveniles show little colour and have more mottled feathers. Once chicks are on the beach the Red Caps are moving up and down the beach and it can be a challenge to count them effectively. Throw in anywhere from 12-120+ Red- necked Stints and it becomes very interesting at Photo: Andrew Browne times!

As with Hooded Plovers education is very important in our interactions with the public. Most beach walkers, even those with off lead dogs, are interested when you chat with them and explain about the Red Caps and other birds on the beach. Whilst not all compliant with dogs, most comply when near nests and chicks and avoid getting close to birds, nests and chicks. However a chick was taken by a dog right in front of an observer in January. Which was disheartening...

The most common question I've been asked on the beach by dog walkers this season is "Why are these birds so stupid? Why do they nest on this beach and try to breed here during the school holidays?" Education is key and with Pt Leo/ Shoreham not being part of the Mornington Peninsula National Park dogs both on and off lead have been a major problem for Red Caps and their chicks.

It's been a long season with two chicks on the beach in late March. The highest tides of the year may have claimed them in the last couple of days. Or perhaps a fox. Fox prints were noted where the chicks were last seen.

Three chicks fledged this year at Pt Leo so far. Twenty-two nests, 40 eggs and 10 chicks. At Balnarring 10 nests were recorded, with 19 eggs, 8 chicks and 2 fledglings. Four hundred and 21 surveys were completed across 16 sites with an average of 26 surveys per site. There was an average of one dog per survey with dogs twice as likely to be off lead as on.

It pays to be feisty and it ain't easy but these tough little birds have successfully raised several chicks and are now flocking. With thanks to all who have monitored this season and especially to Mark Lethlean for coordinating the project and training us all.

PHILLIP ISLAND

Dan Lees, Environmental Ranger, Phillip Island Nature Parks

Combined End of Season Debrief Despite a couple of false starts (we decided to postpone the debrief because we still had a late stage brood on the ground), the Hooded Plover Watch, Friends of the Hooded Plover (FoHP) Bass Coast and FoHP South Gippsland held a combined end of season debrief on Friday the 12th of May. It was well attended with 25 participants representing all three groups. As is customary at such get-togethers, the

25 day began with tea, coffee, snacks and lots of conversation. Having re-acquainted ourselves, the first cab off the rank was Daniel Lees who gave a presentation on Red-capped Plover parental care; then lead into a summary of Hooded Plover breeding on Phillip Island. Following Daniel was Stephen Johnson who gave run down on how the breeding season went on the Bass Coast. After a quick morning tea David Martin from the Bass Coast Shire Council gave an update on the Bass Coast Hooded Plover management strategy, followed by Jonathon Stevenson and Tamara Vekich who presented on FoHP South Gippsland and Wilson’s Prom respectively. It was fantastic to get such a large group of volunteers together from regions all across Eastern Victoria; seeing so many like-minded and enthusiastic people was inspiring and reminds us that despite the challenges we can conserve these little birds.

Phillip Island end of season summary 33 nests found; 13 hatched (39.4%) 32 chicks produced; 13 fledged (40.6%) This is the second highest number of chicks fledged on Phillip Island on record.

FROM SOUTH AUSTRALIA

REAPING THE REWARDS ON EYRE PENINSULA

Rachael Kannussaar, Coastal Management Officer, Natural Resources Eyre Peninsula

Photo: Rachael Kannussaar During the 2016-17 Hooded plover nesting season Natural Resources Eyre Peninsula made the decision to increase monitoring at a remote beach on eastern Eyre Peninsula, between Tumby Bay and Port Lincoln. This beach was added as a survey route during the 2014 Biennial Hooded Plover Count but hadn't been surveyed since, due to restricted access via private property only.

Communication and positive relationships with local adjoining landholders enabled us to arrange access to the beach from both ends (with 6km of beach in between). In 2014 we had been rewarded with two pairs of Hoodies recorded, one of the pairs with a fledged juvenile. Our curiosity was sparked! How many pairs were using this area? Were they nesting here? Being a remote site with limited vehicle traffic (landholders on occasions) if they were nesting here, was their fledging success high? Were predators an issue? We didn't know and wanted to find out just how important this area might be! In September 2016 we began walking and looking ... and walking some more!

Visits occurred as time allowed. We tried to achieve fortnightly trips, but work pressures (and Christmas holidays) didn't always allow this. As the nesting season progressed it was hard to piece together what was going on. We were frequently seeing two pairs about 3km apart. We’d found fresh scrapes but never a scrape with eggs. Fox prints were significant and we regularly watched a pair of osprey flying overhead scanning the beach.

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In February this year following a four week survey gap I knew anything was possible. After trekking over the dune system to get to the beach I stopped at a rocky point, sat and scanned ahead with the scope. One thing I had learnt with these pairs is they are not used to people at all. With such an open environment, sneaking up on them is not at all easy! I had an adult pair in sight. I sat a bit longer and two fluffy chicks appeared! I was pretty excited.

Eventually I moved on, with a lot of beach to cover and walked past the Hoodie family quickly while watching intently for predators. Once safely past I stopped to scan ahead every so often. About 2km on from the first family, bingo there's the other adult pair I've seen on previous visits. Hang on, what's that running up and down the face of the fore dune? Is it really? Yes, two more chicks. This time a little older and braver, about two weeks old. I couldn't believe my luck. All of the sudden this visit was really making the season's monitoring effort seem worthwhile.

With only half of the beach covered I decided to finish surveying, even though I'd seen the two pairs we now believed were using this area. Another 2km or so down the beach I saw it ... or them rather. Feeding along the shoreline where another two adults and three juveniles. A third family on this beach. Thirteen birds in one visit, at one beach! A record for me and truly a reward for the monitoring investment.

We now have the confirmation we were looking for, that this site is important for this species. The landholders are excited and have implemented management changes to help, becoming advocates in the process.

We returned to band a chick from the second family now identified as 'VP'. Interestingly 'VP' was found the following week 3km up the beach fledged and doing very nicely.

Banding Hoodies is relatively new on Eyre Peninsula. Despite our relative remoteness we are receiving resighting reports from the community and banding has been fabulous for our volunteers.

We look forward to hopefully finding out where 'VP' ends up next season.

Photo: Renee Mead

APRIL 2017 FLEDGED HOODED PLOVER COUNT LOWER SOUTH EAST SA

Jeff Campbell, Friends of Shorebirds SE

Hooded Plover counts were carried out in selected sites covering the region of Cape Jaffa to Piccaninnie Ponds in the Lower South East of South Australia in April 2017. The fledged young Hooded Plover counts have now been carried out every year since 2010. Thanks to the dedicated team of volunteer counters, all selected sites were once again covered in 2017.

The 2017 count showed mixed results with the highest number of adult birds ever counted (112), but contrarily a reduction in the number of fledged young from the count in 2016 (from 18 down to 10). The total number of fledged young counted was however our second highest since these counts began in 2010. It is believed that there may well have been more fledged young in the region before the count, as fledged birds were previously seen in locations where they were not present during the count. Previous sightings of colour flagged fledged young well out of the region have shown that these birds can move away, sometimes quite a considerable distance, quite early on in their life and therefore not be picked up in our count.

The reason for the highest ever count of total number of birds is of course unknown. It can certainly be speculated however that the regular fox baiting program carried out as part of the Limestone Coast and Coorong Coastal Action Plan carried out by the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources may have had an advantageous effect by reducing the threat of predation by foxes. The rate of bait uptake from this program has gradually declined since its beginning in 2008, when it was around 90% at some sites and over 50% at all sites. The decline in uptake would suggest a reduction in fox numbers. It is now down to around a 10 –15% uptake, with some sites marginally more, suggesting that although fox numbers are down, they are still present and taking baits. It should also be noted that in addition to the coastal bait laying being undertaken, the program creates buffer zones around some of the targeted coastal parks by encouraging adjoining landholders to lay baits on their land. Baits for this are supplied free of charge to the landholders.

Barry Schriever (DEWNR) has reported that in Canunda in 2008 there were fox tracks on fox tracks and no recorded sightings of fledged Hooded Plover chicks. In 2016, it was hard to find a fox print on the beach and six fledged Hooded Plover were seen in Canunda. The following volunteers, in alphabetical order, carried out the count and are thanked for their efforts: Helen Bawden, Jeff Campbell, Maureen Christie, Janet Copping, Cath Bell, Vicki Natt, Barry Schriever.

FLEURIEU PENINSULA

Wendy White, filling in for Emma Stephens, Coast Estuary and Marine officer with Natural Resources Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges, hosted by City of Holdfast Bay

Another successful season with 16 Hooded Plovers fledging on the Fleurieu Peninusla despite the rough weather we endured during the breeding period. Port Stanvac had the only success on the western side of the peninsula whilst they were kept extremely busy on the south coast. Volunteers spent many hours wardening nest sites and chicks during schoolies, surf carnivals and News Year’s Eve celebrations which certainly helped 15 chicks successfully fledge.

The first pair of Hoodies sighted on a metropolitan beach arrived at Seacliff just before Christmas and hatched 2 chicks, unfortunately neither survived and the pair had another attempt, this time the nest was abandoned. Seacliff beach was extremely busy during the holiday season and a huge number of dogs were exercised every day. The Hoodies created a lot of publicity and not only were there articles in local papers, but a volunteer monitor was interviewed on radio a few times and they even made it to Channel 7 news.

Meg and Grainne came over in March for a volunteer coordinator meeting and we managed to fit in some banding at Victor Harbor. One fledgling was caught at the Inman River outlet and then another 2 at Yilki. We actually caught 4 at Yilki but 2 already had bands! Photo: Hoodie release at Yilki. Wendy White

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With the help of BirdLife Australia, Friends of the Hooded Plover, Fleurieu Peninsula put in a grant for 3 bird scopes and was successful in obtaining funds from the Adelaide & Mt. Lofty Ranges NRM board. Each volunteer coordinator now has a scope which can be used by the volunteers when needed. They are good quality scopes with tripods - training days will be held in each area at the beginning of the next breeding season for all volunteers.

With input from the local communities, BirdLife Australia and the NRM board three of the Fleurieu councils reviewed their dog bylaws at the beginning of the year resulting in tighter controls on some of our more popular beaches. Hopefully this will help our breeding Hooded Plovers next season.

A presentation was given to the coastal ambassadors in April which was well received with some of the participants helping at Photo: Hooded Plover debrief at Aldinga Surf the World Environment Day Expo and to 3 classes of students at Life Saving Club. Wendy White the Yankalilla Area school in June.

The end of season debrief was held at Aldinga Surf Life Saving Club on Tuesday 2nd May. Presentations were given by Kasun Ekanayake, volunteer coordinator’s and John Cobb who talked about the Seacliff pair. Each volunteer was given a little Hooded Plover pin to thank them for all their hard work. The biannual Beach-nesting Bird conference was held in Willunga at the end of May and it was great to see such an amazing turnout. Ash Read and myself gave a presentation on how the Hooded Plover program works on the Fleurieu Peninsula and an overview of our local beaches. Unfortunately the weather was not kind to field trip participants on the Saturday afternoon when we experienced thundery showers. The feedback from local volunteers was very positive and they enjoyed being able to talk to interstate monitors and hear about all their different issues.

Photo Hooded Plover display at the World A Hooded Plover display was built at the World Environment Expo on Environment Day Expo 2017. Wendy White 4th & 5th June at the Wayville Showgrounds. It consisted of a huge amount of sand with lots of coastal plants and hiding amongst them were some model Hooded Plovers with eggs. The kids had a great time trying to locate their nest. This year’s theme was connecting people to nature and the event did this very well with lots of interesting stalls, activities, interactive displays and a green environmental trail for the kids – well worth a visit next year!

ONKAPARINGA BEACHES, FLEURIEU PENINSULA

Ash and Sue Read, Volunteer Regional Coordinators (Onkaparinga Beaches), Friends of Hooded Plover Fleurieu Peninsula Photo: Dudley Corbett Damage caused by Winter /Spring storms meant an early finish to the season on the northern region of the Fleurieu Peninsula, with a nest at Ochre Cove, Maslin Beach the only nesting activity still going in the new year. A single egg (of two) hatched in early February, but unfortunately

the chick disappeared after only a few days.

The usual end-of-season movement of hoodies has been occurring and flocking has been seen again at Aldinga/Silver Sands beaches but with smaller numbers than last year when up to 17 birds were frequently present together. Despite the closure of these beaches to vehicles

from May to September, there are still problems with cars accessing these beaches and damaging the environment. Hopefully the local council will install barriers to prevent vehicle access as some drivers are still ignoring the “Beach Closed” signs.

We have received the 3D printed models from Photo: Dudley Corbett Monash University that were mentioned in the

previous edition of Word About The Hood and we had them on display at the BNB Biennial Conference. As well as the adults and eggs we had a single chick printed but unfortunately, the fluffy appearance of the chick meant that it did not print well and we have decided not to have any more chicks printed.

All told it has been a very difficult season for the hoodies on the Onkaparinga region with only a single bird fledging. A combination of weather events and increasing disturbance combined to make breeding very difficult for our birds. Hopefully we will have better results next season.

SOUTH COAST BEACHES, FLEURIEU PENINSULA

Elizabeth Steele-Collins, Volunteer Regional Coordinators (South Coast Beaches), Friends of Hooded Plover Fleurieu Peninsula

It has been a very busy and challenging season on the Fleurieu South Coast. With 12 active pairs and a mixture of ‘city’ and ‘country’ Hoodies, the volunteers have worked hard giving all the pairs a helping hand. The hard work has paid off with the number of fledged chicks from the sites around South Coast being 15 but often it was a struggle juggling the highlights and the heartbreaks along the way. It seemed like this season particularly was fraught with drama and incidents which made things even more challenging. Unfortunately we lost 4 known adults (all banded) in the season which was not only hard for the remaining mates but sad and disappointing for the volunteers who have got to know the various Hoodie pairs and individuals. I was also personally upset to have lost another ‘country’ Hoodie, as DK is one I had followed from when he was an egg! After LA (Tunkalilla Beach) lost her partner (UB) she then paired up with an unbanded bird. The pair were in the process of bringing up their 2 chicks when LA was found demised (at this stage unknown cause) which meant her partner had to bring up the chicks on his own. We were thrilled to see both chicks made it.

The ‘city’ Hoodie sites around the Encounter Bay coast were our most challenging as the beaches are so populated. The Middleton Beach pair (SA & UE) were the first pair on the Fleurieu to successfully fledge their chicks on 16th December and surprised us all by doing so 4 days earlier than the usual ‘Day 35’. Chick wardening was needed at various times on this busy surfing beach, including for a whole day when a state wide Surf Life Saving Carnival was held right in the middle of the Hoodie pair’s core territory. It was great to have such wonderful support from the local Council and management of Surf Life Saving SA to form a large fenced area preventing people from venturing too close. SA & UE stayed on their nest throughout the whole SLS Carnival and only left it when a rescue helicopter took off from the beach! (can’t say I blame them... we left then too!)

The Hindmarsh River pair decided to test us when they nested next to the Victor Harbor Bowling Club in the main hub of the town. With Victor Council’s support blocking off the footpath for a period of time, (the nest was only 2 metres from the footpath/bikeway), the pair amazingly managed to get all their chicks through to 3 weeks old. That was until a large sea surge seemed to bring every hungry Pacific and Silver

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Gull onto the very narrow beach and the chicks were not seen again. The stretch of beach was so narrow in front of the Bowling Club that the pair were even seen brooding the chicks on the footpath! It was an amazing effort by not only the brave (or crazy!) pair but by all the volunteers who put in many hours of ‘chick wardening’ for these ‘city’ Hoodies.

While this Hoodie pair were busy incubating and looking after their chicks another pair (RR & partner) moved into the area at Olivers Reef. This was RR’s first breeding attempt. They started nesting soon after but when the ‘Bowling Club’ chicks failed the parents were so upset they took it out on RR & partner chasing them out of the Oliver Reef territory which meant RR’s eggs cooked in the hot sun. It was not a happy time! RR & partner then relocated and started incubating 2 eggs on another busy section of beach in the vicinity of Kent Reserve not far from the Inman River. It was a struggle in such a disturbed area but even though late, 1 chick fledged successfully in February at 6 weeks of age.

Yilki Beach (also near Victor Harbor) is a beach that came under the spot light again this season. The pair VH & KV were awarded their second medal when they successfully fledged all 3 chicks late January. Volunteers put in many hours every day and it was a great opportunity to have more positive interaction with the public which resulted in more ‘locals’ taking the birds under their collective wing. Both volunteers and locals were over the moon when all 3 chicks made it! After several failed nesting attempts (one lot of eggs reported having been eaten by a dog) the Yilki pair then repeated what they did last year and nested close to the footpath nearby the Yilki main hub with the Deli and Cafes just across the road. All 3 chicks were doing well after hatching 23rd December and from all site checks/chick wardening we were able to establish that the pair returned to the safety of fenced enclosure every night. As if it wasn’t enough that the pair had to contend with all the disturbances and threats on such a narrow and busy beach 24/7 with hundreds of houses just across the road but come New Years Eve their lives were again turned upside down. When volunteers arrived early morning on New Years Day to check the Yilki family they were confronted with signs of havoc within the Hoodie enclosure and no sign of KV & VH or chicks.

The poor family... would have almost had heart attacks when fireworks were set up and launched not just within their core territory but right inside the fenced area... one could liken it to an artillery barrage! The fireworks were not just the small ‘back yard’ type but an array of large, professional ones. This incident resulted in the Hoodie family being forced out of their core territory. It would have been a terrifying night for them. Amazingly, all 3 chicks were still with their parents when located around 750 metres further along the beach.

The first lot of Police Officers who attended Photo: David Thorn the scene shrugged it off saying that the fireworks had likely been all washed up in the high tide as they were all wet. I pointed out it had been raining! The fenced enclosure, covered in human footprints, was another point I raised, also the box of matches left behind. It was most likely the high tide had recently knocked over the firework remains but making allowances for the officers who had been working all night through New Years Eve celebrations and were about to knock off, I decided to wait for the next shift of Police to come on duty. Determined not to let this lie, I phoned up the Victor Harbor Mayor as well as the Police Officer on day duty and asked for further investigation into the matter.

Thankfully this officer took the situation seriously, as did the Mayor and a door to door was conducted along the esplanade. The culprits were found, charged and by the end of the day, dealt with an Expiation notice for ‘causing environmental nuisance’ under the Environment Protection Act resulting in a $360 fine. The Police Officer in charge of the case and the Mayor have our profound gratitude for all the extra effort they went to. In particular the officer who went the extra mile in researching the best way to handle this incident so that the environmental factors are highlighted. The wonderful policeman explained the situation to the culprits and gave them Hoodie pamphlets to read so hopefully, they will be wiser in future and more aware of the environment around them.

We hope a lot of good comes out of this unfortunate occurrence. We are now thinking we’ll be doing chick wardening with volunteers on guard at the various Hoodie fenced areas for next New Year’s festivities."

It appears that Victor Harbor chicks Photo: David Thorn need extra comfort and reassurance being brought up in highly disturbed area as the pair for the second year in a row were observed brooding chicks over 5 weeks old. Not only the Yilki pair but also along the same stretch of beach the new neighbouring Hoodie pair at Kent Reserve did the same.

YORKE PENINSULA

Janet Moore, Community Ranger Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources Northern and Yorke Region

It was a season of highs and lows on Yorke Peninsula this year. After a series of devastating storms in the first half of the breeding season had wiped out every nest and chick we were aware of, Yorke Peninsula had a very successful finish to the season. We also welcomed some new volunteers to our small but growing team, and it was really great to finish off the season by getting to meet and mingle with other like-minded people at the recent conference in Willunga. Photo: Maitland Area School on the lookout for hoodies. Janet Moore Some areas were hit harder than others with the storm surges. In the case of Port Rickaby, the damage to the coast was extensive and the hoodies breeding there did not return for the rest of the breeding season. Other areas were still very successful after the storms, on a short 2km walk along one of our slightly more remote beaches, we came across 10 fledged chicks belonging to 4 breeding pairs.

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On the Moonta Bay to Port Hughes coast (4kms), an

extraordinary monitoring and wardening effort by the Frien ds of Hooded Plover group over the summer months saw a new record achieved... 8 fledglings from 5 breeding pairs! A highlight was to see three chicks fledge that were born Christmas Day at Simms Cove, an extremely popular holiday spot. It was nothing short of a Christmas miracle that all three of the chicks survived Boxing Day, New Years Day and Australia Day on such a busy beach! A special mention must go to Glenda here, who wardened the chicks almost every day, and whose daily update board Photo: Simms Cove Family. Stephen Jantke had many in the community anxiously following the family's fate so much so that I was being stopped by people in the supermarket to talk all things hoodie. Glenda also established a facebook page for us to share hoodie updates with the community during the breeding season and to communicate and coordinate nest protection with each other.

Awareness continues to increase across the Photo: Hardwicke Bay Birdwatching. Janet Moore peninsula, and the addition of new 'chicks on the beach, dogs on a leash' banners has helped with that too. Over the summer months we kept busy running educational beach events with local and visiting schools learning about the hoodies at Innes National Park and helping us collect marine debris from the beaches. We ran some bird-watching tours for families holidaying at Hardwicke Bay as part of their annual Beach Family Fun Day in January. We have also been working away to systematically replace many of the permanent signs lost in the storm, as well as installing some new interpretive signs for North Beach at Wallaroo to educate beach- goers about sharing the beach with birds.

SAMPHIRE COAST ICON

Jean Turner, Kasun Ekanayake & Aleisa Lamanna, Samphire Coast Icon Team, BirdLife Australia

Samphire Coast (SA) Red-capped Plovers: 2016-17 Breeding Season What a season! The first Red-capped Plover nest at Semaphore South was spotted in mid-August. All was going well until late September, when SA was hit by extraordinary storms. High seas wiped out Hoodie and Red-cap nests along AMLR coast; and dramatically changed the structure of many beaches. Red-capped Plovers up north also suffered, as vast areas of their saltmarsh-claypan breeding habitat remained flooded until December. Despite these challenges, the birds got on with their lives and 43+ hardy volunteers were out there watching.

Up to May 17th, 312 observations of Red-capped Plovers had been entered in the data portal for this monitoring season. Forty-two sites along the AMLR coast were checked at least once; some were re- visited many times. Red-capped Plovers were seen at 27 of the sites. Breeding was confirmed at 11 sites – either as scrapes with eggs, birds seen incubating on nests, or newly-hatched chicks. Fledglings were seen at a further 2 sites.

Semaphore South was our most visited Photo: Two of the 2016-17 season’s ‘Graduates’, X7 and Silverband, breeding site, with 133 portal entries. enjoying the water at Semaphore. Susanne Nikolajsen Twelve breeding attempts were noted through the season; most likely with 24 eggs laid. Ten newly-hatched chicks were recorded, but only three are known to have survived to fledging. That’s a lot of effort for not much gain! Factors contributing to failure at Semaphore South include: nests washed away by storms; predation of eggs and chicks; and disturbance from people and off-leash dogs. A dog was seen taking one chick, but most causes of egg and chick loss are unknown.

Other sites where breeding was observed were Bird Island, Dry Creek Saltfields, Largs Bay North, Port Prime, Snapper Point (Fleurieu Peninsula), Snowdens Beach, South Port Beach, Tennyson Dunes Beach, Thompson Beach South and Yankalilla River Estuary.

Thanks to all who have contributed observations. And if you still have sightings for this season that haven’t yet been entered it’s not too late. Please log on and enter them in the portal, or email the details to us!

Farewell Samphire Coast Icon Project It seems all good things must come to an end … including the Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges Natural Resource Management Board’s Samphire Coast Icon Project. This innovative landscape-scale project, supported by funding from the Australian Government, officially winds up at June 30th. During the past 5 years, Alesia Lamanna, Jean Turner and more recently Kasun Ekanayake, have been hosted through BirdLife Australia to deliver the Board’s project to protect nationally significant shorebird and saltmarsh species and habitats. Warrick Barnes of Adelaide Plains Council (formerly DC Mallala) and Emma Stephens/Kerri Bartley of City of Holdfast Bay have coordinated on-ground works in the project area.

With the support of countless volunteers, the Natural Resources AMLR’s Coast & Marine team and BirdLife Australia’s Beach-nesting Birds team, the Samphire Coast Icon Project has achieved some great things, including:-  establishing the Red-capped Plover monitoring program in the Samphire Coast and northern metro beaches;  development of the Red-capped Plover data portal;  growing the program, through Hoodie volunteers on the Fleurieu Peninsula and beyond; and  linking the Samphire Coast into the national Biennial Beach-nesting Birds Count. We even created the cutest little shorebird pin badge ever! (You guessed it – a Red-capped Plover!)

But don’t feel sad – the Red-capped Plover monitoring program will definitely continue, supported by the AMLR NRM Board’s new ‘Sharing Our Shores with Local Wildlife’ project and BirdLife’s Beach-nesting Birds team.

Jean is moving on, but plans to join the Red-capped Plover volunteer ranks. Kasun will be stepping side- ways to work in BirdLife’s Beach-nesting Birds team. And we look forward to Aleisa returning, to keep things on track in the new Sharing Our Shores project.

So please keep an eye out for details of the next monitoring season and come along!

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Photo: Mary-Anne van Trigt

Thanks to all who have contributed observations. And if anyone has 2016-17 season sightings from the Samphire Coast that haven’t yet been entered it’s not too late. Please log on and enter them in the portal, or email the details to us!

Email Kasun at [email protected] OR Aleisa at [email protected]

The Red-capped Plover Monitoring Program is part of the Samphire Coast Icon Project, supported by the Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges Natural Resources Management Board through funding from the Australian Government

FAIRY TERNS

FAIRY TERN BREEDING SEASON IN WESTERN PORT AND PORT PHILLIP BAY 2016-17

Dr. Amy Adams, Fairy Tern Project Officer

The first year of formal monitoring of breeding Fairy Tern colonies in Western Port and Port Phillip Bay revealed:

 3 confirmed breeding sites – 1 in Western Port on French Island and 2 in Port Phillip Bay (Mud Islands and Moolap saltworks)  At least 29 breeding pairs were observed across all three sites  28 nests were identified – 4 on French Island, 24 on Mud Islands  43 eggs were observed – 4 on French Island, 39 on Mud Islands  All eggs failed on French Island and 21 were known to have failed on Mud Islands  10 chicks were observed – 9 on Mud Islands, 1 in the Moolap saltworks  6 chicks were banded on Mud Islands by the Victorian Wader Study Group

At least 18 adult Fairy Terns were detected at the French Island breeding site from late November with nests and eggs being observed shortly after the birds’ arrival. Aerial predators including ravens and Swamp Harriers are suspected to have caused the failure of the breeding colony in early December due to their presence at the breeding site, determined from cameras deployed at the site. The site was subsequently abandoned.

Two breeding events occurred on Mud Islands. The main colony bred from December through to February. Causes of egg failure appeared to be predation and nest abandonment with eggs seen outside of nests or covered in sand. Six chicks hatched and were banded but due to gaps in accessibility to the island it is unknown if the chicks fledged. Of significance, 2 breeding pairs were observed nesting late in the season in mid-February approximately 100 m away from the main breeding colony after the site was deserted. Both nests contained one egg and two chicks hatched. One of these chicks was later found dead and the fate of the other chick is unknown. A flock of Fairy Terns (77 birds) were observed on the northern part of the eastern island during the time that the 2 breeding pairs were nesting. Nine juveniles were seen within the flock but no leg bands were detected. While the original breeding location of the juveniles couldn’t be determined it is positive to see some recruitment occurring into the Victorian Fairy Tern population.

One chick, near the age of fledgling, was Photo: Andrew Silcocks observed on the boundaries of the Moolap saltworks in early February. The chick was seen walking along the sand bank exercising its wings but unable to take flight in between being fed by two adults. This sighting confirmed the suspected breeding activity at the site where 4 adult birds in breeding plumage had been observed from December displaying aggressive defensive behaviour and carrying fish. Two possible immature birds were also sighted amongst the flock of about 44 small terns with the majority of the flock suspected to be Fairy Terns.

The Fairy Tern Project continues to monitor the whereabouts of adult birds in Western Port and Port Phillip Bay during the non-breeding season to help determine site use and movements during this period. Sightings can be reported to Amy Adams at [email protected].

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BirdLife Australia’s Beach-nesting Birds Project is funded from a range of sources including the State Government of Victoria via the Icon Species Fund and Community Volunteer Action Grant, Commonwealth Government via the National Landcare Programme, Adelaide and Mount Lofty Ranges NRM, Natural Resources Eyre Peninsula, Natural Resources Northern and Yorkes, Bill Holsworth, CoastCare Victoria, the NSW Environmental Trust and the generous donations of BirdLife Australia members and supporters.

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